My Family and Other Animals (Paperback)

by Gerald Durrell (Author) "July had been blown out like a candle by a biting wind that ushered in a leaden August sky..." (more)
Key Phrases: fuchsia hedge, olive trunks, Sea Cow, Rose-Beetle Man, Old Plop (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
When the unconventional Durrell family can no longer endure the damp, gray English climate, they do what any sensible family would do: sell their house and relocate to the sunny Greek isle of Corfu. My Family and Other Animals was intended to embrace the natural history of the island but ended up as a delightful account of Durrell’s family’s experiences, from the many eccentric hangers-on to the ceaseless procession of puppies, toads, scorpions, geckoes, ladybugs, glowworms, octopuses, bats, and butterflies into their home.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (June 29, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0142004413
• ISBN-13: 978-0142004418
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #11,033 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #8 in	Books > Science > Nature & Ecology > Natural History
  #15 in	Books > History > Europe > Greece
  #22 in	Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Professionals & Academics > Scientists

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Quite simply the funniest book I have read., October 2, 2004

By	D. M. Summers (Cambridge, UK) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

As a young boy I was forced, with some considerable reluctance, to read 'My Family and Other Animals' by one of teachers at my school in England, 'in order to improve my vocabulary'. All is forgiven, Mr Cox, for within my rather battered copy lurked, without doubt, the most hilarious account of familial eccentricity, and light-hearted feuding that I have ever come across.

The book, as Mr Durrell explains in introduction, was intended to describe the glorious flora and fauna of Corfu, a greek island where he spent some time as a child. In this goal, he has succeeded admirably, as the whole atmosphere of the island is exquisitely recreated, to an extent that even on a rainy afternoon in Sidcup, it is not difficult to be transported to a sunny morning in the Aegean watching a young Gerry discovering a nest of a trapdoor spider, or perhaps discovering something of the mating rituals of the greek tortoise.

It is in the descriptions of the family, however, where this book really comes to life. As Mr Durrell describes in the introduction, the family, as in life, once they had begun to appear, muscled their way into the rest of pages as well. From tales of the rotund, pretentious Larry (Lawrence Durrell, of the Alexandria Quartet fame), the gun-mad Leslie and the 'muslin and gauze' swathed sister, Margot, to the desciptions the long-suffering mother, the family had me laughing out loud at the most inopportune moments.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. I read it regularly, and am still crying with laughter all the way through. Not only a splendid book for the evocative descriptions of the natural history, this is the most witty book I have ever read.

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I wish I could give it 6 stars!, June 27, 2005

By	David Lundberg "author of OLYMPIC WANDERING" (Greensboro, NC USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is absolutely, brilliantly funny. The wit and unique characterizations are woven with great descriptions of the animals and plants of Corfu. That Durrell can hold the attention of readers who have no interest in biology simply demonstrates what a fine work this is. Gerald's depiction of a larger-than-life expatriate family on a larger-than-life Greek island is a tremendous celebration of life. The variety of different Greek characters parading through this book rivals the variety of Corfu's flora and fauna. Absolute great read!

Reviewed by David Lundberg, author of Olympic Wandering: Time Travel Through Greece

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the funniest books of all time., February 22, 2005

By	Leslie C. Scanlan - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I usually only have time to read at night. I keep a book by my bedside and if I awaken in the middle of the night, instead of worrying, I read. This isn't the best book to use in this fashion. I have, on several occasions, awakened and thought, "I'll just read a few pages" only to find myself engulfed in oxygenated laughter that has kept me up for the duration of the night. I don't know when I've laughed out loud so often at a book. The mother is the mother we've all always wanted...and she was no doubt the perfect mother for this child. Who else could take in stride the unleashing from a matchbox of a small cache of scorpions during dinner. I will reread this book again and again. Such light hearted appreciation of nature is a rare find. This would be a great gift for any child or adult who loves the outdoors. Very special and very rare.