A beautiful written account of Noel’s life and career becoming a vet and specialising in such a new aspect of vet science. I just found myself not knowing what the purpose of the book was other than to make money and as someone who has seen most of the animal cases he talked about on the programme not even that was new. I also enjoyed Fitzpatrick's discussion on One Medicine, as this is an interest of mine working in a human healthcare setting. This added a depth to the book and intertwined the human/animal relationship that forges his ultimate passion of "One Medicine" - something I knew nothing about before reading this book but strongly agree with.

I got a lecture about the danger of 'over treatment' and how hurt he was that he had been accused of it. I am interested in how people make sense of their lives and the world around them but this was very convoluted and repetitive. I got a self help book and a philosophy book as well as a book on transcendental meditation and buddhism. This book was so interesting and at times a little sad, but for many animals that come to Noel they are given a second chance because they had been deemed beyond help by others. i felt the book may have given me comfort in a sad time but it increased my sadness most of the way through the book .A world leading orthopaedic-neuro veterinary surgeon who holds a place in the Guinness Book of Records as the first person to successfully apply an amputation prosthesis to a cat, Professor Noel Fitzpatrick obtained his Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine from University College Dublin in 1990 and went on to set up Fitzpatrick Referrals in Surrey in 2005. Perfect for all fans of The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse and Together, the uplifting story of Supervet Noel Fitzpatrick's heartwarming relationship with his dog Keira also boasts beautiful illustrations by Laura McKendry.

Noel’s philosophy of life also features in the book which struck a chord with me As the RCVS case takes its toll combined with an accident at home in which he breaks his neck and the complications of COVID you wonder how he managed to keep going. However, I do find lots of these stories interspersed with self righteousness, and a sense of narcissism. Also there was a paragraph about him putting on weight and how he had put the food in his mouth so it was down to him to lose it again (with his personal trainer). whereas I always thought 'you wouldn't allow an animal to suffer, so why allow people to suffer' but after reading this I do wonder if euthanasia is the 'easy option' for some vets. Someone kindly bought this book for me as a gift, I don't think I've ever cried so much reading a book (except maybe Ginger's death in Black Beauty), but it is a fascinating glimpse into the Supervet's world.I also got a tad annoyed with the philosophy of if you want something you just have to work hard for it and if you didn't get it it was because you didn't work hard enough. The overall structure of the book wasn't what I was expecting, it was split into chapters on personality traits/virtues, mostly explained through lessons he has learned from animals in his care and his two beloved pets.

There were things in the book I didn't understand but I will read it again in a little while and hopefully I'll understand more. The journey to that point has seen Noel treat thousands of animals – many of whom were thought to be beyond help – animals that have changed his life, and the lives of those around them, for the better. We meet the animals that paved the way, from calving cows and corralling bullocks to talkative parrots and bionic cats and dogs. I think Noel is probably neurodivergent and may be on the spectrum from some of his thought processes and his anxieties but the book just read like someone who had taken drugs and then talked for five hours without stopping. Whilst this made sense, with the book being set during the COVID pandemic, it was not as much of an interest to me as much as Fitzpatrick's work was.What I got was a book verging on despair; full of one part arrogance, five parts low self esteem and damage from bullying as a child. When I was reading, I really felt like I was there because it was about his life in lockdown and I was reading it during lockdown. This can be a difficult read not only because there is a lot of technical stuff in it but also because it can be difficult to see through the tears.