Every Living Thing by James Herriot

The ideal read for lockdown?

"You'll 'ave a cup o' tea, Mr' erriot?'

For those of a certain age this autobiographical novel will evoke found memories of a bygone era full of simple pleasures. The popular novels by James Herriot, real name James Alfred Wight,  were a mainstay of the entertainment world of the 1970's and 80's, being made into a long running T.V. series (1978 - 1990) that made household names of Christopher Timothy, Robert Hardy, Peter Davison, Lynda Bellingham and Carol Drinkwater. The series of books retell some of the situations the vet  found himself in over his long career in the Yorkshire Dales. His writing style is engaging and gently humorous, tinged with nostalgia we learn about the life of a country vet before the innovations of modern veterinary science. Packed full of larger than life characters all living and working in the beautiful Yorkshire dales, each chapter reveals more of the loves, laughter, heartache and  tragedy of life as a country vet. The author's quietly self deprecating style engenders a fondness for the character that has the reader willing him to succeed in his latest endeavour.

Not a page turner or a thriller this book is best read in small bursts. Each chapter tells it's own tale and reading cover to cover is a bit like watching all 90 episodes of the T.V. series at once. A well
written book, penned by an author who can make the mundane interesting and the extraordinary believable. James Herriot is a master of observation, capturing the essence of his characters on the page. He tells stories in a clear and engaging way which appeals to all ages, Sunday evenings watching "All Creatures Great and Small" was a family event in many households in the 70's and 80's  It is perhaps, his simplistic style that made his work accessible to all ages.

Was this a good book for the lockdown?, in some ways it was the ideal escape from the current threat of the Corona virus and all that that entails, the reader can become lost in the rolling hills and narrow country lanes of the Yorkshire dales, curl up next to the warm and welcoming Aga in Skeldale House or shiver in the cow barns 'up top'. But for those who are finding lockdown too constraining and claustrophobic and who long for a faster pace of life, then this book just compounds the feeling of frustration. A hard-hitting thriller it is not, a gentle meander through a seemingly more straight forward time,  but a time when the country was recovering from a  far greater challenge, the Second World War.

Again our meeting had to be held via technology, as the popularity and interest in people's
bookshelves grows with every T.V. Skype interview we can announce that we will be adding ;

to our book shelves. Join us next month for our review of  'The Stars are Fire' by Anita Shreve.