This was cute. It did descend into caricature a time or two, but that's part of why I love old books. One can't always be sure if the author is in deadly earnest, or tongue-in-cheek.

For instance, when Red Pepper Burns (a doctor) hears that his parents are ill, he travels to see them. He examines them, and then he does some gymnastics for them to watch (!?), and then they're better. I love the unapologetic randomness.

The book consists of highly episodic chapters so it reads more like short stories. Though the romance exists throughout the story, it doesn't necessarily get top billing. Doctor Burns has too many lives to save and speed limits to break... he can barely fit in time for the tenderer emotions. ( )