'All Creatures Great & Small' Reminds Us "By the Book" Isn't Always Best

Episode 4, “By The Book” of All Creatures Great & Small Season 4, opens as James and Helen tease each other with unsuitable baby names before the start of another busy day. James wants Helen to slow down and officially announce her pregnancy, but she’s reluctant to do either. “Farmers don’t stop for babies,” she tells him, and it’s early days. She’s suffering some nausea and downplays it to Mrs. Hall as indigestion between raids of the pickled egg jar in the pantry. Unsurprisingly, Mrs. Hall guessed Helen’s secret, and the two women become closer talking about pregnancy and the wait for James’s call-up papers.

James: To knowledge, fleas, and our growing family

James is out on a call with Richard Carmody, their book-smart but naive assistant. Siegfried refers to it as the Carmody Conundrum; how can someone academically bright be so clueless when dealing with people? With his strong emotional intelligence and his kindness toward human clients, James can surely teach him a thing or two. His nose buried in a book on the way to the Crabtrees’ farm, Richard has to be reminded to get out of the car and open (and shut) gates, and brightly remarks that the symptoms so far sound like brucellosis. James shuts him down. The family could lose everything, including the farm, if it is something as serious as brucellosis. This is a potential tragedy.