All Creatures Great and Small

I already know this will be one of my favorite books of 2015. I had read James Herriot's Treasury for Children with the girls, and it was -- and is -- a beloved collection of stories, but I had never read any of his other books. Oh, but I was missing a lot! These stories of his early career as a country vet in the Yorkshire Dales in the 1930s are all gems. Mr. Herriot has a marvelous sense of humor, a self-deprecating wit, a genuine love for his patients and their owners, and a profound gift for storytelling. I laughed throughout, and cried frequently. These are not memoirs, strictly speaking, but rather stories based on his experiences as a veterinary surgeon's assistant. He just writes beautifully, and Mr. Timothy's narration show more (Christopher Timothy played James Herriot in the television series) was perfection: warm and emotional. The book begins as Mr. Herriot is deeply grateful for an interview -- prospects for newly certified vets being bleak. Raised in Scotland, and imagining an urban practice caring for pets, the rural and wild Yorkshire Dales with their fiercely independent farmers was something of a shock to him, but he quickly comes to love the area, its people, and its animals, and that love comes through palpably. Mr. Herriot never left Yorkshire, and I hope to return soon myself with another of his books. show less

All Creatures Great and Small is one of the funniest books I've read in my life, with humor that I think would appeal to a wide audience. I usually steer clear of animal-themed stories because they tend to be maudlin, but All Creatures Great and Small isn't that kind of animal book. Herriot wrote about his most memorable, strange adventures as a large-animal veterinarian who visited various farms to handle all manner of cases, at all hours of day and night.

I knew absolutely nothing about large-animal veterinarianism before reading this book; it wasn't something I gave much, if any, thought to. What I learned is that the profession is challenging obviously for the actual work but also exhausting because of the hours. Creatures don't show more always give birth at convenient times. If a cow is giving birth at the ungodly hour of 3:00 AM, the veterinarian can't exactly ask her to wait until a better time.

I read this many years before joining Goodreads, but I still remember one of the most memorable, and hilarious, accounts involved Herriot reaching far into a pig's vagina to help deliver her piglets. As if that isn't bad enough, one of the piglets kept biting his hand with its "needle teeth." This is such a bizarre (but needed!) profession. I suggest recounting such anecdotes in detail to all children who dreamily claim they want to be vets when they grow up.

Books containing great humor endear themselves to me almost immediately, and this gem holds a special place in my heart. I wish more writers wrote humor like Herriot did. show less

A charming collection of stories from the life of a 1930's veterinarian in Yorkshire, England. Herriot is as good a writer as he is a vet. Although, I believe I now know far more than I ever wanted to about the uteruses of various farm animals, I do plan to read the entire series. Herriot's prose and genuineness really capture a reader and leave one wanting more.

In the late 1930s, during the period near the end of the Great Depression but before the world went to war, a young Scotsman graduates from veterinary school and looks for any job he can get. His search leads him to accepting a position as an associate at a small practice in the Yorkshire dales, where he will be responsible for healing both livestock and house pets. Although well-trained academically, he is woefully short of practical experience, something which the local farmers and his colleagues alike are only too happy to point out. Nevertheless, the young man perseveres and soon becomes a respected and indispensable part of the community. Along the way, he learns his craft by dealing with literally hundreds of animals—as well as show more their owners, in many cases—under conditions that range from harrowing to humorous. Above it all, though, he also finds himself enamored and deeply affected by the people, the landscape, and the rhythm of life in his newly adopted home.

All Creatures Great and Small is the memoir of James Herriot, the humble and thoughtful man who embarks on this heartwarming journey. (Incidentally, while it is a history, the book apparently is not a strictly verbatim account; for instance, James Herriot is the pen name for James “Alf” Wight, the man who actually wrote it about three decades later based on his experiences.) Over the course of 67 relatively short chapters, Herriot delivers tale after delightful tale of his work with the animals, his interactions with the local inhabitants, his budding friendships with his boss and his boss’ younger brother, his growing admiration for the natural world around him, and, most of all, his halting courtship of the woman who will become his wife. While each of these chapters often relates a distinct event, collectively they constitute a chronicle of the author’s life as he moves through the first few years of his new career.

It is hard to express just how utterly charming I found this entire volume to be. Herriot may well have been a gifted and empathetic veterinarian—and, by all indications, he certainly was—but he was just as clearly a remarkable writer. While his stories of treating animals (particularly the large ones: cows, horses, pigs, and sheep) were uniformly splendid, where the author’s prose really stood out for me was in his descriptions of the northern English countryside as the seasons changed from the harsh realities of late fall and winter to the life-affirming growth of spring and summer. Beyond that, Herriot had a real talent for capturing the essence of his human subjects in subtle ways, either through the words they spoke or the actions they took. He lived at a time and under circumstances that are rapidly receding from memory, but we are fortunate to have such a gentle and endearing tribute to remind us all of what took place. show less

First sentence: They didn't say anything about this in the books, I thought, as the snow blew in through the gaping doorway and settled on my naked back. I lay face down on the cobbled floor in a pool of nameless muck, my arm deep inside the straining cow, my feet scrabbling for a toe hold between the stones.

Premise/plot: The first two books of a British book series were published under the name All Creatures Great and Small in 1972. They are an animal-focused 'memoir' [semi-autobiographical???] of a Yorkshire vet. James Herriot is the pen name of James Alfred Wight.

Is a love of animals required? Perhaps somewhat. Certainly if you absolutely hate animals it might not be a good match for you.

Is an interest in veterinary practices show more required? Not really. True if you absolutely hate animals and have zero interest in their care and wellbeing, well, it might not be the absolutely best fit. However, it isn't so much *what* as *how*.

All Creatures Great and Small is a celebration of storytelling. It is HOW the stories are told, the narration itself, that makes this one so delightful, so charming, so worth reading. It is also a celebration of a passing-away-way-of-life. I believe, though I am not sure, they capture rural, country life in the late 1930s, early 1940s.

The chapters are linked together loosely in that they are stories of his veterinary practice. There are some characters [loosely based on people he knew] that are present for many if not most of the stories. There is a love interest as well--though she doesn't make her appearance until later in the book. But in some ways the chapters are just episodes that could almost be read in any order.

My thoughts: I was slightly resistant. Slightly. I knew in a fuzzy, vague way that these stories, these books, were among my grandma's favorites. I knew that the television series was based on a book series. I knew that there were two television series. (I haven't seen either yet). I knew that this might be a someday book for me. I'll get around to it...someday. I definitely enjoyed this one. I am not "big" on farm life, farm stories, farm animals. But I found the stories charming. I LOVED him as a narrator. It almost didn't matter that I didn't really *care* care about horses and cows and sheep and pigs, etc. show less

This is barely a 3 star read for me. I can't stand Siegfried's habit of ignoring everything inconvenient to him. Also, it started with a bunch of veterinary procedures and no plot in evidence. The plot did eventually come to light, but Siegfried never really improved. On the other hand, the parts where there are descriptions of the country social life or Jim's visit with the little dog Tricky are quite amusing.

Young Scotsman Herriot had just passed his veterinary exams in the 30's when work of any kind was hard to come by. He was fortunate to be taken on as an assistant by Siegfried, and established vet with a practice in the Yorkshire Dales. Soon they were joined by Siegfried's younger brother Tristan, who had failed his vet exams but still helped on the rounds. This is a region that took adjustment for the young vet, as he was an outsider and the terrain was difficult, made worse because Herriot's loaner car didn't have brakes. He proved himself to be smart, innovative, and courageous, as he described shoving his hands in places that make the reader cringe. He does whatever he can to help both the animals and the farmers who are often on show more the edge of survival.

This is one of my best reads of the year. There are grim situations, but Herriot also writes of his hilarious date with Helen, when the rest of the house tried to cobble together appropriate dinner clothes for him, or the comical frustration of dealing with a boss who didn't listen. show less