Doctor in Clover

Doctor in the House #6

by Richard Gordon

Now Dr Grimsdyke is qualified he finds practising medicine rather less congenial than he anticipated. But the ever-selfless Grimsdyke resolves to put the desires of others (and in particular his rather career-minded cousin) before his own, and settle down and make the best of it. Finding the right job, however, is not always that easy. Porterhampton is suddenly rife with difficulties – as is being a waiter, as is being a writer. And writing obituaries is just plain depressing. Doctor in Clover finds the hapless Grimsdyke in a hilarious romp through misadventures, mishaps and total disasters.

Genres: Humor, Fiction, Modern

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1960

About the author

Richard Gordon is the pen name used by Gordon Ostlere (born Gordon Stanley Ostlere on September 15, 1921), an English surgeon and anaesthetist. As Richard Gordon, Ostlere has written several novels, screenplays for film and television and accounts of popular history, mostly dealing with the practice of medicine. He is most famous for a long series of comic novels on a medical theme starting with Doctor in the House, and the subsequent film, television and stage adaptations. His The Alarming History of Medicine was published in 1993, and he followed this with The Alarming History of Sex.

Gordon worked as anaesthetist at St. Bartholomew's Hospital (where he was a medical student) and later as a ship's surgeon and as assistant editor of the British Medical Journal. He has published several technical books under his own name including Anaesthetics for Medical Students(1949); later published as Ostlere and Bryce-Smith's Anaesthetics for Medical Students in 1989, Anaesthetics and the Patient (1949) and Trichlorethylene Anaesthesia (1953). In 1952, he left medical practice and took up writing full time. He has an uncredited role as an anesthesiologist in the movie Doctor in the House.

The early Doctor novels, set in the fictitious St Swithin's, a teaching hospital in London, were initially witty and apparently autobiographical; later books included more sexual innuendo and farce. The novels were very successful in Britain in Penguin paperback during the 1960s and 1970s. Richard Gordon also contributed to Punch magazine and has published books on medicine, gardening, fishing and cricket.

The film adaptation of Doctor in the House was released in 1954, two years after the book, while Doctor at Sea came out the following year with Brigitte Bardot. Dirk Bogarde starred as Dr. Simon Sparrow in both. The later spin-off TV series were often written by other well-known British comic performers.

Reviews

[Squeak2017 · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lightweight romp through the mores and morals of the 60s which I finished in one evening. Dr. Grimsdyke is a great slacker but has wit and humour to keep him afloat. This cosy picaresque novel follows the narrator through the perils of being almost trapped into marriage to being sentenced to five years in the South American jungle - but the rogue comes up trumps and makes his peace with Sir Lancelot Spratt, the terrifying surgeon at St. Swithins.

[Adele · Rating 3 out of 5]

(Beat the Backlist Reading Challenge: Pink Cover)
This is easily as good as any of the capers usually attributed to Bertram "Bertie" Wilberforce Wooster. Dr. Gaston Grimsdyke, possess similarly disarming charm, is equally adept at marriage avoidance and specialises in evading the consequences of his many comic misadventures. Of it’s time, but still a highly entertaining read.

[Linda Fallows · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great instalment of the “Doctor...” series. Never fail to make me laugh. This one, about the lengths the Dr goes to, to avoid marriage, is wonderful. If you need cheering up, these books will do the trick.

[Petra X · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read quite a few of the Doctor in the House series years ago and enjoyed them very much. They are now high on my 'reread' list.

[Vrsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hilarious...!