• A Seaside Practice

  • Tales of a Scottish Country Doctor
  • By: Dr Tom Smith
  • Narrated by: Dr Tom Smith
  • Length: 6 hrs and 55 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (408 ratings)

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A Seaside Practice  By  cover art

A Seaside Practice

By: Dr Tom Smith
Narrated by: Dr Tom Smith
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Publisher's summary

When he arrives to take up his first posting as a GP in Collintrae, a small fishing village on the West coast of Scotland, young Tom Smith isn't quite sure what to expect. Certainly, nothing in his medical training could have prepared him for what he finds - a baker with nine lives, Mad Maggie in the Muck, and a gaggle of giggling nuns are just a few of the extraordinary cases that he comes up against.

Heartwarming and gloriously eccentric, Dr Tom's stories capture the beauty of the Lowlands, the joys and sorrows of its inhabitants, and the richly rewarding experiences of life as a Scottish country doctor.

©2007 Tom Smith (P)2007 Soundings

Critic reviews

"An affectionate and hugely entertaining memoir of the incident-packed five years that Smith spent looking after the mainly farming families in his patch. If only modern medicine had as much heart." ( Guardian)

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What listeners say about A Seaside Practice

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Engaging Memoir

I saw this memoir and thought it was a good way to learn about medical practice in Scotland and get to know what life in rural Scotland was like. I got hooked on these types of memoirs back in the 1970s after reading all of the James Herriot’s books.

The story takes place in the 1960s in Collintrae, on the west coast of Scotland. Smith tells what it was like to be a young physician in a small rural town. His descriptions of the fascinating people that lived in the area are great. The book has humor, warmth as well as being interesting. It is a highly entertaining read.

The book is well written and appears to be taken from his diary. The audio version is the best way to read this memoir so you can fully enjoy the Scottish accent.

The book is seven hours long. Tom Smith read the book himself and he has a delightfully accent.

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16 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Delightful - just too short

What a wonderful listen! I normally avoid books that are narrated by the author, but I enjoyed listening to Dr. Smith's inflecitons...and reading between the lines. My only regret is that it wasn't longer.

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15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Wanted to like it--Interesting, but Vindictive

I'm a fan of the Irish Country Doctor series and the James Herriot series, too. Both are lovingly recounted tales of lives well lived and people (and animals) cared for and healed. I thought this series might be similar. There is certainly some of that in this book. It tells the story of a good doctor--a man of integrity--and his professional life in Scotland. The difference is that both Patrick Taylor and James Wright (authors of the Irish Country Doctor and James Herriot series) tell stories that convey patience, tolerance, and acceptance. We read of many instances where these men were ill treated or hard done by, but they leave it to the reader to tally the score. We grow to love them, and we know they took the high road, even when they didn't "win" the day. Dr. Smith, on the other hand, tallies it up for us. He starts with his mistreatment at the hands of his first professional partners and goes on from there to describe each unfair and un-deserved slight from childhood on through his professional career. There are some good stories along the way, but this book is missing the strength, warmth, and sense of honor of the Irish Country Doctor series. It left me with a bad taste in my mouth and a sad sense that this man feels he deserved better than he got from his professional life.

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful writer and narrator!

By the end of the audio book I felt like could put faces to the characters. Highly recommend!

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Loved this book

This was my first audiobook listen and I loved every minute of it. Reader & author was very entertaining.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Absolutely Charming

I enjoyed this pleasant, nicely-paced, and well-read book. The author's stories of his experiences as a Scottish GP were interesting, funny, sad, but never boring. I listened to it while ironing and sorting and doing other homely tasks - it made the time pass pleasurably and my workload feel lighter.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Very slow going

Good story but it is a very slow moving book. Although the author is telling his own story he doesn't do it justice. Some one else could have brought it to life

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Enjoyable

I truly enjoyed this light, heartwarming tale. I have always felt drawn to things and stories from Ireland and Scotland (my heritage). This was a relaxing and uplifting tale that I would recommend to my friends.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Lovely Book!

If you, like me, loved the James Herriott books you will be delighted with this book. Usually I think it is a mistake when the author is also the narrator, but in this case it was perfect! Tom Smith's voice is melodic and pleasant.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

If you like James Herriot you'll like this too

I really enjoyed this. It was read by the author who has a charming, soft Scottish accent which I really loved to listen to. His reading is a little stilted at times, but his accent more than made up for it to me.
Similar to the Herriot stories (but a Doctor's life in Scotland rather than a vet in Yorkshire) as with Herriot it's the eccentric and colourful locals who make this book interesting.
I would definitely recommend it for an enjoyable listen.

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4 people found this helpful