The Stars Look Down

Archibald Joseph Cronin (1896–1981) was born in Scotland, graduated from the University of Glasgow, and worked as a doctor in South Wales and London. But his true calling became literature—he devoted himself to it after the tremendous success of his first novel, “The House of Brody.” Among Cronin’s other books, the most famous are “The Stars Look Down,” “The Citadel,” “Youth,” “The Shannon Way,” “The Keys of the Kingdom,” “Monument to a Crusader,” and “Three Loves.”

Cronin’s most яркі novels are among bestsellers, selling huge numbers all over the world; more than 30 film adaptations have been made based on his works. Yet it cannot be said that, having left medical practice, Archibald Cronin said goodbye to medicine forever.

This profession—and the problems and challenges of the times connected with it—always awakened the writer’s creative imagination. That is why the main hero of his books is often a talented, purposeful doctor—someone to whom the author could pass on his ideas, views, and searches. Obsessed with his beloved work is Duncan Stirling, the hero of the novella “The Glorious Years.” Despite his mutilated hand, he is determined to achieve worldwide fame in the medical field.