James Herriot
Recognized in the Creative Minds Montessori 2026 Teacher’s Choice list.
James Herriot is one of roughly one hundred authors whose work was selected by the Montessori-certified teachers at Creative Minds Montessori for the 2026 Teacher’s Choice list — 120 books chosen across four reading stages, from first lap-reads to first chapter books. The selected book was chosen for how precisely it meets children at a real developmental moment. This recognition cannot be bought: no author or publisher paid to appear on our lists, and we take no commission on any book sale.
About James Herriot
James Herriot was the pen name of Alf Wight (1916-1995), a Yorkshire veterinary surgeon who practised at Thirsk for close to fifty years and turned his cases into books; since the first appeared in 1970 the series has sold some 60 million copies. James Herriot's Treasury for Children collects all of his books for children in one volume.
His early attempts at writing were turned down - he later said his style was improving but his subjects were wrong - so in 1969, in his fifties, he wrote about the work he knew best. He kept on as a vet through all the fame, giving up full-time practice only in 1980.
Also by this author: All Creatures Great and Small · Moses the Kitten · The Christmas Day Kitten
Official legacy site: worldofjamesherriot.com
Selected for the 2026 Teacher’s Choice list
Part of The Best Children’s Books by Age, chosen by the teachers at Creative Minds Montessori in Frisco, TX.