Book description
The Corfu Trilogy consists of the popular classic My Family and Other
Animals and its delightful sequels, Birds, Beasts and Relatives and
The Garden of the Gods. All three books are set on the enchanted
island of Corfu in the 1930s, and tell the story of the eccentic
English family who moved there.
For Gerald, the budding zoologist, Corfu was a natural paradise,
teeming with strange birds and beasts that he could collect, watch and
care for. But life was not without its problems - his family often
objected to his animal-collecting activities, especially when the
beasts wound up in the villa or - even worse - the fridge.
With hilarious yet endearing portraits of his family and their many
unusual hangers-on, The Corfu Trilogy also captures the beginnings of
the author's lifelong love of animals. Recounted with immense humour
and charm, this wonderful account of Corfu's natural history reveals a
rare, magical childhood.
For the passionate zoologist, Corfu was a natural paradise, teeming
with strange birds and beasts that he could collect, watch and care
for. But life was not without its problems - Gerald's family often
objected to his animal-collecting activities, especially when the
beasts wound up in the family's villa or - even worse - the fridge.
Gerald Durrell evokes his island paradise with passion and wonder.
Born in India in 1925, Gerald Durrell settled on Corfu with his
family as a boy, and immediately became fascinated by the island's
natural history. He spent much of his time studying the local wildlife
and kept numerous, and often unusual, pets. He grew up to be a famous
naturalist, animal-collector and conservationist. Over his lifetime he
wrote 37 books, went on dozens of animal-collecting trips and presented
numerous TV shows. He founded Jersey Zoo in 1959 as a centre for the
conservation of endangered species, and created the Jersey Wildlife
Conservation Trust in 1963. Gerald ran the Zoo from its foundation until
his death in 1995, and his wife Lee is still Honorary Director of the
Trust.
