Helen Wells, was a social worker turned full-time writer, and, like
her most famous heroine, an Illinois native who loved New York
City.
She was born Helen Weinstock on March 29, 1910, in Danville,
Illinois. Her brother, Robert, has said that ""Danville is pretty
much the town that Cherry Ames lived in, and our house was her
house."" The family moved to New York City when Helen was about
seven, and she loved New York. The family retained ties to
Danville, however; almost every summer, they spent some time
visiting relatives there. As a teenager, Wells studied painting at
the Art Students League in New York City; she also studied music.
At New York University, she became the first female editor of the
school's literary quarterly. She graduated from NYU in 1934, with a
major in philosophy and a minor in sociology and psychology. After
graduation, she worked for a time as a social worker and began to
write for magazines, and eventually turned to writing full-time
after winning prizes in two short-story contests.
During World War II, she served as a volunteer with the State
Department's Office of the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs,
escorting Latin American visitors in the United States. She
traveled widely, visiting Brazil, Spain, France, Austria, Israel,
Mexico, England, and several other countries. Among her other
interests were reading, theater, ballet, and jazz. She also was a
cat lover; two of her cats were Gigi, a blue Persian, and Crissy,
an orange Angora. She was active in several author organizations,
especially the Mystery Writers of America, and taught writing
courses at the Institute of Children's Literature in Redding Ridge,
Connecticut.
Helen Wells is best known for the Cherry Ames series, which was
published in numerous countries besides the United States,
including Canada, Great Britain, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland,
Iceland, Japan, France, Italy, Holland, and Bolivia. But Wells
wrote two other series. Under her own name, she wrote the Vicki
Barr books, about a young mystery-solving flight attendant--like
Cherry Ames and Helen Wells herself, another Illinois-to-New York
transplant. And, as Francine Lewis, she penned the short-lived
Polly French series, published by Whitman in the early 1950s: Polly
French of Whitford High, Polly French Takes Charge, and Polly
French and the Surprising Stranger; these books, about a young
teenager, are aimed at a younger readership.
Among her other books for young people were several so-called
Career-Romances for Young Moderns--novels that featured a young
woman pursuing a career, published by Julian Messner: The Girl in
the White Coat (1953), A Flair for People (1955), Introducing Patti
Lewis, Home Economist (1956), and Doctor Betty (1969). Wells also
wrote Escape by Night: A Story of the Underground Railway (1953), a
""Winston Adventure Book"" for young people, based on a true story;
and A City for Jean (1956), a novel about a young social worker,
for Funk & Wagnalls; and Adam Gimbel, Pioneer Trader (1955) and
Barnum, Showman of America (1957) for McKay.
Helen Wells died in New York City on February 10, 1986, and is
buried in Danville, Illinois. The 1986 Juvenile Series Writers
Conference in Corning, New York, was dedicated to her memory.
Springer Publishing Company is grateful to The Cherry Ames Page
website for information on Helen Wells. Please visit
www.netwrx1.com/CherryAmes
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