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Bryson City
Bryson City Tales
'We walked out onto a side porch, with woven-seat rocking chairs strewn across it, to look out at the hills that were literally ablaze with color--reds and yellows were painted across the promontories, with amber and orange hues specked the bluffs. The spectacular view all the way to the peak of the distant Frye Mountain reminded us of why so many chose to visit this wilderness area during the fall color season.' But the little mountain hamlet of Bryson City, North Carolina, offers more than dazzling vistas. For Walt Larimore, a young 'flatlander' physician setting up his first practice, the town presents its peculiar challenges as well. Schooled in the latest medical technology, the eager doctor--his wife, Barb, and two-year-old daughter, Kate, in tow--is about to discover that there are some things in rural practice for which medical school just hadn’t prepared him. But he’s about to learn. His patients will often be his best teachers, and his classroom will range from hospital corridors and smelly barns to homey kitchens and mountain streams. With the winsomeness of a James Herriott book, Bryson City Tales sweeps you into a world of colorful characters, the texture of Smoky Mountain life, and the warmth, humor, quirks, and struggles of a small country town. It’s a world where the family doctor is also the emergency physician, the coroner, and the obstetrician, and where wilderness medicine is part of the job, search-and-rescue calls in the national forest are a way of life, and the next patient just may be somebody’s livestock or pet. And it is the place where the practice of medicine will forever shape Dr. Larimore’s practice of life and faith.Sharing the joys, heartaches, frustrations, and rewards of rural mountain medical practice, Bryson City Tales is a tender and insightful chronicle of a young man’s rite of passage from medical student to family physician. Laughter and adventure await you in these pages, and lessons learned from the strengths, foibles, and simple faith of Bryson City’s unforgettable residents.
316 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2002
49 people are currently reading
513 people want to read
About the author
Walt Larimore
73 books120 followersDr. Larimore is one of America’s best-known family physicians and is listed in the Best Doctors in America, Who’s Who in Medicine and Healthcare, and the International Health Professionals of the Year. His MD degree is from Louisiana State University, with AOA Honors, while his Family Medicine residency, with an emphasis in Sports Medicine was at the Duke University Medical Center, where he was named one of the top twelve Family Medicine residents in the nation. He also completed a Queen’s Teaching Fellowship in Nottingham, England.
After his training, Dr. Larimore practiced 4 years in the Smoky Mountains before moving to Central Florida to practice for 16 years. From 1993-1994 he served as the President of the Florida Academy of Family Physicians. In 1996, he was named America’s Outstanding Family Medicine Educator by the American Academy of Family Physicians. In 2000, Dr. and Mrs. Larimore were named Educators of the Year by the Christian Medical Association.
The Larimores relocated to Colorado Springs in 2001. Besides practicing family medicine, Dr. Larimore is also an author, educator, and medical journalist. He serves on the adjunct family medicine faculty of the In His Image Family Medicine Residency in Tulsa, Oklahoma and the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center in Denver.
As a medical journalist, from 1996 to 2001, Dr. Larimore hosted over 850 episodes of the daily, live Ask the Family Doctor show on Fox’s Health Network, being awarded the prestigious "Gracie" Award by the American Women in Radio and Television. From 2002 to 2004, Dr. Larimore hosted the Focus on Your Family’s Health’s syndicated radio and TV features.
Dr. Larimore is a frequent guest about family health topics on a wide variety of television and radio programs and has appeared on The Today Show, CBS’s Morning Show, several Fox News programs, and CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360. He provides medical commentary for radio stations in Chicago, Orlando, Baltimore, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Tampa, Albuquerque, and Ft. Wayne.
Dr. Larimore has written or edited over twenty books and over 600 articles in a variety of medical journals and lay magazines. His best-selling books include Bryson City Tales, Bryson City Seasons, and Alternative Medicine: The Christian Handbook.
Dr. Larimore co-wrote, with Barb, his childhood sweetheart and wife of over 35 years, His Brain, Her Brain: How divinely designed differences can strengthen your marriage. He also wrote the health chapter for Coach Joe Gibb’s best-selling book Game Plan for Life.
Dr. Larimore’s most recent health book is 10 Essentials of Happy, Healthy People, an undated and revised version of his award winning book 10 Essentials of Highly Healthy People. In 2009 he co-wrote his first novel, Time Scene Investigators: The Gabon Virus, with Paul McCusker. The sequel, Time Scene Investigators: The Influenza Bomb will be released in 2010.
After his training, Dr. Larimore practiced 4 years in the Smoky Mountains before moving to Central Florida to practice for 16 years. From 1993-1994 he served as the President of the Florida Academy of Family Physicians. In 1996, he was named America’s Outstanding Family Medicine Educator by the American Academy of Family Physicians. In 2000, Dr. and Mrs. Larimore were named Educators of the Year by the Christian Medical Association.
The Larimores relocated to Colorado Springs in 2001. Besides practicing family medicine, Dr. Larimore is also an author, educator, and medical journalist. He serves on the adjunct family medicine faculty of the In His Image Family Medicine Residency in Tulsa, Oklahoma and the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center in Denver.
As a medical journalist, from 1996 to 2001, Dr. Larimore hosted over 850 episodes of the daily, live Ask the Family Doctor show on Fox’s Health Network, being awarded the prestigious "Gracie" Award by the American Women in Radio and Television. From 2002 to 2004, Dr. Larimore hosted the Focus on Your Family’s Health’s syndicated radio and TV features.
Dr. Larimore is a frequent guest about family health topics on a wide variety of television and radio programs and has appeared on The Today Show, CBS’s Morning Show, several Fox News programs, and CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360. He provides medical commentary for radio stations in Chicago, Orlando, Baltimore, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Tampa, Albuquerque, and Ft. Wayne.
Dr. Larimore has written or edited over twenty books and over 600 articles in a variety of medical journals and lay magazines. His best-selling books include Bryson City Tales, Bryson City Seasons, and Alternative Medicine: The Christian Handbook.
Dr. Larimore co-wrote, with Barb, his childhood sweetheart and wife of over 35 years, His Brain, Her Brain: How divinely designed differences can strengthen your marriage. He also wrote the health chapter for Coach Joe Gibb’s best-selling book Game Plan for Life.
Dr. Larimore’s most recent health book is 10 Essentials of Happy, Healthy People, an undated and revised version of his award winning book 10 Essentials of Highly Healthy People. In 2009 he co-wrote his first novel, Time Scene Investigators: The Gabon Virus, with Paul McCusker. The sequel, Time Scene Investigators: The Influenza Bomb will be released in 2010.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 115 reviews
October 13, 2008
Dr. Larimore has written an enjoyable and highly readable book about his first year in medical practice in a sparsely populated county in the Great Smoky Mountains. He relates stories about his patients, and I can confidently say he encountered many situations in his first year of practice that a big city doctor would never see in a hundred years!
Much of his book is about relationships within the contexts of family, colleagues, and community. The doctor is a man of faith, too, and he describes how prayer became a vital part of his work as a doctor.
Much of his book is about relationships within the contexts of family, colleagues, and community. The doctor is a man of faith, too, and he describes how prayer became a vital part of his work as a doctor.
August 1, 2025
Walt Larimore wrote two books about his days as a general practioner in a small hamlet in North Carolina. The second book, BRYSON CITY SEASONS, was the first one I read, because heaven forbid I ever follow standard book series etiquette. I enjoyed it and decided this title, the first book, was worthy of my always backward attention.
In this book, Larimore re-traces his first year as a practicing doctor in the smallish Bryson City. He arrives in a small town where everybody knows everything about you and where there are already several doctors with established practices. But Larimore is younger and more up to date on medical advances, so he begins to put some of his newfangled ideas into place. This doesn’t make him especially popular with half of the older doctors, but he earns the respect of the other half by combining his different perspective with their advice. At the time that this all took place, it was the 1980s when massive health insurance corporations were only starting to figure out how to destroy healthcare for average Americans. Therefore, the book provides a nostalgic look back at a time when doctors actually cared about the patient and where a young doctor could learn some homespun backwoods medical solutions to augment more scientific practices.
This is even more of a memoir than the second book because the good doctor explains all the issues with having to move and settle in a place where outsiders are not especially welcomed with open arms. He also has a small daughter born with disabilities, so the pressure on him to do what’s right for his family AND his patients AND the town gossips is almost overwhelming. But he never writes with anger or frustration, just with a sense of purpose because it’s clear he loves his profession. I always admire professionals who can put their stubbornness aside and make adjustments which benefit their clients/patients. The author is a man of faith so, as with the second book, there is some praying and Christian beliefs, but nothing that ever gets in the way of the memoir.
I have enjoyed both books and can recommend them as a look-back at how life used to be when people took the time to know their neighbors and to care for them.
Book Season = Winter (mountain chills)
In this book, Larimore re-traces his first year as a practicing doctor in the smallish Bryson City. He arrives in a small town where everybody knows everything about you and where there are already several doctors with established practices. But Larimore is younger and more up to date on medical advances, so he begins to put some of his newfangled ideas into place. This doesn’t make him especially popular with half of the older doctors, but he earns the respect of the other half by combining his different perspective with their advice. At the time that this all took place, it was the 1980s when massive health insurance corporations were only starting to figure out how to destroy healthcare for average Americans. Therefore, the book provides a nostalgic look back at a time when doctors actually cared about the patient and where a young doctor could learn some homespun backwoods medical solutions to augment more scientific practices.
This is even more of a memoir than the second book because the good doctor explains all the issues with having to move and settle in a place where outsiders are not especially welcomed with open arms. He also has a small daughter born with disabilities, so the pressure on him to do what’s right for his family AND his patients AND the town gossips is almost overwhelming. But he never writes with anger or frustration, just with a sense of purpose because it’s clear he loves his profession. I always admire professionals who can put their stubbornness aside and make adjustments which benefit their clients/patients. The author is a man of faith so, as with the second book, there is some praying and Christian beliefs, but nothing that ever gets in the way of the memoir.
I have enjoyed both books and can recommend them as a look-back at how life used to be when people took the time to know their neighbors and to care for them.
Book Season = Winter (mountain chills)
February 27, 2017
Nice man. Liked the influence of his faith with his medical practice. Not a fantastic writer and that slowed me down.
June 30, 2024
Doc Walt Larimore shares tales reminiscent of an American James Herriot; only, he's a doctor of humans instead of animals. However, in this mountain town, his first baby delivery is a calf instead of the human he had expected when he rushed to an emergency house visit. And there's the equally surprising surgery on a hunting dog. At one point, he pulls aside a hospital curtain to find a giant fish in the intensive care unit bed--alongside another bed where a bleeding man refuses to let his record-breaking fish (a muskie) out of his sight until the game warden comes to the hospital to certify it. The stories of Larimore's first year of practice are entertaining, poignant, and inspiring. He mixes his faith, family life (also a gripping medical tale), and family practice together in an anthology of eclectic stories that made me cry, laugh, and marvel. I'm glad I read it.
August 22, 2025
A delightful read!
April 27, 2025
DNF
Some enjoyable anecdotes, but not terribly well-written, especially the lengthy dialogue. Certainly not as good as James Herriot.
Some enjoyable anecdotes, but not terribly well-written, especially the lengthy dialogue. Certainly not as good as James Herriot.
February 17, 2020
Really enjoyed this book, possibly because Dr. Larimore in many ways represents my future, but also because his stories of small town medicine are captivating and his love and respect for his patients inspiring. Highly recommend to anyone who wants to go back to simpler times and/or any family Med docs who want to feel inspired to go into rural medicine.
Read
February 9, 2011Readers will identify with Dr. Larimore as he begins the first job of his professional career with plenty of academic training but lots of uncertainties as he works with older, more experienced physicians and nurses in a small town in the Smokies. Throughout his first year he grows professionally, personally, and spiritually.
January 13, 2014
Nice memoir about a young doctor and his family and the adventures they encountered when they moved to a small town in the North Carolina mountain. Enjoyed the stories because they were set in a time and place that felt familiar to me. The doctor runs afoul of local politics, makes friends and deals with some interesting medical techniques and cases.
July 5, 2009
This book is charming, warm and real. I loved the medical aspect of it, and how he at times struggled to make the right diagnosis, to fit into a political small town of natives, and make a life for his family.
January 9, 2012
This was a completely random book for me to read. My mom had it on her bookshelf and we had just driven through Bryson City on a vacation. I thought it was a fun easy read. I would probably read some of the author's other stories.
August 5, 2016
What a delightful book, reminiscent of the Mitford Tales books, of a young dr's first year of practice in a small town in the Smoky Mountains. Makes you smile, laugh, or learn along with the dr.
May 26, 2020
Bryson City is a town I am very familiar with and have vacationed nearby on more than a few occasions. Many of the locations the author calls out I have experienced myself. This includes dinner at the Fryemont Inn, Tubing in Deep Creek and of course the unspeakable beauty of a sunrise over the Smoky Mountains. I love this place and I actually became aware that this book existed while having dinner at the bar in the Fryemont Inn!
This book describes Dr. Walt Larimore’s first year out of medical school where he starts his career in the small mountain town of Bryson City, NC. The charm of this book is Dr. Larimore’s stories about the people he meets and the places he visits. Larimore’s prose is very conversational - some of the tales will make you laugh out loud, some will make you tear up and others make you realize you cannot escape political bullshit regardless of where you set your roots.
My favorite aspect of this memoir is Larimore’s willingness to learn; whether it be from other physicians, nurses or the local townsfolk. It becomes clear to him very quickly that just because you were not taught something in med school does not mean that there is not more for even the brightest physician to learn. I enjoyed how he would point out a doctor’s bedside demeanor and internally process how he could emulate this behavior and adapt to his own practice with his patients. Granted, I never met the man, but this sounds like the kind of person I want practicing general medicine.
Dr. Larimore is clearly a very religious man and it seems he provides the type of spiritual and medical guidance his patients need. This is not necessarily something I would look for in a physician, but given the context of where he serves this is likely exactly what the Dr. ordered.
I would recommend this book if you are looking to slow things down a little, meet some entertaining characters and are in the mood for a feel good memoir.
This book describes Dr. Walt Larimore’s first year out of medical school where he starts his career in the small mountain town of Bryson City, NC. The charm of this book is Dr. Larimore’s stories about the people he meets and the places he visits. Larimore’s prose is very conversational - some of the tales will make you laugh out loud, some will make you tear up and others make you realize you cannot escape political bullshit regardless of where you set your roots.
My favorite aspect of this memoir is Larimore’s willingness to learn; whether it be from other physicians, nurses or the local townsfolk. It becomes clear to him very quickly that just because you were not taught something in med school does not mean that there is not more for even the brightest physician to learn. I enjoyed how he would point out a doctor’s bedside demeanor and internally process how he could emulate this behavior and adapt to his own practice with his patients. Granted, I never met the man, but this sounds like the kind of person I want practicing general medicine.
Dr. Larimore is clearly a very religious man and it seems he provides the type of spiritual and medical guidance his patients need. This is not necessarily something I would look for in a physician, but given the context of where he serves this is likely exactly what the Dr. ordered.
I would recommend this book if you are looking to slow things down a little, meet some entertaining characters and are in the mood for a feel good memoir.
May 15, 2018
It really should be more like 3 1/2 stars. The way the author "talks" I had to keep checking to be sure this book wasn't written in the 1950s. It's sweet, fairly gentle, and sort of a cross between "All Creatures Great and Small" and "Northern Exposure", leaning more towards the former. I would have liked to have more insight into how Dr. Latimore's wife felt about the town, and more info on why the older doctors disliked the newer doctors so much. Maybe that comes out in the later books in this series.
All in all, it's not breathtaking, but kind of like the Smoky Mountains it's set in, it's a nice step back from big city life. A story where you get down to the important things - like keeping your family well, making decisions that aren't necessarily politically smart, but are the best for your child/spouse/ parent.
I admire Dr. Latimore's willingness to learn (even from gruff, agitated teachers) instead of looking down his nose at them. On the other hand, given how often he got lectures on "we don't do it like your fancy university did", I wonder if it seemed he was sneering. It would be interesting to hear other sides to these tales.
All in all, it's not breathtaking, but kind of like the Smoky Mountains it's set in, it's a nice step back from big city life. A story where you get down to the important things - like keeping your family well, making decisions that aren't necessarily politically smart, but are the best for your child/spouse/ parent.
I admire Dr. Latimore's willingness to learn (even from gruff, agitated teachers) instead of looking down his nose at them. On the other hand, given how often he got lectures on "we don't do it like your fancy university did", I wonder if it seemed he was sneering. It would be interesting to hear other sides to these tales.
November 18, 2022
Bryson City Tales takes readers along for the journey of Walt Larimore after deciding to move to Bryson City, North Carolina in 1981 to practice medicine. For he and his family there are promises and pitfalls, though ultimately the three years they spent their resulted in new experiences, a greater appreciation for the spirit if the land, and most important, some great friends. I enjoyed reading about his experiences a chapter at a time, though would not read more of the same in other books he has authored. It is enjoyable though not engrossing. Interesting, but not captivating.
A few criticisms: Page 18 says 'drive home from hospital hill' and page 22 says 'drove home to hospital hill', so which direction is home? Also, in chapter 16, The Epiphany, may be controversial for some people due to comments following a miscarriage by the attending doctor. And lastly, on page 302, I found it ill advisable for the author to include their opinion on murder convictions. It streams too far from the purpose of this book.
A few criticisms: Page 18 says 'drive home from hospital hill' and page 22 says 'drove home to hospital hill', so which direction is home? Also, in chapter 16, The Epiphany, may be controversial for some people due to comments following a miscarriage by the attending doctor. And lastly, on page 302, I found it ill advisable for the author to include their opinion on murder convictions. It streams too far from the purpose of this book.
November 23, 2020
I loved this book because it is a story of my favorite place ever! I have been going to Bryson City, NC and Deep Creek since I was a little girl. My family vacationed here in Deep Creek Campground, beginning with tent camping. We graduated to a pop up camper thru the years, and as an adult I now rent an ABNB. The magic of the Smoky Mountains grips my heart, and the love of the Deep Creek area has been instilled in my children and grandchildren. One of my brothers, his four adult children and grandchildren feel this same connection as I and they take their big campers every year and continue the tradition.
The tales that Dr. Larimore shares bring to life this wonderful town and its beautiful people. It is a picture of an era gone by and hopefully will be a vehicle to preserve the uniqueness and richness of this town and its deep Creek area.
The tales that Dr. Larimore shares bring to life this wonderful town and its beautiful people. It is a picture of an era gone by and hopefully will be a vehicle to preserve the uniqueness and richness of this town and its deep Creek area.
November 17, 2017
Dr Walt Larimore and his wife have moved to a small mountain town in North Carolina and as this is his first medical practice after being schooled in the latest medical technology he finds the life very different. Some older Dr's in the community resent the young Dr's and feel they have no place in the community. Walt is determined to fit in this rural practice and finds he learns so much from the nurses and staff at the clinics even though some of the ways are old fashioned they really do work. Gradually Walt finds himself "fitting" in but some things or people never change.
December 25, 2022
I knew Dr. Larimore a bit through a career in books and book selling, but initially thought this series was fiction. Rather, this first book in his Bryson City trilogy shared stories of his first year of family medicine practice in this delightful city which is a gateway town to the GSMNP. We go there frequently to hike and are familiar with some of the places he mentions. This is a beautiful book about belonging. Many chapters were laugh-out-loud hilarious. Others were tear-jerking, misty-eyed drama. I slowed my reading pace simply to savor this one longer.
January 4, 2025
I picked this one up to bring to my parents on Christmas vacation last week, I wanted to balance the fantasy with some light biography. This one was recommended as being similar to Herriot.
I've only just started and it isn't quite as funny or self-effacing yet but I want to give it more time to let the village characters take more shape. The one is a whole series but I'm not sure if I'm interested in getting the other ones from the library yet.
It got better after the cow scene :)
Some of the labor passages were hard to read, I really appreciated the kind presentation of the author's faith. It wasn't preachy but it was nice.
I've only just started and it isn't quite as funny or self-effacing yet but I want to give it more time to let the village characters take more shape. The one is a whole series but I'm not sure if I'm interested in getting the other ones from the library yet.
It got better after the cow scene :)
Some of the labor passages were hard to read, I really appreciated the kind presentation of the author's faith. It wasn't preachy but it was nice.
June 24, 2019
I found this book quite by accident at a Christian bookstore in an antique mall. It caught my eye because it has my last name in the title. I enjoyed reading the tales of Dr. Walt's first year as a physician in the small town of Bryson City, NC. It was obvious that he and his wife took a leap of faith to move there to begin his medical practice, but based on the "tales", it was a good decision, as was reading this book for me.
June 3, 2025
Having visited Bryson City many times, I enjoyed reading about places I knew. My husband’s grandparents built a home off Galbraith Creek Road and he visited them every summer growing up in the 60’s. His aunt and uncle still live on that mountain and we visit many times. Have eaten at the Randolph House and even stayed and eaten at the Frymont Inn and Hemlock Inn. Will definitely read the other books by this amazing doctor about Bryson City.
August 25, 2017
The Smokies are a second home so reading this book just felt comfortable and enjoyable. While it's not so much about the area, it still highlights some of the reason it's such a beautiful place to be. I loved the intersection of faith and medical practice in this read and the interesting details that go into a doctor's beginning practice. While not an edge-of-your seat story, it is engaging.
January 17, 2018
This was an easy to read, heart-warming story. I would compare it to the James Herriot series written by and about an English country veterinarian. Larimore's writing style is uncomplicated and like he's talking to a friend. I really enjoyed this story. Might have to take a trip down to Bryson City one of these days!
February 2, 2019
This book was just “ok” for me. I was expecting it to read more like a novel but instead it was each chapter telling a different story that happened while practicing in the Smokey mountains. No real plot or story line to it.
If you’re looking for a very clean, sometimes funny, quick story read, this book is for you.
If you’re looking for a very clean, sometimes funny, quick story read, this book is for you.
January 15, 2020
I enjoyed hearing of Dr. Walt's life in NC and the medical encounters he had. As a person in medicine, I learned some things, laughed, and cried as we went through the years covered in the 3 books. Highly recommended even for non-medical people as he explains things in terms everyone can understand.
February 21, 2022
Thoroughly enjoyed this book about a young doctor’s first practice up in the Smoky Mountains. Beautifully descriptive and thoughtful, it is reminiscent of James Herriot’s works, but with an overtly Christian viewpoint included. An enjoyable read; I kept wanting to pick it up to read more when I could.
April 21, 2025
So, this man is a Dr, not a writer, at least not yet, not with this book. BUT, it was still an enjoyable read with interesting stories. He did a good job with the characters and let the readers feel like they know them. It was also nice how he incorporated his faith into his work and the story. I will definitely try more of his books.
May 6, 2017
this is a sweet little biography (fictionalized some) of a physicians first year in a small town on the edge of the Great Smokey Mountains National Park. I found it delightful between the medicine and mountains!
August 24, 2017
The story of Dr. Lairmore's experiences as doc in a small town! Several times he has to reconsider what he learned in med school and the small town he now lives in. The book chronicles his experiences near Bryson City, NC. An interesting read.
July 9, 2018
Interesting to read the insights of a young country doctor. The book is very well written and I experienced a wild range of emotions.
I was a little disappointed that the family only stayed in Bryson City for four years. When the book ends I thought they would be there for many years to come.
I was a little disappointed that the family only stayed in Bryson City for four years. When the book ends I thought they would be there for many years to come.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 115 reviews