From Publishers Weekly
This highly readable sequel to An Irish Country Doctor follows the trials and exultations of Dr. Barry Laverty as he begins his assistantship to Dr. Fingal Flahertie O'Reilly in Balleybucklebo, a fictional Irish Ulster village of the 1960s. Barry loves his diverse workβconjunctivitis to obstetricsβand his provincial patients are keen on folk wisdom and proverbs. He grows fond and admiring of his gruff, imposing senior colleague, who heals bodies and also attacks social maladies, like the greedy local councilor who threatens to turn the Black Swan, a local pub, into a tourist trap. Meanwhile, Barry's infatuation with plucky engineering student Patricia Spence thickens, though her ambition may land her a scholarship that would lure her to Cambridge. And then there's the matter of a potential career-ending lawsuit by a recent widow whose husband died after Barry botched a diagnosis. Detailed medical procedures of the era are fascinating to a modern reader, though Taylor sometimes throws in too much play-by-play. The book, with its spot-on dialects (a glossary is included for those who don't know what, say, soft hand under a duck means) and neatly tied endings, largely succeeds as light entertainment. (Feb.)
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Review
βHighly readable. . . . Detailed medical procedures of the era are fascinating to a modern reader. . . . The book, with its spot-on dialects and neatly tied endings, largely succeeds as light entertainment.ββ_Publishers Weekly_ on _An Irish Country Village
*βFull of stories and vivid characters, the novel recalls a good night in a pub. Its greatest charm lies in homey Ulster idioms. . . . Good, light entertainment.ββ*Booklist_ on _An Irish Country Village
*β*An Irish Country Doctor_ makes for escapist, delightful fun.ββ_Publishers Weekly
*βBallybucklebo is an easy place for readers to sink into, with likable characters and atmospheric dialogue.ββ*Kirkus Reviews_ on An Irish Country Doctor