Customer Reviews

An Irish Country Village

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
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If you are searching for a good read that doesn't require a lot of thinking, then this is the book for you. I enjoyed this book (as I did the first installment) and I would read more by Patrick Taylor to find out what happens with the characters. Not all fiction has to be blood and gore and fast paced action to be interesting. I love reading books that give a sense of place and culture, and this one has both of those in spades. I great armchair tour of Ireland!

A sequel to "An Irish Country Doctor", this book picks up where the other left off. If you enjoyed "Doctor" then "Village" is a must. You need not read "An Irish Country Doctor" to enjoy this book but it would make it a richer experience

In the 1960s having decided to practice medicine in Balleybucklebo, Northern Ireland, (see AN IRISH COUNTRY DOCTOR) Barry Laverty begins his "apprenticeship working for Dr. Fingal Flahertie O'Reilly, a local legend. He finds the wide range of patients with their diverse problems fascinating and keeps him attentive. Barry also quickly learns why his mentor is a superstar amongst the working class and he admires the grumpy Fingal. This is not so much due to his medical healing but more because he gets involved in the social affairs of the villagers.

Currently Fingal battles the council who want to change the Black Swan pub from a popular local establishment into a touristy thing to bring in more money. Barry also finds his attraction for engineering student Patricia Spence growing even as he fears yet hopes she will soon go to Cambridge. Finally he faces a malpractice lawsuit from a widow whose husband he misdiagnosed.

This warm sequel to AN IRISH COUNTRY DOCTOR is an entertaining tale that brings to life a small village in the 1960s. The storyline is character driven as the eccentric locals bring time and place to the foreground. Dr. Fingal is somewhat the stereotype of the grumpy caring aging doctor, but no one will care as he brings extra heart to the mix. Fans will enjoy the continuing saga of Dr. Barry Laverty as he holds the insightful tale together while growing into the heir apparent to the village doctor.

Harriet Klausner

Kick back and spend a couple of hours in another time and place now disappeared from the earth's face, inside a folksy Irish tale set in the 1960s and back roads of Ireland's Ulster Province awaits. If it's the American gambit of high-drama laced with improbable plot twists--alongside an occasional murder thrown in-- this will not be your read. Most of author Taylor's plot conundrums can be dissected before they resolve in An Irish Country Village. It's the uniquely Ulster lingo and quirky thought process driving the resolutions that makes for a worthwhile backward glance into the Ireland of the cinematic The Quiet Man. If you understand and appreciate the decidedly Irish phrase, "it's a soft day," well, this is a "soft story."

So `tis off again we travel to Ulster's County Down with author Dr. Patrick Taylor to the mythical village of Ballybucklebo, a glistening emerald jewel in the land of Saint Patrick, near Bushmills' noted whiskey distillery and close-by Giant's Causeway, where marauding Scots giants of lore stepped ashore to battle Ireland's Finn Mc Cool. I've fond recollections meself of picture-postcard Newry, Belfast, Giant's Causeway and Queen's University--all ports of call in this quaintly Scots-Irish venture.

As sequels go, one needn't digest Dr. Taylor's previous charmer, An Irish Country Doctor, prior to this one, but it wouldn't hurt. Most of the original whimsical cast is aboard for an encore performance, leading off with Dr. Barry Laverty. Late of Queen's University Medical School, Laverty eschews the more glamorous internships sought by classmates, accepting a backwater assignment to fictional Ballybucklebo, a homespun village astride Belfast Lough where crusty mentor Dr. Fingal Flaherty O'Reilly is the lone physician for miles around. Equal parts amateur psychiatrist and country doctor, O'Reilly dispenses advice, medicine or placebo as the situation demands. Matronly `Kinky' Kincaid serves as O'Reilly's resident cook, housekeeper, nurse, confidante and appointment scheduler.

A scant few weeks into Laverty's tenuous residency under O'Reilly, aged hypochondriac Major Fotheringham, and a recent patient of physicians Laverty and O'Reilly, has died. Eyebrows lift as it's bandied about that Dr. Laverty misdiagnosed a recent Fotheringham medical condition. Village tongues soon wag. "Aye, the buck eejit killed the ould goat. He'll never replace our man O'Reilly." A lawsuit is threatened by the Major's surviving wife. A uniquely American act, O'Reilly disdains lawsuits, adding that Shakespeare had the right idea with his suggestion, "let's kill all the lawyers."
Councillor Bertie Bishop, resident Orangeman and curmudgeon, is among those feeding the rumor mill over Dr. Laverty's medical skills--or lack of them. Bishop's brow-beaten wife Flo suddenly takes ill with mysterious symptoms. Both doctors are puzzled. Worse yet, the Councillor's bent on acquiring the local cultural center and watering hole, the Black Swan (aka, the "Mucky Duck"), and turning it into something very un-pub like. And Julie McAteer, she of the unmarried pregnancy, finds herself in a dangerous medical situation, dispatching her feckless boyfriend, Donal Donnelly, to the doctor's surgery for help.

Ah, but tentative love blooms. No stranger to medical problems, the elegant Patricia Spence tugs the heart strings of our worried young Dr. Laverty as she awaits results of her scholarship test results to study at Cambridge, which would take her away from Ulster and out of the Dr. Laverty picture for years to come.

In the background looms the impending marriage of Maggie McCorkle to her beloved Sonny. They've postponed this union for years while Sonny lived in his automobile and battled the Councillor over failure to put an agreed-upon roof on Sonny's cottage. As a result of living in his car, Sonny's health has deteriorated and the ould codger is off in the hospital as some local boyos try to figure out how to repair the cottage.

The Irish and Scots-Irish love their sporting events an there's no end of fly fishing, sailing and the occasional steeplechase horse race in the rolling hills to entertain the populace. Our Dr. O'Reilly himself was quite the rugby player and boxer in his day and considered other careers before choosing rural country medicine. To this day O'Reilly remains quiet about losing the only love of his life to the German blitz on Belfast in 1941, leaving readers to wonder if author Dr. Patrick Taylor suffered loss of a loved one to the same blitz.

Our delightfully Scots-Irish period piece teases us with the flavor of Ireland that Americans seek as they clog the Irish roads in tourist buses "searching for their roots," as Dr. O'Reilly phrases it. For those interested, both of Taylor's Country novels even dish up a few Ulster recipes and an Ulster "slang" glossary. The only question remaining is whether the author left enough loose ends to tie up in a third novel. Count on it.

Doctor Laverty's alter ego, author Patrick Taylor M.D., saw his first charmer make the New York Times Best Seller list. He divides his time between Canada, where he practiced medicine for 31 years, and his native County Down, Northern Ireland.

Straight off on the heels of 'An Irish Country Doctor' comes 'An Irish Country Village', taking up right where the first book left off. We're in Ballybuckbo, Ireland again, joining Doctors Fingal Flahertie O'Reilly and Barry Laverty in their daily lives both personal and at the "surgery" (Office). Dr. O'Reilly is a bear of a man; short-tempered and roaring, with cauliflower ears and a bent, florid nose that turns alabaster when he's angered. "Never, never, never let the patients get the upper hand" is O'Reilly's motto and advice for young Dr. Laverty. He's unapologetic for his irascible behavior, and his language is hilarious when he gets to name-calling. Dr. Barry Laverty has just finished college, and his position with country doctor O'Reilly is his first.

Along with the doctors come the regulars from the first book. There's O'Reilly's capricious housekeeper, Mrs. Kinky Kincaid, originally from Cork, who always adds the word "so" on the end of her sentences. There's old Maggie MacCorkle and her beau Sonny, who've waited over fifteen years to get married (and their wedding is the big event in this Irish installment). There's Councilor Bertie Bishop, who this time has evil plans to close down The Black Swan - Ballybucklebo's main-street pub. Young Patricia Spence has caught Barry's heart, despite how independent and stubborn she is. Patricia is heavily into women's rights, particularly the right to a higher education. And we're introduced to a certain Caitlan "Kitty" O'Hallorhan, an old college acquaintance of Fingal's.

In 'Village', Barry misses a diagnosis of old Major Fotheringham's cerebral hemorrhage, and after a stay and release in the hospital, the Major dies at home. Mrs. Fotheringham is devastated, and blames the young doctor for the death. Can Barry survive until the post-mortem comes back from the hospital? Patricia is eagerly awaiting the results of her exam that will get her a scholarship into Cambridge, but also take her further away from Barry. And weaselly Bertie Bishop plots to not renew the lease on The Black Swan, with plans to demolish the old pub and put up a tourist trap instead.

Ballybucklebo is described as "A village that seemed divorced from the internecine hatred that flowed under the surface of much of the rest of Ulster" by author Patrick Taylor. This is a good explanation of the village he's created. The novel is about the daily lives of O'Reilly, Barry, Kinky, and the rest, told through the POV of Dr. Barry Laverty. The prose is wonderful, beautiful and smooth, and the characterizations are brilliantly painted. Patrick Taylor's complete "Irish Country" series is a work of art in progress. (The next book is An Irish Country Christmas - don't miss it!) As with the first book, 'An Irish Country Village' has a final note written by Mrs. Kinky Kincaid, in which she shares some of her recipes cooked in the book. There's also a Glossary for the Irish dialect used in the book, and an afterward by the author. Taylor is an artist of the written word, and I can't recommend his books highly enough. 10 Stars to the whole 'Irish Country' series. Enjoy!

This is the second book in the Irish Country series (1 - "Irish Country Doctor", 2 - "Irish Country Village", 3 - "Irish Country Christmas" and 4 - "Irish Country Girl" being published in 2010). I actually read the Christmas story first and got hooked and went back to the beginning and read the first one and now the second one. I absolutely love the series and have pre-ordered the next one which is pretty unusual for me.

The books are set in rural Ireland during the 1960s. The main characters are the established older doctor (Fingal Flahertie O'Reilly) who is bringing a younger doctor (Barry Laverty) into his practice to help ease the growing workload. The two physicians don't limit themselves to helping the residents of Balleybucklebo with their physical complaints. It seems that they end up with their fingers in many pies and the villagers look to them for their wisdom in helping with all life's problems. Mrs. Kinky Kincaid is the housekeeper and friend that looks over them and takes care of the home fires while these two run all over the countryside ministering to those who need them. If nothing else, the character of Mrs. Kincaid is such a joy that she is worth reading the book for her alone. While gruff, Dr. O'Reilly has a heart of gold (other than running over cyclists who get in his way) and the newly minted Dr. Laverty is quickly finding out how to be a good GP from a master.

The book actually takes a while to read - it's light and humorous but fairly dense with lots of Irish flavor. If this is the first time you have read one of these books, make sure to look in the back for a glossary of Irish terms. Not all of the dialogue makes sense to the American ear without it.

If you like the Mitford Series, the Elm Creek Quilt series or anything by Maeve Binchy I would recommend you give this series a try. I have loved all three novels and am anxiously awaiting the next one!

Really a good book , reminiscent or James Herriot books. He gets into the characters very well. Nice storyline and enjoyable read.

Patrick Taylor has a knack for putting the reader right in the village. I hated finishing the book, as I missed the people that I 'befriended'. I am an immediate fan! If you want to explore a village in Ireland and become acquainted with the type of people living there, this is a great way to experience it. Even though it is fiction, I am sure Mr. Taylor has somehow sketched in character traits that he has encountered.

Patrick Taylor has done it again with his Irish Country Village. What a beautiful, relaxing read, with characters that stick your mind long after the book is finished. From the first sentence, this book captures the culture and beauty of a time which unfortunately has past us by. But the warmth and humanity in this series is unforgettable. This wonderful series, which began with an Irish Country Doctor, just cannot end. My next read is An Irish Country Christmas. Patrick, please keep the unique, eccentric characters of Ballybucklobo coming!!

I love ALL Patrick Taylor's books, so it was no surprise how great this one was. His descriptions are so wonderful, I felt as though I was there. I just got back from Ireland and it was just as I envisioned, thanks to all these great books! The story is great, the writing is amazing!