Birds, Beasts, and Relatives

This humorous account of the unconventional Durrell family living on the sun-drenched, thymescented Greek island of Corfu before World War II is Gerald Durrell's dazzling sequel to his very popular book, My Family and Other Animals. Part coming-of-age autobiography and part nature guide, Birds, Beasts, and Relatives is based on Durrell's boyhood on the island from 1933 to 1939, where he made a special study of zoology and kept a large number of the local wild animals as pets. Originally published in 1969 but long out of print, Birds, Beasts, and Relatives is filled with clever observations, amusing anecdotes, boyhood memories, and childlike wonder. Book jacket.

Gerald Durrell was born in Jamshedpur, India, in 1925. A student of zoology, he founded the Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust on the Channel Island of Jersey. His other books include A Zoo in My Luggage and The Whispering Land (both available from Penguin).