I had no idea what to expect from this book. I chose it because I love Ireland and the Irish and would have liked to have done medicine.I found it a refreshing and delightful account Of Fingal,s training to be a doctor at Trinity in Dublin. It is filled with wonderful characters he meets along the way.The poverty in Ireland and particularly Dublin was not the usual depressing description of the abject and the horrific but the victory of the spirit over adversity. His unhappy relationship with his intellectual father was not a major calamity nor was his failure in his first exam. Both were to be the stimulus for greater efforts. How refreshing to read a novel where the hero has human failings and copes with failure. In fact believable and realistic portrayals of life.I will definitely read/listen to the other books in the series When I read the first book of the series, I thought the main character was young Dr. Barry Laverty. However, the succeeding books have shifted the focus to his boss, Dr. O'Reilly. That suits me since the "Big Fellah" is a much more interesting character than the love-sick Barry.This book, although #6 in the series, could actually be read first since it goes back to cover Dr. O'Reilly's years as a medical student in Dublin. Quite interesting to read about the medical treatments followed in the 1930's and the sad state of the Dublin tenements.
What do You think about A Dublin Student Doctor (2011)?
I loved this gentle story and am looking forward to reading the rest of the series.
—nana
