Ever since I met Sue Barton, Student Nurse more than thirty years ago, I've had a penchant for hospital books. So when my local public library discarded Hospital Summer, by Margeret Egan (1968), I naturally took it home with me....and just spent a satisfying 50 minutes in the dated but diverting world of the 18-year-old nurse's aide, watching young Kathy learning valuable lessons about Life and Love.
This bit (about a girl being reuinted with her dying father) actually made me cry, which I wasn't expecting.
"My God!" His voice hurt with its harshness. "My God. Janet."
She was paralyzed, frozen; and then she broke like glass. "Daddy!" She lunged from the chair. "It's my daddy." (page 185).
sniff.
50 more minutes read. 5 more minutes of blogging.
Totals: 5 hours and 40 minutes reading. Two hours and 13 minutes blogging and commenting.
These old nurse stories are always so much fun to read. Good luck with your books for this challenge.
ReplyDeleteAwww. I feel you on the nurse stories. The Cherry Ames books, the Tommy series (A Nurse Called Tommy followed by a Wife, and a Missionary, preceded by A Girl -- all called Tommy, of course. Those were older than I am, and some dear lady at church gave them to me), and even Ellen Emmerson White's Vietnam era novel The Road Home -- all faves. Hospital Summer sounds like something that I'd find in a delightfully old box of books that would have that Special Smell, and would divert me instantly.
ReplyDelete::sigh::
I still miss the library at your old house. That whole house was my idea of Heaven.
I love that you're reading older stuff! Sometimes I forget that books were published before three years ago... there are so many new things coming out to keep up with. But I know I've missed a lot of wonderful things that I'd like to go back to.
ReplyDeleteI have tried other old career genrees (like theater) but for some reason the nursing ones appeal most! I haven't read the Tommy books, Tanita, but I'll look out for them!
ReplyDelete(and I will always miss that house too...I'm very glad, though, we still had it to share with the two of you!)
I have a lot of the older stuff--there are secret tbr piles, so low priority as to be almost not tbr at all, of books salvaged from my children's library, books salvaged from my own public library's discards, books bought for 25 cents at library sales...
And I am pretty sure that I still have a lot of catching up from the ninties to do! But progress is being made.