Review by Pam Rybinski
Look in your library for a collection of James Herriot’s dog stories. The volume herein reviewed is “James Herriot’s FAVORITE Dog Stories,” his very last completed piece of writing. Like some of his other works, it may also be out in audio. Stories in this volume previously appeared in All Creatures Great and Small, all Things Bright and Beautiful, All Things Wise and Wonderful, The Lord God Made Them All, and Every Living Thing. Herriot worked as a vet for both large and small animals in Yorkshire, England, until his son took over his practice. Over the years he wrote charming or brutally frank stories about his companion dogs, and about the canines he treated or met on his rounds to local farms. The short stories in this collection include one about a lurcher (a cross-bred greyhound) named Jake, whom an itinerant handyman took with him in a pram during his work and travels. A couple stories expose the idiosyncrasies of a local rich widow and her very spoiled Pekingese (and somewhat spoiled vet). Then there’s “Brandy, The *Dustbin Dog.” The short stories are quick reads. Herriot masterfully captures the nature of canines, of people, and of rural times gone past.
* trash-can
