Reviews
"James Herriot found a gentle, wise and often humorous way to write about animals and to evoke a beautiful but fading way of life in those Yorkshire Hills. He showed me how to focus not just on the animals, but on the people who lived with the animals, and their loving, sometimes difficult and very wonderful connections with one another. While he is known for his wonderful writing about animals, I often think of his ability to capture people. From the first, I've tried to capture that feeling, that uplifting and heartwarming style. I can't say that I have ever quite matched the writing of James Herriot, but he has always inspired me and given me something to aim for. He often makes me smile, sometimes makes me cry, you can't really ask more from a writer than that."--Jon Katz, "New York Times" bestselling author of "Second Chance Dog," "A Dog Year, A Good Dog," and many others "I recall reading "All Creatures Great and Small" many years ago, while working as a veterinary technician for a mobile vet in Los Angeles. We worked with cats and dogs, of course, but with farm animals, too, and apes and monkeys and angry pet raccoons, burros, crows, macaws- the variety of pets in Los Angeles was limitless. During that wonderful time, I'd be beaten senseless by a kangaroo, held hostage by a love-struck chimpanzee, chased by angry hogs, and sat on by a miniature horse inside of a well-known celebrity's home. It was a magical time, and it made perfect sense for me to read Herriot in the evenings, a grand fellow who'd roam the English countryside making veterinary house calls, effortlessly moving from draft horses to kittens, healing, telling stories. I felt a kinship with him and his magical world, and marveled at his talent for drawing me into his cast of characters. Later in life, when I too would write of my experiences with animals and their people, I would hearken to Herriot's Yorkshire Dales, and to prose so genuine t, "This warm, joyous and often hilarious first-person chronicle of a young animal doctor . . . shines with love of life.Herriot charms because he delights in life, embraces it with sensitivity and gusto and writes with grace. "All Creatures Great and Small" may well be the happiest book of the year"--"The New York Times Book Review" "One of the funniest and most likeable books around."--"The Atlantic Montly" "[Herriot] is the most entertaining, most thoroughly likeable, most engaging person to have come along in a long time, and the stories he has to tell are fascinating."--"The Washington Post" "If there is any justice, "All Creatures Great and Small" will become a classic of its kind . . . With seemingly effortless art, this man tells his stories with perfect timing and optimum scale. Many more famous authors could work for a lifetime and not achieve more flawless literary control."--"Chicago Tribune Book World" "Absolutely super, a rarity, magnificently written, insightful, unforgettable . . . If you have ever loved a friend, human or otherwise, this is the book for you."--"Houston Chronicle " "Refreshingly original. . . hilarious, touching, athletic and warming."--"Los Angeles Times" "James Herriot . . . is one of those rare men who know how to appreciate the ordinary . . . a natural storyteller."--"The New York Times" "An inspirational book . . . with all its comedy; tragedy, drama, and farce . . . works like a spring tonic: It lifts the spirits and warms the heart . . . There is no advice, no pat formula for better living. There is just Herriot, a man you cannot resist."--"Chicago Tribune" "Refreshingly original . . . as close to a novel as a chronicle of memoirs could be . . . hilarious, touching, athletic and warming . . . Dr. Herriot's characters . . . rival any from British fiction." - "Los Angeles Times" "Warm, anecdotal . . . "All Creature Great and Small" makes you feel good about the worried andt, "Absolutely super, a rarity, magnificently written, insightful, unforgettable. . . . If you have ever loved a friend, human or otherwise, this is the book for you." - Houston Chronicle "This warm, joyous and often hilarious first-person chronicle of a young animal doctor . . . shines with love of life." - "The New York Times Book Review" "One of the funniest and most likeable books around." - "The Atlantic Monthly" "[Herriot] is the most entertaining, most thoroughly likeable, most engaging person to have come along in a long time, and the stories he has to tell are fascinating." - "The Washington Post" "If there is any justice, "All Creatures Great and Small" will become a classic of its kind . . . With seemingly effortless art, this man tells his stories with perfect timing and optimum scale. Many more famous authors could work for a lifetime and not achieve more flawless literary control." - "Chicago Tribune Book World" "Herriot charms because he delights in life, embraces it with sensitivity and gust and writes with grace. "All Creatures Great and Small" may well be the happiest book of the year." - "The New York Times Book Review " "Absolutely super, a rarity, magnificently written, insightful, unforgettable . . . If you have ever loved a friend, human or otherwise, this is the book for you." - "Houston Chronicle " "Refreshingly original . . . as close to a novel as a chronicle of memoirs could be . . . hilarious, touching, athletic and warming . . . Dr. Herriot's characters . . . rival any from British fiction." - "Los Angeles Times" "James Herriot . . . is one of those rare men who know how to appreciate the ordinary . . . a natural storyteller."- "The New York Times" "Warm, anecdotal . . . "All Creature Great and Small" makes you feel good about the worried and some of the people in it." - "San Francisco Chronicle " "What the world needs now, and does every so often, is a warm, G-rated, down-home, unadrenalized prize of a book that sneaks onto the bestseller lists . . . James Herriot's memoirs qualify admirably." - "Time " "An inspirational book . . . with all its comedy; tragedy, drama, and farce . . . works like a spring tonic: It lifts the spirits and warms the heart . . . There is no advice, no pat formula for better living. There is just Herriot, a man you cannot resist." - "Chicago Tribune" "Herriot has a real flair for writing and his book is a treat." - "Publishers Weekly"