36. All Creatures Great and Small

     

36. All Creatures Great and Small. James Herriot. 1972. 437 pages. [Source: Library] [semi-autobiographical, adult fiction, animals; 5 stars]

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 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.

 

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