All Things Wise and Wonderful

All Things Wise and Wonderful (All Creatures Great and Small #3)

4.35 of 5 stars 4.35  ·  rating details  ·  11,338 ratings  ·  196 reviews
The third volume in the multimillion copy bestselling series

Readers adored James Herriot's tales of his life as a Yorkshire animal doctor in All Creatures Great and Small and All Things Bright and Beautiful. Now here's a third delightful volume of memoirs rich with Herriot's own brand of humor, insight, and wisdom.

In the midst of World War II, James is training for the Roy...more
Paperback, 448 pages
Published November 1st 2004 by St. Martin's Griffin (first published 1977)
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Community Reviews

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Valerie
My other books in this series are much-thumbed editions, obviously read and reread until the color is rubbed off the spine-edges.

This volume, though it's also used, is in better condition. It rather makes me wish Herriot had stuck to his determination not to discuss his war experiences. He clearly hated them so much that it discolored his memories, and it's not surprising that he keeps slipping away into reminiscence. If he had to discuss those years at all, I'd have preferred it if he'd dug out...more
Cappy
Oct 19, 2007 Cappy rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone who yearns for English countrysides
Harriot is the quinetessential author who captures the essence of Yorkshire countryside through his delightful depictions of the people, landscape, and of course the animals. This particular story centers around his leaving the veterinary practice during WWII to go off and learn to fly with the RAF...it seems each time he enters a new adventure in the RAF his mind wanders off to the hills and dales of his home county. A wonderful read for anyone who enjoys the voice of a story teller and doesn't...more
Jodi
Aug 05, 2011 Jodi rated it 4 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: animal lovers
I first read these books in high school and fell in love with them because I am such an animal lover. I found this copy on the free shelf at the library and read it again. The stories are humorous, gentle, and told by someone with a genuine understanding of animals.

The story of Cedric, the gaseous dog, left me in stitches and am so glad that his final owner had no sense of smell! What a match made in heaven for this man and his dog! I also felt so sorry for the author and his experience with the...more
Shanna Gonzalez
This edition of James Herriot's memoirs sees him being drafted into the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force to play his part during World War II, leaving behind his veterinary practice and his wife (now expecting young Jimmy). Although he never sees combat, his description of military training gives an inside view to the training process for pilots in the war, interspersed with plentiful reminiscences of his veterinary practice back in Darrowby. Throughout this story is a sweet marital love, which...more
Sara
Dec 03, 2009 Sara rated it 5 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone!
I just adore these books. I can't help it. Herriot may not be the most polished author but his books have a sense of warmth around them and I feel like I know Helen, Tristan, Siegfried and James. I love that they are real people and wish I could go and visit them, they just seem so lovely. Tristan's antics in this book are hysterical and James' reaction to becoming a new father priceless. I love it. Love. I'm going to wait to read the fourth for a little because I'm sad it's the last one...
Brittany
In the course of my successive re-reads of James Herriot's books as a child, I would routinely skip this one, which I thought of as "the sad one." It is sad. In it, Herriot covers the years during World War II, including his service in the Royal Air Force. It is no heroic, chest-thumping saga. He talks about homesickness, about missing his wife and worrying about the birth of their first child, and about being lonely and scared. It's not as happy or bubbly as some of his other books, but, now th...more
Eligah Boykin jr.



This one is a real rip-snorter! James Herriot is in the RAF now and it's no picnic. He is missing back home and his now pregnant wife Helen and constantly reflects about his experiences to relieve the tedium and harsh barracks surroundings. While he performs his RAF duties, he fondly remembers testing cattle for tuberculosis and when the military dentist pulls his teeth to his dread and terror, he compares what the man does to when he would pull the wolf teeth from horses.

The thing that occurred...more
Sarah
I recently read an online article about James Herriot (aka Alf Wight) in which I learned of his lifelong battle with severe depression. With no real knowledge of Herriot outside of his professional accomplishments, I read his first book casually; cute stories about a budding British veterinarian and his furry, lovable patients in 1930’s farmland. What could be more pleasant and lighthearted, right?

Well, as is true for many things in life, Herriot’s stories actually run deeper than the superfici...more
Aries
Ormai ho preso un'abitudine ben precisa nelle mie letture: cerco sempre di leggere qualcosa che possa darmi il tipo di emozioni, di pensieri, di sensazioni di cui ho bisogno. Dato che in questo periodo capita spesso che io senta la necessit�� di qualcosa di buono, di caldo, di sereno, cosa c'�� di meglio di un libro di Herriot? Ed �� cos�� che mi sono coccolato con Cose sagge e meravigliose, uno dei tanti piccoli gioielli del veterinario dello Yorkshire, la ricetta �� sempre quella: momenti di v...more
Emily Collins
I'm a sucker for these books, and I'm pretty sad I've finally finished the last one. I feel like I should go reread them from the beginning again but I WILL RESIST because I have so many other books lined up to read at this point.
James Herriot is the kind of writer who has never heard of a cliffhanger. If there is a moment in the book where the reader is going dear Lord what WILL happen next?!, that thought will be cleared up within a paragraph of reading. He's just not that kind of writer. His...more
Ronald Wise
This was a very pleasant return to James Herriot and his veterinary practice in Darrowby, Yorkshire. It's been about three decades since I read Herriot's All Things... series, and I remembered enough that the reading was easy while I fortunately forgot just enough to make the stories humorous and interesting all over again.

In this book Herriot is training to be a pilot in the RAF. Dealing with the bureaucratic and impersonal military system reminded him of some difficult clients and patients, bu...more
Lisse
Feb 14, 2012 Lisse rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: people who like animals, touching stories, interested in veteranarian work
I'd say this was a 3.5 for me, so I'll be generous and round up. I previously read and listend to the audio version of All Creatures Great and Small. I think that Herriot does a great job of recreating the stories of his vet years in the Dales. You feel like you're there and I often wondered how so many great stories could come from one man's life. I loved All Creatures Great and Small. And I really enjoyed All Things Wise and Wonderful as well, but for some reason it didn't sit with me quite as...more
Renette Francisco
This is a bit sadder in a sense because the author talks about his time serving in the Royal Air Force during the war. However, he keeps coming back to memories of his time as a veterinary surgeon at Yorkshire, so all the funny animal stories are still there. The funniest story was about Cedric, a boisterous, gassy dog who frequently embarrassed his owner, the prim and proper Mrs. Rumney. The author finally discreetly suggested that the dog be given to a retired farm worker, Mr. Fenton, since th...more
Autumn
As always, it's lovely to read Herriot. He loves his work and those he works for, and that tenderness shows in his storytelling with a good amount of humor perfectly balancing it all out. This time around, Herriot is training in the RAF, and incidents in his training lead to memories of his life as a vet, which he skillfully ties together. I like how Herriot talks to you as though he knows you are as interested in his work and love his patients as much as he does, because, as his reader, you do....more
Veronica
The book switches frequently from wartime to past veterinary experiences. I really enjoyed both aspects but felt disappointed each time he switched topics. Since this is a book about vetting I tend to to agree with reviewer Valerie Shubert, Sep 11, 2011:

"It rather makes me wish Herriot had stuck to his determination not to discuss his war experiences. He clearly hated them so much that it discolored his memories, and it's not surprising that he keeps slipping away into reminiscence. If he had t...more
Heather
I love Herriot's writing, but this one was another slow one. I felt like the stories were more varied than in All Creatures Great and Small, but it still took me a long time to get through since there wasn't much of an overarching narrative other than some thinly stitched-together experiences in the RAF during WWII. Most of his veterinary stories are framed by his war experiences and written as reminiscences of life before (and sometimes after(?)) the war.

The story that stayed with me the most w...more
Carol
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. 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. This has brought back a lot of the fun stories I r...more
Joanne
The third volume of James Herriot nee Alf Wight's 5-volume series opens in the early 1940's. World War II has just begun, and Helen Alderson Herriot is pregnant with the couple's first child. In training with the RAF as a pilot, James somewhow draws a duty station in the north of England, a clandestine bus ride from Darrowby under cover of darkness. Risking court martial for AWOL, James steals home for an hour or two with Helen whenever possible, sustaining himself at other times with memories o...more
Dianne Happel DiFrisco
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 to the farm, the pig is lying...more
Blah
Herriot weaves more of his charming "cat and dog stories" in the form of fond memories into the fabric of his experience training to be a pilot in the Royal Air Force during WW II. This 3rd omnibus edition is another winner which invites us, neigh begs us to fall in love with Yorkshire and her residents.

The arc of the book covers Herriot's entry into the RAF right through basic training, his flight training, through the surgery that ultimately grounded him and leaves us off back in Darrowby whe...more
Brett
Herriot weaves more of his charming "cat and dog stories" in the form of fond memories into the fabric of his experience training to be a pilot in the Royal Air Force during WW II. This 3rd omnibus edition is another winner which invites us, neigh begs us to fall in love with Yorkshire and her residents.

The arc of the book covers Herriot's entry into the RAF right through basic training, his flight training, through the surgery that ultimately grounded him and leaves us off back in Darrowby whe...more
Emily
Herriot's third collection of loosely autobiographical tales of veterinary practice in the Yorkshire dales ostensibly takes place while he is serving in the Royal Air Force during World War II. However, most of the chapters only begin with a paragraph or two about his military life which inevitably reminds him of someone or some animal-related event from his past. This was mildly disconcerting as the connections between the RAF event and the story to follow are sometimes quite a stretch. The tal...more
Melanie
My aunt introduced me to James Harriot a number of years ago. After hosting a gathering in which we watched a few episodes from the old All Creatures Great and Small TV show, some friends gave me this audio book for my birthday. I only recently finished listening to the whole book.

I love these delightful stories about an English country vet working in the Yorkshire highlights during the 1930s and 40s. A couple of my favorites are Shep, the dog that got a kick out of surprising people with his l...more
Purlewe
Another fantastic novel by Mr. Herriot. I find it interesting how he says very clearly how he won't be dicussing the war.. and yet this whole book is framed as his memories of home DURING the war. He gives no info about what his time in the RAF except that he was there, was grounded (no clues as to why), and finally discharged. But each beginning of the story starts out with him doing something in the RAF (marching, flying, etc) and how it reminds him of a something that happened in Darrowby.

Th...more
Emily Bailey
I've been reading James Herriot books for years; my mom would give me his books to read before I was even a teenager and now I enjoy them even more! I got this book in the used section of a book store back in the summer, and have had it on my shelf for months. I finally picked it up and it only took a few days for me to get through it. Definitely a great story! I love how his books could be picked up and started at any chapter, because each individual story is so good. James Herriot writes humor...more
Katie
Feb 07, 2013 Katie rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: All animal lovers, especially those who love good stories about farm life!
I truly cannot get enough of James Herriot. I so wish he was still alive so I could have the opportunity to meet him. He is such an endearing author who draws you in with his hilarious, but often sad, stories about being a farm vet. In 'All Things Wise and Wonderful' he has joined the RAF and briefly tells you about his time becoming a pilot. Most of the book is him daydreaming of being back on the Darrowby farms and living the life of a country vet. Some of the stories are kind of repeated - no...more
Dan
As with the others in the series, this book contains a wealth of fun stories and heart-warming experiences.

I was a bit surprised that the book didn't spend more time describing his time in the air force. He mentions it frequently, of course, but usually only as a lead-in to something from his veterinary life. Unfortunately, that isn't always a good thing, since some of the rough-and-tough nature of men in the military spills over into the book. There are a few more coarse and crude references in...more
Nate
I have learned more from James Herriot about what makes a good Doctor than from any medical textbook. The animals are cute and the stories are witty, but the relationships between James the veterinary surgeon and his clients - the sparse, windblown farmers of the Scottish highlands - as well as the ancient landscape they inhabit - are what make these books for me. Large animals still dominated the work, and a pre-dawn ring usually meant kissing the wife goodbye, leaving her tucked in the warm be...more
Roberta
It took me a little while to get into how he was writing this book. After I figured it out, it was great! The one thing thought was a little strange, was that his "main" plot was how he was training for the Royal Air Force, so each chapter would begin with a tiny bit of that then compare a story from the past with something happening in his present. But the strange thing was his main plot could be gathered into one chapter of a book. I would have liked it better if he just had told each story se...more
Heather
This book is just as cute as the rest of his stories, but I was listening to it while I was swimming and it ultimately wasn't gripping enough to really keep me enraptured while I was doing laps. I need hard core story-candy for that. So, I am giving up. But take no offense James Herriot--I still heart you.

Also: to anyone who is curious about the '70s BBC television show based on his stories, I highly recommend watching one or two. They are horrible and not very interesting, however, hilarious du...more
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James Herriot is the pen name of James Alfred Wight, OBE, FRCVS also known as Alf Wight, an English veterinary surgeon and writer. Wight is best known for his semi-autobiographical stories, often referred to collectively as All Creatures Great and Small, a title used in some editions and in film and television adaptations.

In 1939, at the age of 23, he qualified as a veterinary surgeon with Glasgow...more
More about James Herriot...
All Creatures Great and Small All Things Bright and Beautiful The Lord God Made Them All All Creatures Great and Small; And, All Things Bright and Beautiful Every Living Thing

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