My Family and Other Animals (Classic, Nature, Penguin) (Paperback)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

As a self-described "champion of small uglies," English writer Gerald Durrell (1925-1995) devoted his life to writing and the preservation of wildlife, from the Mauritius pink pigeon to the Rodriques fruit bat. My Family and Other Animals was intended to embrace the natural history of the Greek island of Corfu, but ended up as a delightful account of his family's experiences that were, according to him, "rather like living in one of the more flamboyant and slapstick comic operas."

As a 10-year-old boy, Gerry left England for Corfu with "all those items that I thought necessary to relieve the tedium of a long journey: four books on natural history, a butterfly net, a dog, and a jam-jar full of caterpillars all in imminent danger of turning into chrysalids." Durrell's descriptions of his family and its many eccentric hangers-on (he stresses that "all the anecdotes about the island and the islanders are absolutely true") are highly entertaining, as is the procession of toads, scorpions, geckos, ladybugs, glowworms, octopuses, the puppies Widdle and Puke, and the Magenpies. This is a lovely book. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Description

Soaked in the sunshine of Corfu, where Gerald Durrell lived as a boy with his "family and other animals," this book evocatively chronicles his five-year sojourn on the Greek island. With hilarious yet endearing portraits of his eccentric family and their many unusual hangers-on, My Family and Other Animals also captures the beginnings of Durrell's lifelong love of animals. In its passionate understanding of Corfu's natural history, this is an entertaining and enduring memoir.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (February 28, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 014028902X
• ISBN-13: 978-0140289022
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (73 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #956,170 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

• This item is part of The Penguin Nature Classics Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You don't need to be interested in animals to love this book, February 6, 2001

By A Customer

After reading Gerald Durrell at school (it was probably "Menagerie Manor"), I was put off reading his books for over 10 years. One of my friends recommended this as a wonderfully cute book about how a young boy perceives the world and his eccentric family and after hearing descriptions of Larry, the (then) aspiring novelist, acne-ridden Margo and gun-obsessed Leslie, how could I resist? It is a beautifully written book of short stories chronicling Durrell's magical childhood in Corfu, with a kaleidoscope of characters ranging from the human to the animal, all drawn with great affection. The stories are often hilarious and this is definitely one you will want to read again. And for those who are put off by too many descriptions of animals, the descriptions here aren't too long (and they are described charmingly, with Durrell attributing human characteristics which are very amusing) and most of the book focuses on his family. Sequels are "Birds, Beasts and Relatives" and "Garden of the Gods".

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I've lost count of the copies I've bought., November 7, 1999

By	Margaret ([e-mail]) (St. Augustine, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Family and Other Animals (Paperback)

"My Family and Other Animals" has charmed me for years. I keep lending it to friends who refuse to return it! Although I know passages by heart I find the book fresh at every reading. My present copy has been in the house for about four months but I'm about to lend it to a friend at work so I'm sure I'll be back at this site soon to reorder. The previous copy walked off to college with my daughter and I'll wager that she's passed it on to one of her friends by now.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Funniest Book Ever Written, November 24, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: My Family and Other Animals (Paperback)

I first read this book when I was ten. In the intervening years (too many to count) I have read it at least once a year. Every time I read it, I find something else that makes me laugh out loud. I have bought this book for everyone and recommend it to anyone who needs to run away to sunshine and laugh out loud. How I wish I could have known this family!