"A very warm, very engaging read. . . . The reader falls totally under his spell."
--Associated Press
The second volume in ... read full description
--Associated Press
The second volume in ... read full description
reviews
Mar 12, 2007
Melissa
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In fact it set me to thinking about the big question of how girls might be expected to behave after marriage. One old farmer giving me advice about choosing a wife once said; "Have a bloody good look at the mother first, lad. " and I am sure he had a point. But if I may throw in my own little word of counsel it would be to have a passing glance at how she acts towards her father.
Watching her now as she got down and started to serve my breakfast the warm knowledge flo More...
Watching her now as she got down and started to serve my breakfast the warm knowledge flo More...
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Sep 05, 2011
The titles of these books were different in Britain, and so the books are somewhat out of order for Americans. The American editions have the text of the hymn in the front. It's such a beautiful poem that I wondered why I hadn't ever heard the hymn before. Then I heard it...and it's AWFUL. Somebody would be doing the lyrics a significant favor to reset them to different music. If even my cousin, who consistently won audiences with his dynamite Al Jolson impression couldn't make it sound good
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May 04, 2011
Brittany
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All Things Bright and Beautiful picks up where All Creatures Great and Small leaves off: with Jim's wedding to Helen. (I remember as a kid it confused the heck out of me that the books didn't go in the same order as the lines in the hymn did.) However, the book is not strictly chronological. One of the things that makes it such a leisurely, wonderful read is that the chapters are mostly self-contained.
This is a wonderful book to listen to on a road trip because the chapters read a b More...
This is a wonderful book to listen to on a road trip because the chapters read a b More...
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May 15, 2008
Nate
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This series - of which I have now read the first two - is the most fun you can have reading books. They make you want to go to Scotland, hole up in a cottage, drink tea and read some more James Herriot. I don't want these books to ever end. As an aside, this isn't a novel, rather its a collection of short stories, each one just the right length for before bed.
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Dec 26, 2008
Elizabeth
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I always enjoy rereading James Herriot's memoirs of his experiences as a veterinarian in Yorkshire in the first half of the previous century. His tales of treating farm animals and household pets, and of the human characters he met along the way, are what I have to describe as "heart-warming". They're not saccharine, though, I promise. He's funny, too. Even though I've read his stories multiple times since middle school, I find myself laughing aloud.
This book comes second More...
This book comes second More...
Oct 21, 2011
Tiffeny
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My good neighbor got me into these books and I love them. This is the 2nd in his series. At the end of the last, he and Helen had just gotten married, and this one continues with their life. But it's still mostly his life as a veterinary surgeon in a small town in England. The stories are funny, heart-felt, sometimes sad, mostly heart-warming. I love these books and can't recommend them enough.
There isn't as much in this book about Herriot's eccentric, sometimes crazy partner Si More...
There isn't as much in this book about Herriot's eccentric, sometimes crazy partner Si More...
Sep 27, 2010
Jelinas
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All Things Bright and Beautiful is James Herriot's follow-up to All Creatures Great and Small and, much like his debut effort, this volume is filled with touching stories, rip-roaring humor, and, saturating everything else, a strong taste of the Yorkshire Dales. Herriot regales us with more tales from his experiences as a vet in rural Northern England.
He also arevisits his courtship of his wife and some of his misadventures along the way to marriage. And, of course, his good friends More...
He also arevisits his courtship of his wife and some of his misadventures along the way to marriage. And, of course, his good friends More...
Feb 06, 2009
Michael
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There are some books you read where you just wish you could live in the world the writer portrays. James Herriot is like that for me. His stories of 30s rural Yorkshire life as a vet are warm and engaging, funny and lively. He has the ability to stir the soul, as when he writes about treating the last plow horse before tractors take over farmwork, and the funnybone, as when he describes his dealing with his crazy boss, Sigfreid.
This is another book of short stories, loosely held More...
This is another book of short stories, loosely held More...
Dec 06, 2008
Rhonda
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This is the sequel to All Creatures Great and Small. The classic story based on the real life experience of a veterinarian in Yorkshire, England. James Herriot cotinues to live in Darrowby after his marraige to Helen Alderson. This book continues the stories of a country veterinarian and includes many small animal stories aw well.
We see less of his associates in this book. His partner (and boss), Siegfried Farnon, still frequently contradicts himself. Siegfried's brother, Tristan Far More...
We see less of his associates in this book. His partner (and boss), Siegfried Farnon, still frequently contradicts himself. Siegfried's brother, Tristan Far More...
Feb 20, 2009
Rebecca
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So sweet and fun. Great charming characters, intriguing veterinary problems, and a cool endearing narrator witnessing history from the Yorkshire Dales. I can't wait to read the rest.
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Feb 13, 2011
Terri
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Maybe I give 5 star ratings too liberally, but this book was just as wonderful as Herriot's first memoir, All Creatures Great and Small. Delightful, hilarious writing with lots of little life lessons, vignettes about a large variety of people and animals, and so much understanding and empathy. Reading this second novel felt like coming home because of how much I enjoyed the first.
I did feel there was a bit more "gore" in this one...he is after all an animal doctor and surg More...
I did feel there was a bit more "gore" in this one...he is after all an animal doctor and surg More...
Apr 06, 2011
Carol
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I have loved these books from the first one I picked up. If I wasn't laughing out loud in a room all by myself, I was mopping up the tears from a very touching experience I read about. I'm a succor for a fun and loving animal story. This is an absolutely delightful James Herriot. He's a master storyteller. This book is just a collection of experiences from when he was a vet, and it was interesting as well as hilarious. My husband and I just started watching the BBC Series provided by Netflix.
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Aug 02, 2011
Dianne
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I am not interested in farm animals. Which proves that James Herriot (Al White) is a great writer because I devoured all of his books.
He creates believable, lovably odd characters. He uses a lot of self-deprecating humor, especially in his descriptions of his bumbling wooing of Helen.
My favorite story is when a farmer phones James, the "Vetnery," because his sow has just had a dozen piglets and she's madly trying to kill them. By the time James drives up the dales More...
He creates believable, lovably odd characters. He uses a lot of self-deprecating humor, especially in his descriptions of his bumbling wooing of Helen.
My favorite story is when a farmer phones James, the "Vetnery," because his sow has just had a dozen piglets and she's madly trying to kill them. By the time James drives up the dales More...
Nov 25, 2008
Dave
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Delightful book! I read it when I was a medical student and it was one of the very few books that have made me laugh out loud even though I was all alone. It was funny to think of my experiences and compare them to the author who was a veterinarian student. I went on to read some of his other books and loved them as well. Each chapter is about a specific experience or type of experience (e.g. house calls or night deliveries). When we were stationed in Holland I wanted to go over to Scotland
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Jun 30, 2009
Helynne
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Our book club assignment one month was to choose "anything by James Herriot." I checked out this volume, one in his four-part series--each book with one of the four lines of the little song, "All Things Bright and Beautiful, All Creatures Great and Small, All Things Wise and Wonderful, The Lord God Made Them All." (The first book is called All Creatures Great and Small and the second is this one All Things Brighan and Beautiful . Herriot chronologically mixed up the fir
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Jun 25, 2011
Alexis
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All Things Bright and Beautiful is a continuation of the life of James Herriot, a sensitive Yorkshire vet. We learn about new animals and are introduced to the beginnings of the antibiotic revolution.
This book was written with the same thoughtful detail as All Creatures Great and Small. Herriot uses his vivid descriptions to transport the reader to the Yorkshire Dales and sweep us along with him during his experiences as a vet.
The book ends with him being called up More...
This book was written with the same thoughtful detail as All Creatures Great and Small. Herriot uses his vivid descriptions to transport the reader to the Yorkshire Dales and sweep us along with him during his experiences as a vet.
The book ends with him being called up More...
May 26, 2011
Tanya
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I adore James Herriot. Few authors are so naturally gifted in telling their stories. He has the ability to make me laugh out loud as well as feel a spectrum of emotions. I usually note that while reading James Herriot I either feel very at peace or I have a big smile on my face.
His stories about being a country vet in Scotland are wonderful. This is the second book I have read and I can't wait to read the other two (or more?). No wonder all his books have been bestsellers (sel More...
His stories about being a country vet in Scotland are wonderful. This is the second book I have read and I can't wait to read the other two (or more?). No wonder all his books have been bestsellers (sel More...
Aug 14, 2010
Dan
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I continue to be impressed by the books in this series. They are very well written. The stories are a perfect length for a bit of casual reading before bed. One of the things that I really enjoy about them is that although there is a wonderful amount of humor in them, there are also a lot of entries that are more serious as well. Mr. Wight (James Herriot) is an impressively humble man. It's nice to read about his frustrations, as well as his successes. It's also nice to see little bits of
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Apr 14, 2008
Dale
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Mar 26, 2007
Justin
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This book gives you warm fuzzy feelings at times, and also can make you want to vomit. I believe this is the personal narrative of James Harriot, though I could be mistaken. At any rate, the book is a compilation of stories that are told by a veterenarian in the 50s and earlier, when the medical practices were very different than they are today. There are some gross stories about pulling steaming calves out of a mother cow in the dead of winter (which for some reason is in great detail) but ther
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Aug 31, 2011
Seabirdicat
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My mom has been telling me to read this books for forEVER and I didn't pick one up until I was 20 years old! But I'm really glad that I finally did because James Herriot is such a great writer! He writes with wit and charm, and characterizes all the farmers and animal owners so well. The stories have a good variety of sad and happy, and subjects range from dogs, cats, horses, sheep, pigs, cows, and even a budgie! I'll definitely be picking up his other books when I have the time, and I'm really
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Oct 06, 2011
Erin
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James Herriot is a vet in Darrowby England in the 1930's. This is a collection of short stories about his experiences with animals and the people who own the animals. He has a great sense of character development and knows how to communicate an interesting story. I love his descriptions of the people that he interacts with. He was an amazing vet and I think the farmers and pet owners would agree. I love all his books.
Jul 22, 2010
Midnight
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Ok, so maybe I am extremely partial to this author since I'm aspiring to be a vet but this memoir just touched me greatly because it chronicled the ups and downs of a vet. Herriot has a clear flair for narration and he couples vet techniques with emotions in an incredible marriage of words that just simply transposes the reader to the circumstance under which he sees his patient. Simply breathtaking.
Nov 30, 2010
Jean
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I love this author! This book, as opposed to the first in the series, is more about veterinary medicine. While the first book narrated his courtship and marriage to change things up occasionally, this one stuck more to his practice. I enjoy the authors understanding of the strengths of the country folks he works with and while I know nothing of animal diseases, I find it fascinating.
Oct 21, 2009
Mary
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These stories are probably some of the best character studies and studies of place I have ever read. The stories tell of a rural vets daily experiences as he travels to the farms in Yorkshire to treat the animals that are so important to the farmer's future. He treats both human and animal characters with dignity and respect. He also loves the countryside and stops along the way to glory in the beauty that he sees. These stories can be read in a group or one chapter once in awhile. They wil
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Jul 21, 2011
Abigail
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Just about as hilarious as "All Creatures Great and Small," although I felt a rising panic every time Granville Bennett showed up. Towards the end of the book World War II arrives and Herriot, Tristan, and Siegfried have to enlist, so there were some moving chapters when James takes leave of the Dales. As with the first book, plenty of drinking (Granville Bennett!) and swearing (Siegfried!).
Apr 20, 2011
Abby
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A charming collection of anecdotes about James Herriot's life as a country vet in Scotland in the early 1900s. I have a very special place in my heart for Mr. Herriot, and I love veterinary stories, so of course I love this book. Herriot's writing style is so disarming and accessible that everyone is sure to relate to him and grow fond of him.
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Jan 20, 2011
This is a book about a Vet's experiences in some small towns in the 1930's. He gives a lot of stories of treating animals, and having to deal with their interesting owners. I wish it had more of a story line, or time that carried the book. It was mix of stories, that were good, I would have just like a more of a time line with the stories.
Jun 16, 2009
Haley
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This book is written in journal style where a country veterinarian records all his experiences.
Unfortunately, it did not hold my interest at all. Usually when I'm listening to a book on CD in my car, I find myself a lot more eager to run errands. With this book, I found myself dreading being in the car. I decided to plow through it anyway hoping it would get better.
There were some stories that I enjoyed. Mr. Friar's conversation with James Herriot was pretty funny and More...
Unfortunately, it did not hold my interest at all. Usually when I'm listening to a book on CD in my car, I find myself a lot more eager to run errands. With this book, I found myself dreading being in the car. I decided to plow through it anyway hoping it would get better.
There were some stories that I enjoyed. Mr. Friar's conversation with James Herriot was pretty funny and More...
Feb 04, 2012
Nafisa
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the warmth of James Herriot's books is clearly evident. It is filled with joy, love, and comedy. It makes me laugh, makes me smile, makes me sad, and makes me feel like life's a glorious thing. A book that has such power certainly deserves to be acclaimed one of the best written the world. I certainly think it to be so. -_-
