The Real James Herriot

No one is better poised to write the biography of James Herriot than the son who worked alongside him in the Yorkshire veterinary practice when Herriot became an internationally bestselling author. Now, in this warm and poignant memoir, Jim Wight talks about his father--the beloved veterinarian whom his family had to share with half the world. Alf Wight (aka James Herriot) grew up in Glasgow, where he lived during a happy rough-and-tumble childhood and then through the challenging years of training at the Glasgow Veterinary College. The story of how the young vet later traveled to the small Yorkshire town of Thirsk, aka Darrowby, to take the job of assistant vet is one that is well known through James Herriot's internationally celebrated books and the popular All Creatures Great and Small television series. But Jim Wight's biography ventures beyond the trials and tribulations of his father's life as a veterinarian to reveal the man behind the stories--the private individual who refused to allow fame and wealth to interfere with his practice or his family. With access to all of his father's papers, correspondence, manuscripts, and photographs--and intimate remembrances of all the farmers, locals, and friends who populate the James Herriot books--only Jim Wight could write this definitive biography of the man who was not only his father but his best friend. NOTE: This edition does not include a photo insert.

No one is better placed to write the biography of Alf Wight, alias James Herriot, than the son who worked alongside him in the veterinary practice during the time that James Herriot became a bestselling author. In this warm and often poignant memoir Jim Wight writes of a man who, despite his huge success as a writer, remained unchanged by wealth and fame; an essentially private person whose family had to share him with his millions of fans throughout the world.

The Best of James Herriot is one of the most extraordinary volumes ever devoted to the work and world of a contemporary writer. Within its covers are unforgettable episodes from the remarkable series of memoirs that began with All Creatures Great and Small-"the ones my family and I have laughed at over the years and the ones my readers have said they most enjoyed," as Herriot, himself, put it. Yet the book is far more than a simple anthology: Its gorgeous pages also include hundreds of line drawings and color photographs, capturing Herriot's Yorkshire in a worthy complement to the writer's words. The 1991 publication of Every Living Thing, rendered the original edition of this book incomplete. This fall will mark the publication of the complete, definitive edition with the addition of five of his best, more recent stories, as well as new art. Once again The Best of James Herriot becomes the quintessential Herriot volume-one of those invaluable books that will be loved as much in decades to come as it is today.

From the author whose books inspired the BBC series All Creatures Great and Small, Vet in Harness is the fourth volume of James Herriot's classic memoirs; a book for all those who find laughter and joy in animals, and who know and understand the magic and beauty of Britain’s wild places. The Yorkshire dales have never seemed more beautiful for James – now he has a lovely wife by his side, a partner's plate on the gate and the usual menagerie of farm animals, pets and owners demanding his constant attention and teaching him a few lessons along the way. All of the old Darrowby friends are on top form – Siegfried thrashes round the practice, Tristan occasionally buckles down for finals and James is signed up for a local cricket team. 'I grew up reading James Herriot's books and I'm delighted that thirty years on, they are still every bit as charming, heartwarming and laugh-out-loud funny as they were then' – Kate Humble 'Herriot's enchanting tales of life in the Dales are deservedly classics. Full of extraordinary characters, animal and human, the books never fail to delight' – Amanda Owen, bestselling author of The Yorkshire Shepherdess

The first collection of memoirs from the author who inspired the BBC and Channel 5 series All Creatures Great and Small. This edition contains If Only They Could Talk and It Shouldn't Happen to a Vet. Fresh out of Glasgow Veterinary College, to the young James Herriot 1930s Yorkshire seems to offer an idyllic pocket of rural life in a rapidly changing world. But from his erratic new colleagues, brothers Siegfried and Tristan Farnon, to incomprehensible farmers, herds of semi-feral cattle, a pig called Nugent and an overweight Pekingese called Tricki Woo, James finds he is on a learning curve as steep as the hills around him. And when he meets Helen, the beautiful daughter of a local farmer, all the training and experience in the world can’t help him . . . Since they were first published, James Herriot’s memoirs have sold millions of copies and entranced generations of animal lovers. Charming, funny and touching, All Creatures Great and Small is a heart-warming story of determination, love and companionship from one of Britain’s best-loved authors. 'I grew up reading James Herriot's books and I'm delighted that thirty years on, they are still every bit as charming, heartwarming and laugh-out-loud funny as they were then' – Kate Humble 'Herriot's enchanting tales of life in the Dales are deservedly classics. Full of extraordinary characters, animal and human, the books never fail to delight' – Amanda Owen, bestselling author of The Yorkshire Shepherdess

The #1 New York Times–bestselling author of All Creatures Great and Small reflects on the rewards of training the next generation of veterinarians. As an aging James Herriot begins to see more house pets than livestock, the challenge of treating animals—and reassuring their owners—provides plenty of excitement, mystery, and moments of sheer delight. After building up his own practice, the renowned country vet begins to teach a new generation about a business both old-fashioned and very modern. He watches with pride as his own children show a knack for medicine, and remarks on the talents and quirks of a string of assistants. There is no perfecting the craft, since people and their animals are all remarkably different, but Herriot proves that the best healers are also the most compassionate.

This collection of tales about the beloved veterinarian's encounters with various members of the animal kingdom is the perfect gift for anyone who has ever loved a pet. When you enter the world of James Herriot's Animal Stories, you'll share his wonder and humor, his adventures and misadventures as he contends with pet owners and landowners; rough-spoken farmers and soft-spoken gentry; orphaned lambs, litters of piglets and puppies, cattle and draught horses; and a miscellany of cats and dogs including, of course, Mrs. Pumphrey's inimitable Pekinese, Tricki Woo.

This biography describes James Herriot'S early days in Glasgow and the 50 years he spent working as a country vet in Yorkshire.