A Dublin Student Doctor

An Irish Country Novel

By: Patrick Taylor

Narrated by: John Keating

Length: 15 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

Patrick Taylor's devoted listeners oknow Doctor Fingal Flahertie O'Reilly as a pugnacious general practitioner in the quaint Irish village of Ballybucklebo. Now Taylor turns back the clock to give us a portrait of the young Fingal—and show us the pivotal events that shaped the man he would become.

In the 1930s, fresh from a stint in the Royal Navy Reserve, and against the wishes of his disapproving father, Fingal O'Reilly goes to Dublin to study medicine. Fingal and his fellow aspiring doctors face the arduous demands of Trinity College and Sir Patrick Dun's Hospital. The hours are long and the cases challenging, but Fingal manages to find time to box and play rugby—and to romance a fetching, gray-eyed nurse named Kitty O'Hallorhan.

Dublin is a city of slums and tenements, where brutal poverty breeds diseases that the limited medical knowledge of the time is often ill-equipped to handle. His teachers warn Fingal not to become too attached to his patients, but can he truly harden himself to the suffering he sees all around him—or can he find a way to care for his patients without breaking his heart?

A Dublin Student Doctor is a moving, deeply human story that will touch longtime fans of the Irish Country Books series as well as readers who are meeting Doctor Fingal O'Reilly for the very first time.

Listen to another Irish Country novel.

©2011 Patrick Taylor (P)2011 Macmillan Audio

The Real Life of an Irish Doctor in Training

I loved this book. It is lively and real. The compassion and fun that is Fingal resonates through the book. For anyone who is interested in medicine it is a revelation. Anyone who is offended by hearing the Lords name used in vain may find that part difficult. I did at first but because it's usage seems to be so much part of the Irish language I was able to put it aside. The story is very informative about life in Dublin between the world wars and life in the tenements was graphically but kindly drawn.

Really enjoyable

I had also listened to the backstory novel about Kinky but felt it was a little too long and stylistically different than the main books. I think this book is better than that flashback novel and involves present day O'Reilly and Kitty much more. Very enjoyable. I'll be listening to the next one soon.

oreilly again

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

yes they are a good listen the books have serious and funny moments but are light hearted and well read it is a good series hope they continue with barry laverty

Who was your favorite character and why?

the wiley oreilly he is a fun character

What does John Keating bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

if you have listened to any of the other books you can visualize the characters it is a great litttle village ballybucklebo

If you could rename A Dublin Student Doctor, what would you call it?

i don.t think i would rename it

Any additional comments?

great series with luck it will continue with barry in charge

I’m in love with these books.

They’re so comforting to listen to. They’ve become a daily habit I look forward to.

Real Life Stories

A Dublin Student Doctor like most of the other Irish Country books is a wonderful story based in real life. I enjoyed listening to all the characters and learned more about life in Ireland. The voices seemed authentic and were easy to understand. I felt like I was part of the group!

A Bit of Ireland

John Keating does a great job reading this story. The first book in the series I read but each one since has been the audio-book version. I must say that Keating does the Irish accent better than I could in my mind. I have followed the series from the beginning and each one gets better. I hope Taylor goes on the write about the WWII years. As a retired scientist I enjoyed Taylor's description of the state of science and medicine in the 1930's and it is interesting to see how medical training has evolved over time. The description of the tenements and the life of the poor had improved over the years but now seem to be going back to what it was in the past. I call this a feel good book that packs a lots of information in many area in a delightful manner. I learned how a doctor became to be called a quack and what was the origin of Boxing Day (Dec 26) was. You will enjoy this great book and series.

Great Series!

This series is so heartwarming and fun to listen to. You really get to love the Characters.

Love these books.

Wonderful warm stories that bring the post war Ireland and the era to life. Love the characters. Great narration and accents.

Loved this book

I’m working my way through the Irish Country series and I’ve enjoyed them all. The characters are people I want to know. The storylines are clear and John Keating’s narration is perfect. He hrings a well written story to life.

Wonderful story

This is my second time listening to this series of books. I absolutely enjoy it.