St Martin’s Press
440 Pages
Copyright 1977
The James Herriot stories were a mainstay during my high school years. This one, All Things Wise and Wonderful, is the last of the original series. The titles were based on a wont by Cecil Frances Alexander (1818 - 1895), which in turn was inspired by a passage in S. T. Coleridge's The Rime of the Ancient Mariner:
All things bright and beautiful,
All creatures great and small,
All things wise and wonderful,
The Lord God made them all.
Each book contains stories based on Herriot’s real life adventures as a country vet in the early years of the 1900’s. This one mixes Herriot’s time in training to be an RAF pilot during World War II with his memories of his friends and patients back home in Yorkshire. The characters, both human and animal are memorable and often times humorous. The people are hard-working farmers, the animals both farm animals and beloved pets. It was a different time when veterinary medicine was, at best, primitive. Herriot’s love for his home, the people, and the animals shines through every story he tells.
Herriot, of course, was the pen name of James Alfred Wight.
Recommendation: If you love animals and haven’t read Herriot’s stories, give them a go. They’ll leave you smiling at the very least.
2 comments:
I read this series years ago as a child. I think rereading it as an adult would be interesting. :)
Brittanie -
It was just as delightful for me now, at 50, as it was at 15. Herriot was an incredible story teller.
cjh
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