Reading Order
All Creatures Great And Smallseries.seoTitleShort
Start with If Only They Could Talk and continue through all 10 books in the listed reading order.
Start Here
Start with If Only They Could Talk
Book 1 by James Herriot • Published 1970
Newly qualified vet James Herriot arrives in the Yorkshire village of Darrowby and is plunged into freezing farmyards, unpredictable animals and eccentric owners. These early cases introduce Siegfried and Tristan Farn...
Complete List
All Creatures Great And Small reading order
Ends with Vet in a Spin
- 1
Book 1:If Only They Could Talk
James Herriot • 1970
Newly qualified vet James Herriot arrives in the Yorkshire village of Darrowby and is plunged into freezing farmyards, unpredictable animals and eccentric owners. These early cases introduce Siegfried and Tristan Farn...
- 2
Book 2:It Shouldn't Happen to a Vet
James Herriot • 1972
Back in Darrowby, Herriot continues juggling midnight emergencies, opinionated farmers and his mercurial boss, Siegfried. Amid disasters and small triumphs, his friendship with Tristan deepens and a hesitant romance w...
- 3
Book 3:All Creatures Great and Small
James Herriot • 1972
Combining his first Yorkshire memoirs, this volume follows young James Herriot as he joins Siegfried Farnon’s veterinary practice in Darrowby. Short, vivid chapters trace calvings, foalings and small-animal emergencie...
- 4
Book 4:Let Sleeping Vets Lie
James Herriot • 1973
With more experience behind him, Herriot treats everything from delicate spring lambs to a ferocious house cat, all against the backdrop of the Yorkshire moors. The book follows his stop-start courtship of Helen and t...
- 5
Book 5:Vet in Harness
James Herriot • 1974
Now a partner in the practice and newly married, Herriot tries to balance domestic life with endless calls to remote farms. Overflowing with comic mishaps, demanding clients and moving moments at the barn side, these...
- 6
Book 6:All Things Bright and Beautiful
James Herriot • 1974
This continuation of Herriot’s memoirs finds him newly married to Helen and busier than ever on the hill farms above Darrowby. Between harsh winters, tricky surgeries and laughter-filled visits with old clients, he di...
- 7
Book 7:Vets Might Fly
James Herriot • 1976
World War II pulls Herriot away from Yorkshire and into the Royal Air Force, where flying lessons, mess-hall gossip and homesickness replace farm calls. Between training flights, he looks back on earlier cases, weavin...
- 8
Book 8:All Things Wise and Wonderful
James Herriot • 1976
Set during World War II, this volume interweaves Herriot’s Royal Air Force training with flashbacks to earlier days in Yorkshire. The stories move from barracks and parade grounds back to lambing sheds and kitchen tab...
- 9
Book 9:The Lord God Made Them All
James Herriot • 1981
After the war, Herriot returns to his family and to the familiar chaos of farm calls, late-night emergencies and village gossip. A voyage on a livestock ship sits alongside quiet, tender visits with long-time clients,...
- 10
Book 10:Vet in a Spin
James Herriot • 1984
In this companion to Vets Might Fly, Herriot’s RAF training grows more intense—and more absurd. Nerves, bad weather and medical setbacks keep his flying career uncertain, while memories of Yorkshire farmers and animal...
Quick Answers
All Creatures Great And Small FAQ
What is the best order to read the All Creatures Great And Small series?
The recommended reading order is the numbered order shown on this page, starting with If Only They Could Talk.
How many books are in the All Creatures Great And Small series?
There are 10 books currently listed in the All Creatures Great And Small series on GurusReads.
Where should I start with the All Creatures Great And Small series?
New readers should start with If Only They Could Talk, the first book in the reading order.
Is the All Creatures Great And Small series complete?
Based on the publication years we have, the series appears likely complete and spans releases from 1970 to 1984.