What do you think?
Rate this book
Island trails
255 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1973
1 person is currently reading
31 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 11, 2015
A delightful and wandering compilation of sketches, field notes, and folk tales from a young hydrobiologist exploring the Aegean islands. The book is a snapshot in time of the colorful inhabitants (human and otherwise) of these places.
Stephanides' writing is not what I expected from the description of him in Gerald Durrell's books. A man presented as having difficulty expressing himself has no problems doing so in this work. His voice is lively.
"The stars were unusually bright that night, after the settling of the crescent moon, and their reflections on the still waters around us were so vivid that I could almost imagine myself on board a spaceship rushing across the void. A spiritual vertigo seemed to seize me as I contemplated the fact that every one of those stars was a sun like our own..." (186-7)
"I have always been fond of magpies as I had one as a pet during my distant boyhood. Nicky, as he was named, displayed a real affection as well as cheeky intelligence; and this was certainly not cupboard love for he would actually bring one nice fat caterpillars and other delicacies and try to pop them into one's mouth. He seemed quite hurt when his offerings were declined, and he would then shove the dainty morsel down the back of one's neck...And when a family member was seen leaping about and frantically disrobing in public, it was immediately inferred that he (or she) had just been the recipient of Nicky's misplaced generosity." (164)
Stephanides' writing is not what I expected from the description of him in Gerald Durrell's books. A man presented as having difficulty expressing himself has no problems doing so in this work. His voice is lively.
"The stars were unusually bright that night, after the settling of the crescent moon, and their reflections on the still waters around us were so vivid that I could almost imagine myself on board a spaceship rushing across the void. A spiritual vertigo seemed to seize me as I contemplated the fact that every one of those stars was a sun like our own..." (186-7)
"I have always been fond of magpies as I had one as a pet during my distant boyhood. Nicky, as he was named, displayed a real affection as well as cheeky intelligence; and this was certainly not cupboard love for he would actually bring one nice fat caterpillars and other delicacies and try to pop them into one's mouth. He seemed quite hurt when his offerings were declined, and he would then shove the dainty morsel down the back of one's neck...And when a family member was seen leaping about and frantically disrobing in public, it was immediately inferred that he (or she) had just been the recipient of Nicky's misplaced generosity." (164)
October 6, 2013
I put this on my road tales shelf because it is one of a series of classic narratives on journeys, some colossal, others more modest. I like them because they are diaries of journey. I am doubly interested in this book because of its island journey. Islands are immensely interesting to me.
The author, Stephanides, is also interested in the Entomostraca, the taxon of my scholarly interests. Like him my interests are varied so I was always amused by his intellectual excursions and side trips. I only take one star off because there is very little focus to the tale. It seems to wander a bit. The final punch line is delivered almost too mechanically. I liked it overall though.
The author, Stephanides, is also interested in the Entomostraca, the taxon of my scholarly interests. Like him my interests are varied so I was always amused by his intellectual excursions and side trips. I only take one star off because there is very little focus to the tale. It seems to wander a bit. The final punch line is delivered almost too mechanically. I liked it overall though.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews