The Patron Saint of Lost Dogs

December 24, 2012
In this sentimental and smartly written debut novel from Boston veterinary surgeon Trout (Tell Me Where It Hurts, a memoir), Dr. Cyrus Mills, an early middle-aged veterinary pathologist, returns after 14 years to rustic Eden Falls, Vt., to assume the ownership of Bedside Manor, the clinic previously owned by his late father. The reclusive Cyrus, long estranged from his father, filed a wrongful termination suit after being fired from his previous job. Now, due to a countersuit, he’s in danger of losing his veterinarian’s license. To exacerbate matters, his popular father, an inept businessman, left Bedside Manor in debt, and no sooner has Cyrus arrived than the bank threatens foreclosure. He finds allies in Lewis, the Bedside Manor’s wise older vet, and the crusty office manager, Doris, after Cyrus’s first customer suspiciously asks for her healthy golden retriever to be euthanized. In the week during which the novel unfolds, Cyrus delivers a baby in an emergency, dates a local waitress, and works out his hostile emotions toward his dead father. By the time the bank’s financial deadline arrives, he’s been dubbed the “new Patron Saint” of lost dogs. A diverting yarn reminiscent of the work of James Herriot. Agent: Kristin Lindstrom, Lindstrom Literary Group.

Cyrus Mills returns to Vermont as the unhappy inheritor of The Bedside Manor for Sick Animals, his estranged father's failing business. His plan to sell it quickly and run away from home a second time is foiled by Dr. Lewis and Bedside's loyal pets and their owners. Author Trout is himself a vet, so his story has a ring of truth. Peter Berkrot tells it with humor and a light touch, making Cyrus's growth from a self-absorbed whiner to a caring vet believable. Speaking in Cyrus's voice, Berkrot uses subtle changes in tone, tempo, and pacing to reveal a heart long buried but now free to blossom. N.E.M. (c) AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine