- Paperback: 384 pages
- Publisher: Ballantine Books (May 2001)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0345434900
- ISBN-13: 978-0345434906
- Product Dimensions: 13.8 x 2.2 x 21 cm
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 837,458 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
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 biography, Jim Wight ventures beyond 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 recollections of 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.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
17 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Once I started reading this book, I could not put it down. I had previously read a biography of James Herriot but it was a disappointment. This work by his very own son made me laugh and made me cry. I have always loved James Herriot's work, have read all of his books until I know them by heart. What struck me the most was the author's relationship with his father. It was such a rare and beautiful thing. He was truly blessed to have such a father and I am grateful that he wrote this memoir. Everyone needs to know the real James Herriot.
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
It took awhile for me to get my hands on this book, it obviously is a very popular book. I finally got my hands on this book about a year after it was printed from my local library. I thought since i was a real big james herriot fan that i would love to hear about his life from the perspective of his son (jim) little did i realise that this was the work of another artist jim wight (son) has a writing ability similar to his fathers so therefore herriot fans will find this book very easy to read and hard to put down. The book is 364 pages soft cover with 8 double pages of photo's in the middle it was a real eye opener thinking that siegfried and tristan couldn't really be like they were but according to jim wight there characters were written exactly as the real people are. the sad part about reading this book was that tristan,james and siegfried are all dead and the way they all died is in the book i realise that with this kind of book these things have to be said but when you are a huge herriot fan like me(my e-mail address is herriot) it's hard to swallow. All in all i would recommend this book to anyone young or old especially if you like james herriot
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
68 reviews
122 of 123 people found the following review helpful
Another Treasure For My Herriot Collection
31 Mar 2000
Format:Hardcover
I waited eagerly for 8 months to receive this book, then I had to wait another week before I could open the pages without weeping. The first two paragraphs in the Prologue are enough to set me off: "On that day a great friend had died. His name was James Alfred Wight, a father in whose company I had spent countless happy hours. A man I shall never forget."
We have all lost a great friend in Alf Wight. How many countless happy hours have we spent with James Herriot, either in books or TV shows? Indeed none of us will ever forget him. I wish I had been able to meet him.
I would like to thank Jim Wight personally for writing this book. He expresses his first feelings of misgiving about trying to live up to his father's excellent writing, but he need not have worried. He tells about a boyhood friend of Alf's who jumps out of a second floor window with an umbrella. "The old umbrella suddenly turned inside out and, accompanied by the screaming boy, zoomed to the ground." This could have come straight off James Herriot's pen.
Alf Wight had a huge heart, and it seems that his son does, too. It is clear that he misses his father terribly. He presents Alf as a perfectly ordinary person who was astonished at his own fame, and who still remained "99% vet." This book shows the good and the bad of Alf Wight, his family and his friends. And yet I came away still in love with Siegfried, Tristan, and all the rest. And still totally devoted to James Herriot.
Thank you, Jim.
75 of 75 people found the following review helpful
A Touching Memoir
25 Mar 2000
Format:Hardcover
For those of us who grew up watching ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL on PBS and who delighted in James Herriot's books, this biography of Alf Wight, the real name of the writer James Herriot, is fascinating, heart-warming, and wonderful.
What makes this book so good is that the author is Jim Wight, Alf's son and later partner in his vet practice. Jim describes Alf's life with real insight and shares his own opinions when discussing key characters in Alf's books. Jim talks about Donald and Brian, the real people behind Siegfried and Tristan, and the various farmers and family members with definite love; he knew them and worked with them, too.
This book is not just a collection of facts; it is a real tribute to the life of the man known to most of us as James Herriot. Jim's insights into his father and his life are extremely interesting, and the gentleness of his father's writings has surely filtered down to his son. Certainly, Jim writes critically, but he also writes with affection and understanding.
I cannot think of a more fitting memoir for Alf Wight. His vision of the world is unique, and his son's tribute to him, both a biography and a personal memoir, could not be better. Through Jim's book, we can see just how true Alf's descriptions are - and how lucky we are to have them.
I definitely recommend this book to all fans of James Herriot.
38 of 38 people found the following review helpful
Affectionate and tactful but still revealing
26 May 2003
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
It is clear from this book that Jim Wight, like his famous father, doesn't like to say negative things about anybody, but this is a thoroughly honest book that includes information available nowhere else, and it is quite detailed. It makes the hoped-for identifications of what real individuals paralleled characters and how they reacted to their portrayals (Tristan loved his portrayal and Siegfried was so unhappy he actually threatened to sue!), and is honest about the embellishments in stories as well. It doesn't shy away from describing very bad times in the personal life of Herriot.
The bottom line is that any fan of James Herriot will truly enjoy reading this book, gain real insight about the man, and enjoy going back and reading the story books with the knowledge gained from this biography.
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