Cherry Ames In My Book Basket

 What's In My Book Basket?

Hello friends! Oh my goodness, I've got too many books! In fact, I have been spending some time off and on this week filling boxes with books I no longer am going to keep so I can trade them at our local used bookstore. It's amazing how quickly books can accumulate when one is a bibliophile, right?!

Luckily, however, I definitely have room on my bookshelves and, of course, in my book basket for the books I am sharing today. 

Do you remember the "Cherry Ames" series of books? This series was begun in 1943 and continued until 1968. These books are mysteries that involve dedicated nurse Cherry Ames. She has a different nursing assignment in each book and there is always a mystery happening that she manages to solve. 

There are 27 titles in this series with two different authors having written the books. Helen Wells began the series writing titles #1-9 and #17-27. In the middle of the series, Julie Trantham (who also authored the Trixie Belden series) wrote titles #10-16. 

These books were popular during the 40's, 50's and 60's with the late teen to early twenties set because they offered adventure for young women with a career minded focus. Many young women went into nursing careers, in part, because of reading these books and being exposed to nursing as a career. 

So, why am I, a woman in my late sixties, suddenly interested in these books?  Well, I actually never read these books when I was an older teen and when I saw some discussion of them on Facebook sites I got interested in what they were about. So, I ordered a couple on Amazon (yes, several titles have been re-issued and are available) and started reading. And I must tell you dear readers, I am officially hooked!

I find the books to be really interesting, light reads. They aren't at all what I would consider "juvenile" and are an interesting flashback to what life and nursing were like in the 40's and 50's and 60's. And, of course, I always love a mystery so there's that as well. 

I can remember doctor's offices similar to the ones described in these books in which the nurse (wearing a white uniform and nurses' cap!) sat at the desk in the reception part of the office and acted as secretary, scheduler, money taker and, of course, the nurse when the doctor needed her. There's a whole lot of nostalgia in the Cherry Ames series that I find appealing. 

Cherry is dedicated to her career and has so many varied and different opportunities for using her nursing skills. Just look at the titles and you can see she was up for anything!

1. Cherry Ames, Student Nurse (1943)
2. Cherry Ames, Senior Nurse (1944)
3. Cherry Ames, Army Nurse (1944)
4. Cherry Ames, Chief Nurse (1944)
5. Cherry Ames, Flight Nurse (1945)
6. Cherry Ames, Veterans' Nurse (1946)
7. Cherry Ames, Private Duty Nurse (1946)
8. Cherry Ames, Visiting Nurse (1947)
9. Cherry Ames, Cruise Nurse (1948)
10. Cherry Ames, at Spencer (1949)
11. Cherry Ames, Night Supervisor (1950)
12. Cherry Ames, Mountaineer Nurse (1951)
13. Cherry Ames, Clinic Nurse (1952)
14. Cherry Ames, Dude Ranch Nurse (1953)
15. Cherry Ames, Rest Home Nurse (1954)
16. Cherry Ames, Country Doctor's Nurse (1955)
17. Cherry Ames, Boarding School Nurse (1955)
18. Cherry Ames, Department Store Nurse (1956)
19. Cherry Ames, Camp Nurse^[5] (1957)
20. Cherry Ames, at Hilton Hospital^[6] (1959)
21. Cherry Ames, Island Nurse^[7] (1960)
22. Cherry Ames, Rural Nurse^[8] (1961)
23. Cherry Ames, Staff Nurse (1962)
24. Cherry Ames, Companion Nurse (1964)
25. Cherry Ames, Jungle Nurse (1965)
26. Cherry Ames: The Mystery in the Doctor's Office (1966)
27. Cherry Ames: Ski Nurse Mystery (1968)

      *(Titles from Wikipedia, Cherry Ames search)

While some critiques I read stated that the books gave an idealized version of nursing, it is still refreshing to read stories that are wholesome and adventurous and hold the reader's interest. It is important to keep in mind when these stories were written because from time to time particular phrases hit me as sexist or outdated ways of speaking in today's world. But this may also be found in other books written during these years. 

In doing research about Cherry Ames and in looking for some of the titles to purchase, I have discovered that there are many other adult fans of the Cherry Ames books. I intend to look for other titles in the series to read and add to my collection. Just as I have loved, and continue to love and read, the Betsy-Tacy series of books by Maud Hart Lovelace, I find the Cherry Ames series to be a nostalgic breath of fresh air to read and add to my book basket and book shelves.

How about you? Have you read the Cherry Ames series either in the past or currently? Do you enjoy nostalgic books that harken back to yesteryear? What books are in your reading basket right now?

I hope you will take a moment to share in the comments. I love hearing from you!

Until Next Time,

Debbie, This and That

Red, White and Blue For A Tiered Tray, Barbie Outfits and Me

 Decor For The 4th of July And More!

Hello everyone! It's been a minute or two since I last posted. I went on a trip and have been busy with other things but I wanted to pop on and share some fun ideas as the 4th of July approaches. 

I found some cute smaller items for the 4th at Aldi recently and I'm using them on the Foyer table. The top tier of my tiered tray shows a candle draped in colorful beads and a flag themed little hat. The bottom tier shows the little garden figurines I bought last summer. So, the tiered tray is a combo of 4th of July and summer type figurines. 

The bottom shelf of the Foyer table holds a vase with flags, a little flag dish and the Red, White and Blue sign. This is a simple nod to the 4th of July this year. 

And just look at how festive these Barbies look! They are definitely dressed for the 4th of July! I used a star bandana that I had on hand to create the dresses and skirts except for the one Barbie who is all dressed in blue with a red plaid tie at her neck. I personally sewed everything you see here except for the white top on the last Barbie which was a purchased piece. And, of course, I didn't make the shoes.  By the way, the last Barbie on the right is my most recent find and she had not been out of her original Spring Petals Barbie outfit for 30 years! So, she is definitely ready to kick up her heels and have a new outfit to wear! 

This is the outfit she had been wearing for 30 years. She is an absolutely beautiful doll. The Spring Petals Barbie was designed by Mattel for Avon in 1996. I am enjoying my Barbies and not leaving them in boxes or wearing the same outfits they arrived in. I am enjoying my hobby and sewing and dressing the dolls in different outfits. I must say, however, that this doll arrived in pristine condition with everything original in the box. This beautiful spring outfit is very high quality. Much different from the cheaper materials used for Barbie clothing today in my opinion. 

Here are some close-ups of the outfits. I'm using a red earring to hold the navy blue scarf in place on the doll to the right. 

It's so much fun to be creative and to try to design and sew outfits. I created my own pattern from another Barbie dress to use for the all blue top on the doll to the right. In my opinion it would be too short for a dress so I am using it as a tunic top instead. Mix and match, right?! And you have seen the all blue skirt that I sewed already on a different doll. 

And speaking of sewing, here's the skirt I sewed from a lounging robe that belonged to my Mom. I wore it today to go shopping paired with a navy blue top and navy shoes. No white in the outfit (except on the shoes) but definitely red and blue! I wore a white sweater inside the stores because I'm always cool in the AC and, to be honest, I kinda felt like this outfit made me look too much like a little old lady. Different shoes and not wearing the sweater would have helped but these were comfortable. Sometimes I struggle between wanting to be comfortable and wanting to be stylish. Do you ever feel like this?

How about you? Are you displaying any red, white and blue around your home? How is your summer going? Hope you will chime in and share in the comments. I'll try to post again, soon! I have some fun new books I've been reading to share with you!

Until Next Time,

Debbie This and That