Review of 'Dog Stories'
Dog Stories by James Herriot
This collection of 50 stories compiled from James Herriot's previous books focuses on the small animal side of his veterinary practice and specifically, of course, the dogs he treated over the years. This covers both the uplifting and tragic side of being a vet with some truly harrowing stories. From the sublime to the ridiculous…this has it all. Each story is framed in aspects of Herriot's life from his early days in Darrowby, naïve and fresh out of college, to his later days with his wife and son. His passion and love of the animals, his colleagues, family and, of course, the Yorkshire Dales is clear throughout the book though being so busy he often has little time to stop and think too much on this. Though primarily a farm vet it is obvious his heart was always with the smaller animals and their owners.
The tales often are more about the colourful characters who owned the animals than the animals themselves such as the barber who spent evenings in the bar (with his dog under his stool) offering patrons haircuts in exchange for drinks with the haircuts getting more and more ragged as the evening went on or the family fallen upon hard times who kept insisting on paying for their dog's treatment with Herriot coming up with various excuses as to why they shouldn't. Fans of the recent television series will be pleased that the first story is about “Tricki Woo” - The pampered fluffy Pekingese owned by the affluent, but kind spirited, Mrs Pumphrey.
Though this is a compilation of stories many readers will be familiar with what is interesting is that there is a lengthy introduction from the author himself looking back at his days as a vet and treating dogs as well as a small insightful post-script after each story. None of the chapters are overly long and are mostly self-contained (there are two chapters towards the end that follow-on from one another but this is the exception rather than the rule) so the book is easy to dive in and out of. It is quite long at over 540 pages but it is a real page-turner and Herriot's writing style is easy to take and read.
An interesting book for dog lovers and fans of James Herriot with small tales that showcase the diverse characters - both canine and human - Herriot encountered in his career as a vet in the Yorkshire Dales.
Rating: “Nearly perfect, but not quite”
Review Date: 2025-08-16
Genre: Non-Fiction
Publisher: Pan Books
Publication Date: 1986
ISBN: 9780330326322