READ THIS: An Irish Country Village by Patrick Taylor Our Coverage Sponsored by Maine Woolens
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We can't think of a better way to celebrate St. Patrick's Day than with a good Irish book, and we're pleased to have discovered the genius of Patrick Taylor. In our busy world on Park Avenue/Fifth Avenue and every street and venue in Manhattan, the furthest thing away from our world is a tranquil country village, and it's nice to be able to visit one inbetween two book covers. If you've never been to Ireland, be warned-your whole idea of town and country could be altered as Peachy's was...when she lived in Cork, she saw places that were far more rural than the most rural spot in Connecticut, with Cape Clear possibly topping the list where we recall one ferry to the island and one car on the island. Patrick Taylor takes the readers to the village of Ballybucklebo, we believe with that last syllable rhyming with bow, as in bow tie. (Not boo as in ghost-speak.)
The relationships that develop in a town of such a scale (teeny-tiny! maybe comparable to one apartment building here!) are tremendous, and everyone knows everything about everyone else, or do they? When a newcomer comes on the scene, that is big news and as Dr. O'Reilly adds to his staff by one doctor for a grand total of two, the town not only has some adjusting to do but also will learn that they can stand to be enlightened. Character development is strong throughout as well as plot lines. If you are a doctor like some of our friends are, you will be further entertained by actual medical situations that brilliantly flew over Peachy's head so she could get to the story.
The Irish tell stories like no other group, and you know this already! We love Maeve Binchy and Cathy Kelly and if you have not read Taylor before, and this was our first opportunity to read him, you'll see his style is not that far off from theirs but with a twist that is decidedly his own, particularly in regards to the doctors since he is one and also the fact that this takes place in the North. All 32 counties of Ireland are distinctly different from one another you'll learn as you get to know them, but if you have not been to Ireland you might not catch all the nuances.
With lawsuits, distance in relationships, jobs ending and beginning, and even a wedding included, An Irish Country Village brings us to a charming, simpler life that is both endearing and entertaining. It may even get you to book a flight to what they're calling the Gathering this year on the other side of the pond...Whom You Know Recommends An Irish Country Village! There are even some recipes in the back.
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Young Doctor Barry Laverty has only just begun his assistantship under his eccentric mentor, Dr. Fingal Flahertie O’Reilly, but he already feels right at home in Ballybucklebo. When the sudden death of a patient casts a cloud over Barry’s reputation, his chances of establishing himself in the village are endangered, especially since the grieving widow is threatening a lawsuit. While he anxiously waits for the post-mortem results that he prays will exonerate him, Barry must regain the trust of the gossipy Ulster village, one patient at a time. But not all their challenges are medical in nature. When a greedy developer sets his sights on the very heart of the community, the village pub, it’s up to the doctors to save the Black Swan (fondly known as “The Mucky Duck”) from being turned into an overpriced tourist trap. After all, the good citizens of Ballybucklebo need somewhere to drink each other’s health.
An Irish Country Village is available in Hard back, large print, trade paper, and audio formats.
The author Patrick Taylor now lives on Salt Spring Island, British Columbia. Taylor is a distinguished medical research worker, off-shore sailor, model boat-builder and seannachie.
Born in 1941, Taylor was brought up in Bangor, Northern Ireland, and receieved his medical education in Ulster. He initially practiced in a rural Ulster village akin to Ballybucklebo before taking specialist training in Obstetrics and Gynaecology. After living in Belfast through the first two years of the recent Irish Troubles (1969-1994) he and his family emigrated to Canada where he pursued a career in medical research and teaching in the field of human infertility. His contributions have been honoured with three lifetime achievement awards including the Lifetime Award of Excellence of the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society.
A talent for the written word, first recognized when he was 16 by his winning the “Campbellian Prize for Literature”, led to an outpouring of contributions to the medical literature. His scientific works include 170 papers and six textbooks, one translated from the original French. For ten years, (1991-2001) he was editor-in-chief of the Canadian Obstetrics and Gynaecology journal.
To add leavening to dry, academic prose Taylor has always nurtured his creative side. His monthly medical humour columns which began in 1991, En Passant, Medicine Chest and Taylor’s Twist were followed by his appointment as book reviewer to Stitches: The Journal of Medical Humour.
In the mid-nineties, encouraged by his long time friend Jack Whyte, author of the best-selling Dream of Eagles series, Taylor began to write serious fiction. A number of works, all set in Northern Ireland, have now been published; A short-story collection, Only Wounded:Ulster Stories, and two novels, Pray for Us Sinners and The Apprenticeship of Doctor Laverty, (short listed for the BC Book awards fiction prize 2005). Now and in the Hour of Our Death, the sequel to Pray for Us Sinners appeared in October 2005. He is now under contract to Tom Doherty and Associates of New York to produce a series of novels featuring Featuring Doctor Laverty. The first, An Irish Country Doctor appeared in Feb 07, the second, An Irish Country Village in Feb 08. An Irish Country Christmas in October 2008, An Irish Country Girl in January 2010 and An Irish Country Courtship in September 2010.
An expert navigator, Taylor has been a member of off-shore racing crews. His race reports, including his account of a recent Victoria to Maui challenge complement his frequent contributions of sailing humour to boating magazines.
Two of his models, Rattlesnake a three-masted frigate and the schooner Bluenose are on display in the local pub on Bowen Island, a small island off Vancouver.
