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81st out of 186 books
—
162 voters
Birds, Beasts, and Relatives (Corfu Trilogy)
Part coming-of-age autobiography and part nature guide, Gerald Durrell's dazzling sequel to My Family and Other Animals is based on his boyhood on Corfu, from 1933 to 1939. Originally published in 1969 but long out of print, Birds, Beasts, and Relatives is filled with charming observations, amusing anecdotes, boyhood memories, and childlike wonder.
Paperback, 248 pages
Published
March 31st 1977
by Penguin Books
(first published 1969)
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It takes me awhile to finish Durrell's books. They're not meant to be hurried through. When I do finish I'm a little sad, because I want him to just keep telling me more and more stories.
I was afraid this one might not measure up to the first one, My Family and Other Animals. But this second one was every bit as enchanting and entertaining as the first. The two books give an account of the years the Durrell family spent living on the Greek island of Corfu in the 1930s.
Gerry was the youngest in...more
I was afraid this one might not measure up to the first one, My Family and Other Animals. But this second one was every bit as enchanting and entertaining as the first. The two books give an account of the years the Durrell family spent living on the Greek island of Corfu in the 1930s.
Gerry was the youngest in...more
Having read the first installment "My Family and other Animals" quite recently I was looking forward to reading more about the young Durrell and his hilariously eccentric family. Continuing the story of Gerry Durrells life on the island of Corfu` As with the first memoir Gerald Durrell demonstrates how his fascination - verging on obsession with all creatures began, and how it really is no surprise that he became the man that he did. His enthusiasm for even the most unappealing creatures is quit...more
This book contains, for my money, quite possibly the funniest scene in the English language. The characters are the author's family and friends (and they are characters in every sense of the word) along with the various fauna of Corfu and, truthfully, the island itself.
Durrell used the proceeds from his writing to found and nurture the Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust, the first zoo in the world founded specifically for the breeding and conservation of endangered species. Should you ever be i...more
Durrell used the proceeds from his writing to found and nurture the Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust, the first zoo in the world founded specifically for the breeding and conservation of endangered species. Should you ever be i...more
There are few writers who are as skilled at relating an anecdote as Gerald Durrell. His writing has a way of capturing the people, animals and situations that he encounters perfectly; reading this book was almost as good as being in Corfu with Durrell and his madcap family. Reading about the family again was a welcome return after their absense in A Zoo in My Luggage. As the people that Gerals Durrell knows best, they all have well-developed and entertaining personae within the book and are funn...more
Sometime between 1969 (when it was published) and 1971, I first read this gorgeous book. How do I know? Because on reading it for the first time, I was enthralled by Durrell's delightful description of discovering 'The Sacred Beetle and Others' by Jean Henri Fabre for the first time. So much so, that when an old version of Fabre's classic - the very same version Durrell describes as 'the squat, green book' - came up for sale in our school library, I immediately bought it. And it cost me 4s 6d -...more
c1969: I had been introduced to Mr Durrell's writing by a really great primary school teacher. I was also intrigued that books by his brother were highly regarded by my erudite father. This was a much easier read! I loved the individual family members and although widely known that the book was not strict with the time lines, it made no difference. In fact, I was rather pleased with that as I often wonder how everyone seems to remember conversations word for word, date for date, from so long ago...more
Gerald Durrell has got to be one of my favorite authors. He is an excellent writer. Not only is he extremely observant when it comes to nature, but it takes a great naturalist to observe how funny people are too.
As a boy growing up in Corfu, Gerald would rather be out studying beetles and birds and collecting wildlife. This book reminds me a lot of my experience growing up in Cote d'Ivoire as well. Just like him, we had lots of time to roam and study the jungle and its habits, and just like him...more
As a boy growing up in Corfu, Gerald would rather be out studying beetles and birds and collecting wildlife. This book reminds me a lot of my experience growing up in Cote d'Ivoire as well. Just like him, we had lots of time to roam and study the jungle and its habits, and just like him...more
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What a charming, witty and warm book.
I have loved 'My Family and Other Animals' now for so long I can hardly remember but oddly enough had never dipped into parts 2 and 3 of the trilogy so evocatively written by Gerald Durrell.
His sheer joy and love of life and his hugely eccentric family living in pre-war Corfu with seemingly no cares in the world comes through in waves of deliciously written prose. Its so gorgeous its a bit like treating yourself to a knickerbocker glory when you fancy an ic...more
I have loved 'My Family and Other Animals' now for so long I can hardly remember but oddly enough had never dipped into parts 2 and 3 of the trilogy so evocatively written by Gerald Durrell.
His sheer joy and love of life and his hugely eccentric family living in pre-war Corfu with seemingly no cares in the world comes through in waves of deliciously written prose. Its so gorgeous its a bit like treating yourself to a knickerbocker glory when you fancy an ic...more
2 likes · like · see review
The relatives come third in the title listing for a reason: Gerald Durrell is primarily interested in creatures of other kinds, and only secondarily in his fellow human beings. This works out well for his readers, because by far the most entertaining parts of this book are his descriptions in the naturalist mode. The pieces collected here make a very loose narrative, but they are mostly about his explorations of different parts of the island, and different "finds": an injured owl, baby hedgehogs...more
So when I began listening to this, the second of Gerald Durrell’s Corfu Trilogy,I was thinking this is supposed to be funny, but then I actually caught myself smiling! By the end, when this family had thoroughly taken me in, I was laughing outright. Here, in this book, the naturalist, conservationist and author writes of his youth in Corfu during the thirties. This is a very Victorian, English family, and I don’t usually enjoy the formality and stiffness of Victorian mores. Yet this family is an...more
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This was my personal favourite of Gerald Durrell's works that I read as a child. It is as wittily dry as My Family and Other Animals and the prose is also as rich and lush.
Where Durrell excels, and what I remember him for, is in how he creates an entire book consisting of fragments of short stories. It really reads as an entire story chronicling his life, though many details are no doubt highly exaggerated. If you are a fan of humour, autobiographies, short stories and full novels then this is...more
Durrell's writing is so lovely that I remember wanting to visit Greece (specifically Corfu) solely because of My Family and Other Animals. Then I went to Athens when I was in college and found that it was extremely crowded and hot, hot, hot (even in October)... but I probably had the wrong company then and that coloured my view quite negatively.
This is the sort-of sequel to My Family and Other Animals, the latter of which I read as a young, young girl of 14 or 15. I can't tell if it's every bit...more
This is the sort-of sequel to My Family and Other Animals, the latter of which I read as a young, young girl of 14 or 15. I can't tell if it's every bit...more
This is the second in a trilogy of books about his childhood on Corfu that Gerald Durrell wrote in part to subsidize his collecting habit. Durrell, the brother of Lawrence Durrell, was an author, naturalist, and conservationist. He founded the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust and the Jersey Zoo.
I was first introduced to him by my Seattle grandparents, Wayne and Lorene, who I remember sitting up in their big king-sized bed with me, all of us reading Gerald Durrell books and laughing and stoppi...more
I was first introduced to him by my Seattle grandparents, Wayne and Lorene, who I remember sitting up in their big king-sized bed with me, all of us reading Gerald Durrell books and laughing and stoppi...more
This is the sequel to _My Family and Other Animals_ and though I did not enjoy it quite as much, it still made me laugh out loud. I think the novelty of Durrell's style and his Corfu experiences had worn off to some degree with the first book, but this one also had some good tales and was worth the read. I still want to visit Corfu as Durrell makes it sound like the most beautiful place on earth. I think the tales in this one were more family based than animal based, but I am not entirely sure.
Sequel to My Family and Other Animals. Gerald Durrell has a wonderful writing style. He is able to make caricature of his family without reducing them to flat personalities. Instead, he is able to inflect a busy scene with pieces of their conversation and you know exactly their expression. His eye for the natural world is just as subtle, giving descriptions to all that he sees with a blurry distinction between family and animals that is characteristic of a child.
More hilarity by Durrell. I love these books and wish my own children had the freedom Durrell had as a child to explore, to learn, and time to pursue his passions. It's definitely a different world. My favorite bits are as always the stories of his family. Laugh out-loud funny! When I worry that I have no sense of humor because I don't think the movies my family finds hysterical, funny at all (i.e. Hot Rod), I gain comfort from books like this one.
I enjoyed this book as a gentle read (the descriptions of Greek countryside made me long for my trip to Turkey in the Summer!) but I was a bit disappointed because it's no where as good as his first, My Family and Other Animals. As it covers the same years, it feels like the best of the stories went to the first book, as they obviously would, and so this felt a bit forced :(
These are the rest of the stories the author didn't include in his My family And Other Animals. Hope the rest of the author's family didn't feel so bad after he published it? The stories are great, very funny, but were probably too embarssing for the rest of the author's family...;). I bet every nature lover could appreciate it!
Not as funny as the first in the series, Birds, Beasts, and Relatives gives us some more of the endearing anecdotes of Gerald Durrell's family and more stories of his animal observing and collecting. It ends on a wistful note that the golden sunny days on Corfu were not to last forever. This could be a foreshadowing of the Second World War which would change everyone's life, or perhaps just that tinge of regret for a childhood that cannot last for always.
I didn't enjoy this quite as much as I did My Family and Other Animals. Perhaps with the earlier book it was the surprise of discovery. Nevertheless, the family continues on at Corfu in this volume of short essays, and young Gerald continues his fascination with the animals on the island.
Sep 25, 2010
Daniel
rated it
2 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
those who felt My Family and Other Animals was too short
Recommended to Daniel by:
Mia B
Shelves:
nature
More of the same from My Family and Other Animals, but doesn't live up to its predecessor
My Family and Other Animals about his family’s move to Corfu when he was a young boy. Birds, Beasts & Relatives continues with more stories of their life on Corfu and Gerald’s early and ardent interest in the natural world. He grew up (although it is amazing he survived childhood) to be a leading conservationist and the founder of a zoo on the Isle of Jersey. From an early age he was in love with the animal kingdom, this causes all kinds of havoc in family life. And an illustrious family it...more
Durrell revisits his childhood on Corfu – since clearly he forgot some of the best stories, according to his family. Full of beautiful and silly reminiscences of a different time, a different place.
This book takes you to the island of Corfu. You meet the people and the wildlife pre-WWII. I love all the personalities observed through the eyes of a 10 year old naturalist.
After "My Family and Other Animals", Gerald Durrel books like this one became too self-conscious, I think. Still zoologically intriguing though.
Not quite as good as 'My Family and Other Animals', but that is probably coloured by expectations. Still an amusing read and one to come back to, again and again.
Again, Durrell's beautiful luscious writing, and his ability to describe things so clearly and yet originally makes this book a gem.
He describes both his menagerie and his family with a cruel and biting pen, and brings the whole island of Corfu to life. I was *in love* with Gerry when I was a kid, ever since I got one of his books as a present for my tenth birthday. I used to read and reread his books again and again and take notes.
If you read his later books, you'll learn what this bug happy co...more
He describes both his menagerie and his family with a cruel and biting pen, and brings the whole island of Corfu to life. I was *in love* with Gerry when I was a kid, ever since I got one of his books as a present for my tenth birthday. I used to read and reread his books again and again and take notes.
If you read his later books, you'll learn what this bug happy co...more
Dec 16, 2012
Гергана
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Гергана by:
Мария от Архива
Много животни, много море, много емоции, сбор от различни по темперамент етноси, песни, танци, вино... Прекрасен сбор от цветове, климат и характери!!!
over the years I've probably read this book and many of the other Durrell stories many times. I just loved this one in particular and his description of life on Corfu as a child with his zany family and the many other characters that they met - extremely amusing.
Couldn't get enough of this at the time. I spent one summer reading as many of his books as I could get.
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Gerald Durrell was born in India in 1925. His family settled on Corfu when Durrell was a boy and he spent his time studying its wildlife. He relates these experiences in the trilogy beginning with My Family and Other Animals, and continuing with Birds, Beasts and Relatives and The Garden of the Gods. In his books he writes with wry humour and great perception about both the humans and the animals...more
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“Per tutta risposta Mosè smise di bere quel nettare russo per guardarlo bene in faccia.
"Ciao vecchio finocchio", lo salutò. E poi ricominciò a bere e ad ubriacarsi.”
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"Ciao vecchio finocchio", lo salutò. E poi ricominciò a bere e ad ubriacarsi.”
