2017-2019 VNRN Awards

Hold your breath no longer, friends: Here we have the first VNRN awards ceremony in three years. My dedication to this blog admittedly slackened for a few years, but I made up for it last year! And so this roundup therefore includes the 13 orphaned reviews from 2017-2018 in addition to the 51 from 2019.

What you need to know: Winners are chosen from the 64 VNRNs I’ve read these past three years, which were penned by 45 different authors. The Best and Worst Authors categories includes all the VNRNs reviewed for this blog (377 to date), but only authors with more than one review are included.

It's a banner ceremony for Adelaide Humphries, Adeline McElfresh, and Jane Converse, who managed to all have two books on the Worst list. They might have been joined by Arlene Hale but I only read one of her books this period.

 

Best Books:

1. Paper Halo, by Kate Norway (pseud. Olive Norton)

2. Wrong Doctor John, by Kate Starr

3. White Cap of Courage, by Ann Rush

4. Story of Andrea Fields, Woman and Doctor, by Elizabeth Seifert

5. Next Patient, Doctor Anne, by Elizabeth Gilzean

6. Nurse Willow's Ward, by Jan Tempest (pseud. Irene Mossop Swatridge)

7. Marilyn Morgan, R.N., by Rubie Saunders

8. A Nurse Named Courage, by Florence Stonebraker

9. With Love from Dr. Lucien, by Pauline Ash

10. Nurse of My Heart, by Jill Christian

Worst Books:

1. Nurse Nolan’s Private Duty by Adeline McElfresh

2. World's Fair Nurse by Dorothy Daniels

3. Reluctant Nurse by Anne Lorraine

4. Heartbreak Nurse by Jane Converse (pseud. Adele Kay Maritano)

5. Nurse Penny by Suzanne Roberts

6. A Case for Nurse Marian by Adelaide Humphries

7. The Nurse Made Headlines by Adelaide Humphries

8. Beth Lloyd, Surgical Nurse by Jane Converse (pseud. Adele Kay Maritano)

9. Jill Nolan, Surgical Nurse by Adeline McElfresh

10. Frightened Nurse by Arlene Hale

Best Covers:

Daredevil Nurse, illustration by Mort Engel

Prodigal Nurse

Doctor Down Under

The Nurse Knows Best, illustration by Tom Miller

World’s Fair Nurse, illustration by Lou Marchetti

Best Quotes:

1. “The girl who was with him in the accident died a short time ago. Just as well, perhaps. She would have been much disfigured.” Nurse in Paris by Renee Shann

2. “She was the life of the party and so much fun that no one cared how fat she was or what was the color of her hair.” The Nurse Knows Best by Adelaide Humphries

3. “I’ve had better kisses from my Labrador.” Nurse Hilary’s Holiday Task by Jan Haye

4. “I’m Dick Walden. You will address me as Doctor when any patients are around and I’ll give sharp orders to show what a fine medical man I am. Otherwise, I cotton well to Dick.” World’s Fair Nurse by Dorothy Daniels

5. “Taffy was surprisingly chipper for someone whose dura had gushed blood the instant it was opened.” Nurse Nolan’s Private Duty by Adeline McElfresh

6. “What a frightful waste of all the doctor’s expensive training—if he’s drowned, I mean. We’re all going to miss him terribly.” The Case for Nurse Sheridan by Nora Sanderson

7. “She could not give her lips to someone when her heart was so troubled.” A Case for Nurse Marian by Adelaide Humphries

8. “I was thinking how much fun it would be to give you mouth to mouth resuscitation.” Marilyn Morgan, Cruise Nurse by Rubie Saunders

9. “I thought she was terribly courageous; that red hair and a red hat. It takes some doing.” Doctor Down Under by Anne Vinton

10. “Try some hot compresses on your heart. See if you can’t warm it up while I’m gone.” Believe in Miracles by Florence Stuart

Best Authors:

1. Jeanne Judson, 3.9 average (3 reviews)

2. Marguerite Mooers Marshall, 3.9 average (3 reviews)

3. Olive Norton, 3.9 average (2 reviews)

4. Faith Baldwin, 3.8 average (4 reviews)

5. William Neubauer, 3.7 average (2 reviews)

6. Jan Tempest, 3.7 average (2 reviews)

7. Maysie Grieg, 3.5 average (2 reviews)

8. Ann Rush, 3.5 average (2 reviews)

9. Elizabeth Seifert, 3.5 average (2 reviews)

10. Rubie Saunders, 3.5 average (2 reviews)

11. Joyce Dingwell, 3.5 average (3 reviews)

Worst Authors:

1. Patti Carr, 1.5 average (2 reviews)

2. Zillah Macdonald and Vivian Ahl, 1.5 average (2 reviews)

3. Jeanne Bowman, 1.6 average (10 reviews)

4. Anne Lorraine, 1.7 average (2 reviews)

5. Arlene J. Fitzgerald, 1.8 average (3 reviews)

6. Virginia K. Smiley, 1.9 average (2 reviews)

7. Suzanne Roberts, 2.0 average (6 reviews)

8. Ruth McCarthy Sears, 2.0 average (4 reviews)

9. Elizabeth Kelly, 2.0 average (2 reviews)

10. Isabel Stewart Way, 2.0 average (2 reviews)