After reading other reviews of this book I decided it probably wasn't for me at this time. I might read it in the future.

This needs considerable editing and organisation in order for it to be readable. There are glaring spelling, punctuation and grammar errors. I feel it could be a very good novel, especially reflecting australian racism towards south east asian people, but it was unreadable

I tried a few chapters and could not go further The story seemed too dry and I felt no emotion towards the Dr.
I'm sure someone else will enjoy the book.

King Asoka’s Veterinary Hospital is a recently published fictional account of the experiences of a young Sri Lankan vet working at a prominent animal hospital in Melbourne. The author is himself a vet so I presume that some of the anecdotes described are real events. I like animal stories, and am always fascinated by the similarities and differences between human and veterinary medicine, so was expecting a somewhat humorous tale exploring aspects of animal care seen through the eyes of an immigrant from a very different culture. There was only one other (2 star) review on here (GoodReads) when I selected this from NetGalley, contrasting with the cluster of 5 star reviews on Amazon, so I decided to take a chance as I fancied reading something a bit different. Unfortunately I didn’t like it at all and pushed on to the end only because I had committed to review it and don’t want to lower by review percentage.

Siva Sundram Pillai escaped the war in Sri Lanka and pursues a difficult career as a vet in Australia, facing racism and other challenges to get qualified and find employment, until he lands his dream job at the Melbourne Veterinary Hospital. There he meets an assortment of oddball characters - including a talking cat, named Collingwood after the local football team. All he wants to do is practice good medicine and help animals, but he is sucked into toxic workplace politics and becomes a victim of colleagues willing to jeapordise his position and risk their patients’ lives to score points in their personal vendettas.

Frankly I am surprised that this made it to publication. The English is completely garbled - probably this is because it was written by someone writing in a second language learned as an adult. Phrases that would be comprehensible in spoken English sound completely wrong written down. This could’ve been fixed by comprehensive editing. There are also quite a few typos and continuity errors. I received a review copy post-publication so don’t know if this is what is currently on sale.

Worse was the pervasive misogyny and sexism throughout the book. Characters like Chief Vet Carlos and Nurse Sam are portrayed as lovable sexist pigs - this would be tolerable, just, if it were made clear that our protagonist doesn’t condone this behaviour, but the omniscient narrator telling the story from Siva’s perspective clearly sees women exactly the same way. Every female character is judged by her looks and sexual attractiveness, even owners bringing in their desperately sick pets for care. The male colleagues happily troop off to strip clubs and topless bars - with gratuitous descriptions of the staff thrown in, presumably for titillation as they certainly don’t serve the plot. Siva struggles to remain faithful to his doctor wife - a paper-thin background character - with the temptations of a beautiful but manipulative female vet and seductively homely nurse. This quote typifies the attitudes throughout the book:
“Sam, shall we go?” “No, let her remove her panties. We leave after that.” “If you wait for her to remove them, you won’t get your dinner.” “I will have to take some pizza home today.” In a male’s mind, such thoughts are inscribed like computer programmes. Hiding or denying them is hypocrisy. Moreover, doing so will turn them into perverts.”

While the hospital is supposed to be highly regarded, the care provided is shockingly slapdash, with mistakes covered up unless they’re being used as weapons in the battle between the staff. I was interested in the procedures themselves but suspect most readers wouldn’t need this much detail.
Some serious topics are covered, including racism, domestic abuse, mental health/hoarding/suicide, and when it’s appropriate to euthanise an animal. There is little humour - although I liked the scene with the Olympic weightlifters. The mysterious talking cat that only Siva can hear adds a fantastical element that I thought would be explored and perhaps explained but it isn’t. Finally, the constant references to all animals as “it” despite them knowing the sex, even Collingwood who is a major character, offended my sensibilities as a Cat Parent. The best things about this book were the cover image and that it’s not too long. 1.5 rounded down for the pervasive offensiveness.

I received a free review copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Books Go Social and NetGalley for the Reader's Copy!

Now available.

Straightforward yet descriptive, Noel Nadesan's King Asoka's Veterinary Hospital focuses on the story of Siva Sundram Pillai, a young Sri Lankan veterinarian, as he navigates work, life and friendship in rural Melbourne Australia. Along the way, Siva meets entertaining coworkers like the sexist and charming Carlos and faces challenging cases. While I learned a great deal about animal anatomy and the history of veterinary science, it felt like the protagonist of Siva was eclipsed by his other coworkers. It is a mindless read that I had a difficult time continuing to stay engaged with.