Fillets of Plaice [Paperback]

Gerald Durrell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 18, 2008

Durrell's hilarious and warm My Family and Other Animals (1957) began a trio of reminiscences of his life growing up with a slightly dotty family the overbearing and omniscient Larry; the affectionate and loving siblings, Margot and Leslie; and, of course, the overburdened and patient Mother on the island of Corfu in the 1930s, when a pound could buy a villa and life was conducted as a series of riotously high (and sometimes low) adventures. But what shines through these five vignettes is the author's engagement with and immense affection for animals in all their forms. From fish to fowl, from lizards to little water fleas (daphnia), Durrell's eye is acute and his prose is tart. You can read this book for the humor alone (for he did perceive his family as some rare and rarefied species), but between the lines you can discern the makings of a world-class naturalist and a cultivated and engaging writer.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: David R Godine (April 18, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1567923542
• ISBN-13: 978-1567923544
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #723,393 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Parting is such sweet sorrow..., March 29, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Fillets of plaice (Hardcover)

Well, I may have mangled the quote for this review's title but I am right about the rating of this book. This was such a good book that I actually felt a bit sad after turning the last page! Many of the encounters in this book of short stories shares the same wit, keen observation, and gentle spirit of My Family and Other Animals . . .then there are a few surprises. There are two chapters recalling incidents that must have been decidedly unpleasant and yet he managed to make them uproariously funny! I'd like to say more but it wouldn't be fair to go into too much detail.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Bits and bobs left over from other work., August 4, 2000

By 

Sailoil - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fillets of plaice (Hardcover)

When his literary brother Lawerence Durrell (the Alexandra Quartet) compiled a book of stray writings he brought them together under the title "Spirit of Place" as they revolved around the mediterranean spirit. When the irrereverent younger brother Gerald decided to trawl his notes for a new book to fund his zoo in Jersey he jokingly suggested to Lawerence that he could call it "Fillets of Plaice", being a low caste version of his brothers book. The name stuck and this book contains some wonderful and evocative stories. Best of all I think are the two horror stories at the end. I never realised Gerald had such a dark side.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Charming and Funny Memoir, May 18, 2009

By 

D. A Wend (Arlington Heights, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Fillets of Plaice (Paperback)

Fillets of Plaice is a delightful memoir by Gerald Durrell consisting of five tales from various times of his life. The first is from his childhood on Corfu concerning a birthday celebration for his mother that, like everything else his family did, goes a bit wrong with unpredictable results. The next piece takes place shortly after Durrell and his family returned to London from Corfu. The author got a job working in a pet shop and met some interesting and very memorable people as a consequence. In the next story, Gerald Durrell has grown up and is collecting animals in East Africa. The story takes place when the British has a colonial empire in Africa and the Foreign Service was running the affairs of the natives. The story is concerted with a Foreign Service Office named Martin who is expecting a visit from his superior and is desperate to create a good impression so he can be promoted to a higher (and better) position. In an earlier visit made by his superior, Martin had an embarrassing situation and had been sent to the Devil's Island of postings in Africa and he is desperate to avoid any problems this time.

The final two stories are later in time but how soon after Gerald Durrell left East Africa is not mentioned. In the fourth story Mr. Durrell is front and center as his doctor puts him is a rest home as he is at the point of exhaustion. The story centers around a medical problem Mr. Durrell is having - his nose keeps bleeding. The final story is about a woman to whom Mr. Durrell is attracted and repelled. Her name is Ursula and by his account she is very beautiful but also extremely maddening. She drops many malapropisms and has a character that is disruptive in the extreme. If you have ever been to a concert or movie where someone talks in a normal voice, you will have an idea what Ursula is like.

Gerald Durrell is a great story teller and fleshes out his characters and situations with concise and direct language. He is perhaps at his most amusing in the birthday party story where he picks up from his earlier books about his childhood in Corfu. I think it would be best two read My Family and Other Animals (and Birds, Beasts and Relative, if you like) prior to this book so a clear idea of the people in the story is reached. Fillets of Plaice is the kind of book that you will recommend to your relatives and friends to read for the sheer pleasure of the humor and Mr. Durrell's excellent writing.