Customer Reviews

Bryson City Tales: Stories of a Doctor's First Year of Practice in the Smoky Mountains

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book appears in the fiction section of libraries, but it is really non-fiction, although the names have been changed to protect the innocent (or guilty!). I loved this book! The stories are often hilarious, sometimes poignant and always fascinating.

We traveled through the Bryson City area when whitewater rafting on the Nantahala River several years ago. It's a beautiful area of the country. I really enjoyed Larimore's description of the beauty of God's creation in the hills of North Carolina.

Why only 4 stars? I guess I wanted more from the end of the book. Now perhaps he could only write what he experienced, but I was dying to know what Dr. Larimore did after he left Bryson City. I also felt that I got to know his wife and daughter Kate and their new baby too.

If you liked this book, you might want to check out Phil Gulley's "Home to Harmony" fiction series about small town life. If you're interested in more small town medicine stories, check out husband/wife team author Hannah Alexander's books. There are two series - start with "Sacred Trust". These are fiction, and with a little suspense and a little romance.

Happy reading and I hope you take the time to check out my other reviews! God bless you!

I was so excited when I discovered the book written about a place I was so familar with. My father was born & raised in Bryson City and we have visited there for many years. I can really relate to so many of the stories Dr. Larimore tells in his book from hearing tales my father & uncle have told over the years.

It was such an inspiration to hear what Dr. Laimore learned from the people who live in Bryson City.

Larimore captivated both my wife and I with his writing and tales of his experience as a new doctor starting out in a new town in North Carolina. Unlike one reader, I never got the impression that the local people were anymore "backwards" than you would find anywheres else. Indeed, it becomes quite clear as Larimore continues to develop as a complete doctor that he has a number of things to learn from the people that were around him. It is fascinating to watch him grow in his practice and expertise, in his faith, and in his relationships with the local people. His love for his patients come through quite clearly.

His tales range from soul touching and heart touching to downright hilarious...the theological exposition that Christ was most definitely a fly fisherman and NOT a lake fisherman was particularly entertaining...and his experience with the couple that had just suffered a miscarriage deeply touches the soul.

For those that enjoyed Herriot, these tales will fit right in - except that the subjects are people (well, most of the time!). I'm looking forward to reading the sequel.

In our rushed society, many become victims of healthcare. People have become a number or a disease, not known by there name. How refreshing to read about how medicine should be practiced. As a home health nurse, I found myself taking notes from some of the stories that Dr. Larimore told. Many of my patients share similar wisdom with me! I loved the book from the very first sentence. The stories lure you into a world unkown to many of us. Each tale is like a morsel in a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie, hard to put it down! The only disappointment was the end. A true delight and a hopeful model for all practitioners showing the importance of listening to patients and being able to adapt to their lifestyle. I plan to visit Bryson City in the future. Enjoy and share it with a friend!

Being from East Tennessee, I was very familiar with the Bryson City area, making this book even more exciting for me. The book is a wonderful depiction of the ways of the people of the mountains. It was actually more about life and life's lessons than the practice of medicine. Very deep and touching lessons for us all! One minute you're laughing, the next minute you're crying. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and highly recommend it!

A wonderful story of an idealistic, young physician who is eager to begin his career. He craves a more simple world which proves to be complicated afterall. A young, well-educated physician seeks a peaceful, small town in which to begin his practice and raise his family. Practice is the perfect word to describe what he must encounter and endure. This overwhelmed, but grateful professional is unsure if he has ventured into a perfect setting, or if he has fallen into a chasm in the land that time forgot. The proud, colorful residents of Bryson City do not welcome change, but they are generous with unconditional love once it is earned. They are honest, caring people who take care of each other in a world where God, fishing and Friday night football reign supreme. It seems the initiation period is painful, amusing and unending for the determined doctor.

Dr. Larimore weaves a story that portrays a man on a journey...physically, professionally and spiritually. A tender tale of a man's devotion to his earthly calling and a continuing challenge to answer his Father's calling as well.

This is an excellent easy read, hard to put down, stories from a recent medical collge graduate as he expeirence life in a small NC town. From the interview process, to his first birth, to the first bith in a hospital, to being the team doctor for the local high school team. Dr. Larimore brings up all the interesting stories as he learns how to be a doctor in a small town. If you pick it up you will have a very hard time putting Bryson City Tales: Stories of a Doctor's First Year of Practice in the Smoky Mountains down. One moment you will be laughing so hard your side will hurt as you here about birthing a cow..to tears in your eyes as Dr Larimore helps a young couple with the death of their first child that he had just delivered. If you enjoyed the All Creatures Great and Small series..you will love this!!

Dr. Larimore's insights into the life of a small town doctor are both hysterical and touching. His ability to fit in (eventually)is both a testament to his training and is iron will. If you haven't had the opportunity to live in a small town and experience its comfort and beauty, take a stroll with Dr. Larimore through the hearts of Bryson City. He's inspired this "man of the West" to pack up the camping gear and visit a world seldom seen, nor appreciated, by too many Americans.

Dr.Larimore's tales of his first year of medical practice was an enlightening, heartwarming, funny, most enjoyable read. Once I started to read it, I felt somehow drawn in by it & compelled to finish it overnight!!
I encourage any & all to experience this wonderful book. Dr. Larimore has truly been blessed with a gift for not only story-telling, but in the sharing of his gift of healing, in not only a physical, but spiritual realm.

Dr. Walt Larimore received excellent medical training at Duke University. Armed with a new medical degree, his wife, and 3-year-old daughter, he journeyed to the small town of Bryson City, North Carolina, to begin his practice. What he learned is that there were many things which had not been taught at the Duke Medical School. Doctors and nurses who had been in practice for many years taught him that sometimes the old, simple procedures worked just as well as the up-to-date techniques which he favored early in his practice. He also learned that appeals to the Great Physician were much appreciated by his patients and served to calm him in a crisis. He was surprised to discover that a country doctor does not only deal with human patients, but animal ones as well. All was not easy, as both of his children faced medical crises, and some of the older doctors opposed his presence in their town. Dr. Larimore's self-effacing manner and gentle humor make this a delightful read. I am looking forward to reading the next two books in the series.