An Irish Country Doctor

A Novel

By: Patrick Taylor

Narrated by: John Keating

Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

An Irish Country Doctor from bestselling author Patick Taylor is a charming and engrossing tale that will captivate listeners from the very first word—and leave them yearning to visit the Irish countryside of days gone by.

Barry Laverty, M.B., can barely find the village of Ballybucklebo on a map when he first sets out to seek gainful employment there, but already he knows that there is nowhere he would rather live than in the emerald hills and dales of Northern Ireland. The proud owner of a spanking-new medical degree and little else in the way of worldly possessions, Barry jumps at the chance to secure a position as an assistant in a small rural practice.

At least until he meets Dr. Fingal Flahertie O'Reilly.

The older physician, whose motto is to never let the patients get the upper hand, has his own way of doing things. At first, Barry can't decide if the pugnacious O'Reilly is the biggest charlatan he has ever met, or the best teacher he could ever hope for. Through O'Reilly Barry soon gets to know all of the village's colorful and endearing residents, including:

A malingering Major and his equally hypochondriacal wife;

An unwed servant girl, who refuses to divulge the father of her upcoming baby;

A slightly daft old couple unable to marry for lack of a roof;

And a host of other eccentric characters who make every day an education for the inexperienced young doctor.

Ballybucklebo is long way from Belfast, and Barry is quick to discover that he still has a lot to learn about the quirks and traditions of country life. But with pluck and compassion and only the slightest touch of blarney, he will find out more about life—and love—than he ever imagined back in medical school.

©2004, 2007 Patrick Taylor (P)2009 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

“Narrator John Keating has a field day with the humor, long-winded stories, and colorful accents...[Keating] skillfully presents the unique and sometimes-hilarious Irish take on joy, sorrow, illness, and death.” —AudioFile

“Welcome to the colorful Northern Ireland community of Ballybucklebo where there's always something brewing beneath the Village's deceptively sleepy surface. Fans of Karon's Mitford series will enjoy this.” —Smoky Mountain Sentinel

Very Enjoyable

I really enjoyed listening to this book. As a physician I particularly enjoyed this author and his gentle but spot-on insights into patient-doctor relationships. He had me at the description of his consultation chair. He has beautifully captured scenarios we’ve all experienced as physicians but - without his gift for writing - have trouble describing for non-medical folks. The characters are wonderful and the humor is subtle but fantastic.

Delightful

A touching story of Ireland and what beautiful characters and vignettes. Just the right mix of interest, emotion and humor. I did not want this to be over.

Thoroughly charming!

Excellent story and character development. Superb narration. Will be listening to others in the series for sure.

Smiled for hours!

Where does An Irish Country Doctor rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

At the top!

What did you like best about this story?

All the different characters. Felt like I was in the little Irish village

Have you listened to any of John Keating’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

None ~ but that won't last long! Every character came to life. What a gift he has for reading life into each one.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Smiled for hours listening, even laughed out loud several times.

Any additional comments?

Felt like I was sitting with an old friend, Maeve Binchey. Sweet storyline, wonderful Irish voices. Miss not having any more Binchey books to look forward to. BUT, now have another stack to listen to from Patrick Taylor. A great find.

If only life could be so wonderfully simple!

I read a fair amount of books and periodically I like to listen to those that are not complicated, provide a sweet story and on occasion make me yearn for simpler times. This is such a book. I recommend it for anyone who would like to catch a glimpse of a time when people were good for their word, neighbor helped neighbor and a party meant bring good food, instruments to play and be ready to dance! The narrator's brogue made this sweet, little journey all the better.

A delightful start to a series

I had already read this book. However, as I recently picked up the audiobook for a second read-through, I thought that it was time for me to review this story.

Like the title suggests, “An Irish Country Doctor” takes place in the Emerald Isle (Ballybucklebo to be exact), and follows the experiences of newly graduated Doctor Barry Laverty as he becomes acquainted with general practice in a small village.

Unsurprisingly, I enjoyed this novel as much as I did during my first readthrough. While “An Irish Country Doctor” may not be a challenging read, the small, quirky village with its cast of characters make for a cozy story to curl up on the couch with.

In terms of the audiobook edition, John Keating was a perfect narrator; bringing life to the loveable characters of Ballybucklebo.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my time reading this book, and I can’t wait to read the next installments.

Just okay.

It was just an OK book. I sent the bar to high when I expected it to be more like James Herriot’s books. It did not. If you’re looking for a present read, this is a fine story. But if you’re looking for something to pull you in then, in my opinion, it’s not.

The reader was excellent!

So well done that I looked forward to it everyday! My next thought…is there another?

Ireland

Great narration. Great story. Human version of All creatures great and small. I can’t wait to read the rest.

A charming yarn excellently narrated

I don’t usually read plain fiction (typically I read sci-fi), and so this story felt a bit mundane, but it was quite charming as a whole. The narrator does an amazing job of embodying all of the various characters and really bringing them to life. I forgot I was listening to one man.