Tired of the pace and noise of life near London and longing for a better place to raise their young children, Mary J. MacLeod and her husband encountered their dream while vacationing on a remote island in the Scottish Hebrides. Enthralled by its windswept beauty, they soon were the proud owners of a near-derelict croft house—a farmer’s stone cottage—on “a small acre” of land. Mary assumed duties … duties as the island’s district nurse. Call the Nurse is her account of the enchanted years she and her family spent there, coming to know its folk as both patients and friends.
In anecdotes that are by turns funny, sad, moving, and tragic, she recalls them all, the crofters and their laird, the boatmen and tradesmen, young lovers and forbidding churchmen. Against the old-fashioned island culture and the grandeur of mountain and sea unfold indelible stories: a young woman carried through snow for airlift to the hospital; a rescue by boat; the marriage of a gentle giant and the island beauty; a ghostly encounter; the shocking discovery of a woman in chains; the flames of a heather fire at night; an unexploded bomb from World War II; and the joyful, tipsy celebration of a ceilidh. Gaelic fortitude meets a nurse’s compassion in these wonderful true stories from rural Scotland.
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I had never read much about this part of the world. Very interesting to learn more about it.
This is the story of a British nurse who served on a small Island in the Hebrides. The name of the island is changed for the privacy of her patients.
The island’s life style shows us a glimpse of a past or passing way of life. The people this nurse interacts with are varied and interesting. In their isolated island they have a close knit …
I thought the book was a little slow. Didn’t make we anxious to keep reading it.
Boring
I thought this book was very conventional and not really entertaining at all.
an interesting read
Who hasn’t dreamed of giving up the hectic, big city rat race for a simpler life? This nurse and her family did just that. Moved from a big city in England to a remote island off the Scottish coast in the early 1970’s. Her remembrances of her neighbors (complete with their Gaelic phonetic pronunciation/spellings) and events brought to life for me …
A memorable account of the adventures, lessons, and many adjustments a nurse faced to make when she became a member of a tiny community of folk on “the edge of the world”.
Loved learning about the individuals who live in such a remote location.
I found this book to be a page turner & I so loved the characters of the Hebrides. It gave an authentic picture of life on the island
This is the human equivalent of James Herriott’s veterinary series of books. The characters are just as quirkly, homespun, cantankerous, and unpredictable as what one finds in Herriott’s novels. It’s a fun read for those who appreciate “salt of the earth” folks.
Well written, great read!
Although I love Scotland, this was a rather boring read.
Eye-opening and heart warming.
I liked it because it is true story about a place unknown to me.
This is a wonderful book recalling the life of a district nurse on a remote Hebrides island. The vivid descriptions of the island, the weather, the island inhabitants and the nurse’s family are beautifully drawn. The experiences the author relates run the gamut – from funny, to heartwarming to tragic. Reading about the pluck and cheerfulness of …
Call the Nurse is Mary J. MacLeod’s delightful memoir of working as a district nurse on one of the Inner Hebrides islands in the 1970s. That latter part is actually shocking, as many of the homes have only just gotten electricity, and some are still without indoor plumbing. Although she is practicing decades later than James Herriot, the …
Good characters and very interesting in learning about this area.
Very dry
Learned about a whole different lifestyle in a part of the world I had known nothing about. Good read.