A review by vikingwolf
Sisar Helena by Helen Dore Boylston

3.0

Book Two sees Sue, Kit, Connie and the gang back on the wards. Connie is scared of her turn as an operating nurse and only the intervention of Bill stops her fainting during her first operation. Sue struggles to keep her mind on her job, finding it boring to be away from the patients. George seems to drive a wedge between Bill and Sue, and the nurses start to think about the next stage of their career as graduation approaches.

There was a lot of humour in this book. Having mad Tony causing trouble on the ward for Kit and Sue led to a very funny scene on laundry day which had me sniggering. The operating nurses play tricks on the new girls which puts Willie in a foul mood. Sue's operating experience with the scariest surgeon in the hospital is amusing as well. It was great to see Hilda, Willie and the others in the hospital, and seeing what they plan to do next. I certainly hope we haven't seen the last of the girls!

Sue's relationship with Bill develops further but she isn't very smart about it! She seems blind to Bill being in love with her and wanting to have a serious relationship so she is startled by his proposal, and isn't really ready to give him a proper answer. She is forced to examine her confused feelings and has to keep touch with Bill by letter when he leaves his position at the hospital. Her fears that she has lost him to another woman increase as vicious gossip comes back to her. Connie also finds love with a poet called Phil who has no interest in her money, and Sue envies the way Connie handles things.

I found Bill to be a bit annoying in this book. His childish tantrums when Sue laughed at something George said were over the top. However, had Sue just told Bill that she thought George was annoying, all this could have been avoided. George himself was annoying and far too self obsessed for someone like Sue, and you were left hoping that he wouldn't mess things up for Sue and Bill. They both need to TALK to each other instead of saying nothing and letting problems brew between them!

I enjoy the fun and problems that the nurses experience on the hospital wards so I'm wondering how I'm going to like the next few books as the girls take their experiences out into the real world, starting as visiting nurses in New York.