Fields and Pastures New: My First Year as a Country Vet

by John MacCormack and John McCormack

Book Overview

The warm and gently humorous memoir of a young veterinarian's first year of practice in Choctaw County, Alabama, in the early 1960s. "I can relate to Dr. McCormack on page after page of this book. In his writing he beguilingly captures the laughter and tears of the veterinary scene. A heartwarming read for the animal lover."--James Herriot.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0517596865
• ISBN13: 9780517596869
• Release Date: August 1995
• Publisher: Crown Publishing Group (NY)
• Length: 265 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.4" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Master Story Teller

This book relates some of McCormack's adventures as the new vet in a southern country town during the early 1960s. McCormack grew up on a farm in Tennessee. His college roommate, a pre-vet major, interested him in veterinary science. Once he earned his veterinary degree and had a few years of experience under his belt, he set off in search of a town where he could hang up his shingle with an independent veterinary practice. At the time, Butler, Alabama had no licensed vet, so it seemed like a reasonable place for a new vet to make a start. In this book, McCormack describes the characters he met, both human and bovine, during that first year in Butler. McCormack is a master storyteller. With his careful choice of words, he conveys the character of the place with all its color. While chatting with some locals at a general store, McCormack quipped he went into veterinary rather than human medicine because he didn't like dealing with people. But he tells us that this is absolutely not true-if there's one skill that a vet must have above all others, it's the ability to deal with people, to understand their needs and character. In this book, McCormack regales us with tales of how he came to learn this lesson.

nicely written

I really enjoyed this book. It was well written and entertaining. I loved the Herriot stories so much, this is another great book about vet stories. It will definately be worth your time.

Good Vet Stories, Great Portrait of Alabama

My people are not from Choctaw County, but we're from "around there." This is not only a sympathetic and heartfelt account of a rural vet practice in the sixties; it's a very accurate look at the folks you were likely to meet then and there, both the good and the bad. I have met most of the folks he talks about, or at least their near relations. Dr. McCormack's extended meditation on the verbal mangling of his job description by his neighbors is alone worth the price of admission, although the account of his visit to the Governor's Mansion driving the "rounds vehicle" and a too-long-delayed boar cutting run it very close. Excellent book.

A good read anytime!

I really enjoyed this book. It had good detail, and you really felt like you were going on the rounds with Dr. McCormack. I have read it several times since I bought it, and it is hard to put down each time, even though I know the outcome!I enjoyed reading how tough it was to convert some of the farmers to the methods of modern veterinary medicine, and it was interesting to read the different methods the farmers had preferred to treat the illnesses in their livestock and pets until their was more modern help available.

A Must-Have for any Home Library!

I bought this book several years ago from a book club. I've read it several times a year since then and each time I read it I can't put it down. Would be a fantastic book for students of any grade/age level, or something to read to the sight-impaired at your local nursing home!