My Family and Other Animals
Introduction
British naturalist Gerald Durrell (OBE) was born in 1925 in Jamshedpur, India. A bestselling writer, animal collector and pioneering conservationist, he would be the same age as David Attenborough now, had he lived. Unfortunately, he died in 1995 at the age of 70.
Gerald Durrell was responsible for saving several breeds of animals from extinction such as the Madagascar lemur and Mauritius pink pigeon.
His zoo on Jersey Island and the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust https://www.durrell.org/wildlife/ is still operational. You can be a part of this by contributing to the preservation of wildlife. Now, more than ever, we need to conserve the planet. As his wife Lee points out, his books have become especially relevant.
Books
The Corfu Trilogy incorporates three autobiographical novels, namely My Family and Other Animals (1956), Birds, Beasts and Relatives (1969), and The Garden of the Gods (1978).
My Family and Other Animals is the most famous of Gerald Durrell’s books. It relates the story of his childhood on the Greek isle of Corfu. Divided into three parts, which correspond to the various villas the Durrells inhabited, the book is a balance between the animals which fascinated young Gerry and his hilarious family.
Gerry was the youngest of four siblings which included, Larry, Leslie and Margo. (His mother was a widow.)
Even though each family member is an outstanding character, Larry is definitely the star. The eldest of Gerald’s siblings, he is actually the famous British novelist, Lawrence Durrell. Blond and self-important, Larry successfully leads the family through important decisions. If they go awry, he refuses all responsibility.
The book is filled with wonderful stories of mayhem. On one occasion Gerry destroys his brother’s literary masterpiece by accidentally releasing two magpies, dubbed Magenpies, onto his brother’s manuscript. On another, Gerry hides a mother scorpion and her babies in a matchbox. Unfortunately, Larry uses a match from the box for an after-lunch cigarette.
The book was turned into two television series, My Family and Other Animals (1987) and The Durrells (2016-2019). If you want to marvel at a great writer and laugh out loud, this is for you.
Adopt an animal from the Jersey Zoo!
https://www.durrell.org/
Your pack is sent in a lovely tin with lots of goodies inside!
Choose your animal. It could be an Andean bear Chilean flamingo, lemur, orangutan, or gorilla. https://www.durrell.org/ This is my otter!
You will receive a pack filled with information, postcards, photos, a certificate, and stickers. Funds assist endangered animals.
