Digital List Price:	$17.99
Kindle Price:	$2.99 Save $15.00 (83%)
Sold by:	Amazon.com Services LLC

Promotions apply when you purchase

Add an

audiobook with Audible narration for $7.49

Audiobook Price: $22.06

Save: $14.57 (66%)

Read with our free app

You've subscribed to ! We will preorder your items within 24 hours of when they become available. When new books are released, we'll charge your default payment method for the lowest price available during the pre-order period.

Update your device or payment method, cancel individual pre-orders or your subscription at
Your Memberships & Subscriptions

There was an error. We were unable to process your subscription due to an error. Please refresh and try again.

Follow the authors

Gerlad Malcolm Durrell

My family and other animals (A Viking largetype book)

Image Unavailable

Image not available for
Color:

To view this video download Flash Player

VIDEO

My Family and Other Animals (The Corfu Trilogy) Kindle Edition

by Gerald Durrell (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.5 8,167 ratings

Book 1 of 3: The Corfu Trilogy

See all formats and editions

Great on Kindle

Great Experience. Great Value.

Enjoy a great reading experience when you buy the Kindle edition of this book. Learn more about Great on Kindle, available in select categories.

The inspiration for The Durrells in Corfu, a Masterpiece production on public television: A naturalist’s account of his childhood on the exotic Greek island.

When the Durrells could no longer endure the gray English climate, they did what any sensible family would do: sold their house and relocated to the sun-soaked island of Corfu.

As they settled into their new home, hilarious mishaps ensued as a ten-year-old Gerald Durrell pursued his interest in natural history and explored the island’s fauna. Soon, toads and tortoises, bats and butterflies—as well as scorpions, geckos, ladybugs, praying mantises, octopuses, pigeons, and gulls—became a common sight in the Durrell villa.

Uproarious tales of the island’s animals and Durrell’s fond reflections on his family bring this delightful memoir to life. Capturing the joyous chaos of growing up in an unconventional household, My Family and Other Animals will transport you to a place you won’t want to leave.

This ebook features an illustrated biography of Gerald Durrell including rare photos from the author’s estate.

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.

Review

“A most enjoyable idyll.” —The New Yorker

“A lot of frolic, fun, and charming ribaldry, as well as the warm feeling of having been transported to a lovely spot where worry is unknown and anything is believable.” —The New York Times

Praise for Gerald Durrell
“Animals come close to being Durrell’s best friends. . . . He writes about them with style, verve, and humor.” —Time on The Whispering Land

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B01LYWHFSR
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Open Road Media (October 11, 2016)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 11, 2016
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 10463 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 290 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #49,304 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #1 in Greek Travel
- #52 in Travel (Kindle Store)

Customer Reviews:
4.5 8,167 ratings

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Upload your video

About the authors

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Gerlad Malcolm Durrell
Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.
Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more
See more on the author's page
Gerald Durrell
Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.
Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more
See more on the author's page

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5

8,167 global ratings

How customer reviews and ratings work

Reviews with images

See all photos

Sort reviews by

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Constant Reader

Charming, Well-Written, Engaging

Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2022

Verified Purchase

What a delightful surprise this book was! We loved the Durrells in Corfu on Masterpiece Theater, but it never occurred to me that little Gerry who spent much of his boyhood running wild around the island would be such a gifted writer. The language is beautiful and evocative without ever being pretentious. He has a wonderful talent for writing humor. Granted he, his family, and the inhabitants of Cordu provide ample source material for the humor but writing it down in a way that can delight a reader and inspire laughter takes talent. The book covers part of the time that the British Durrell family (widowed mother Louise and her four children) lived on the island of Corfu. It is charming, engaging, and highly diverting. The book is set in the middle 1930’s and that adds interest. It is not remotely dated. I can practically guarantee that you will finish this book and feel less stress and anxiety than you did before you read it. And, if you are like me, you will plunge forward into the rest of the trilogy.

10 people found this helpful

Helpful

Shirley L. Robertson

Better than described, timely & a good, readable, funny book !

Reviewed in the United States on June 24, 2023

Verified Purchase

Kudos to the seller. The book was even nicer than described. The condition is excellent. It arrived very quickly, just a few days after I ordered it, and I've just started to read it, but it's enjoyable already -- even the introduction is funny. I saw the Amazon Prime video series, so I know what to expect, and from what I've read so far, I am very pleased. Thank you !!!

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Mamabotanica

A delightful story!

Reviewed in the United States on August 26, 2023

Verified Purchase

This was a mostly entertaining read. I had co flicking feelings about Gerald’s fascination with animals. He loved them but (at this age anyway) in a very possessive way. It also made me wistful for the way the Island was when he lived there. The descriptions of the flora and fauna were incredible. The human characters weren’t as full as the natural history.

Helpful

Melissa Jo Sites

Hilarious and makes you want more

Reviewed in the United States on July 23, 2019

Verified Purchase

I was recommended this book to read on a trip to Greece. It has a number of hilarious anecdotes, and the author is very irreverent in descriptions of his family members, including his brother, author Lawrence Durrell. I laughed out loud many times. As a boy the author lived on the Greek island of Corfu for five years with his mother and three siblings. While he was there he spent most of his time studying and catching wild animals. The antics of his family and the animals are uproariously funny. Warning: some of the animals don't survive; such is life. Also, his brother Leslie is portrayed as an avid hunter and gun enthusiast, so if hunting shocks or offends you, it does occur in this book. The author grew up to be a respected wildlife advocate and conservationist, and this is a very fun memoir of his unorthodox childhood and the attempts of his various tutors to give him a solid educational grounding when all he wants to do is run around the island trying to catch animals. It is not meant to be a natural history of Corfu but more the adventures of a curious boy and his growing numbers of animal companions. It paints a glowing picture of the free rambles of a boy set loose on an unspoiled Greek island before 1939, when the family returned to England.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Amazon Customer

Delightful reading!

Reviewed in the United States on March 17, 2023

Verified Purchase

A friend told me of the author, Gerald Durrell, and his books. The friend remembered reading his novels when growing-up; Durrell was a favorite because of his descriptions of animals and places around the world. This novel is about his boyhood years with his family when they lived in Greece (he and the family are English). Durrell's writing is entertaining as well as vivid-- and the best, descriptive writing I have read in years. I look forward to reading more of his works.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Gryphonisle

As Entertaining As The PBS Version, Yet Quite A Bit Different So It Makes Fresh Reading.

Reviewed in the United States on September 21, 2017

Verified Purchase

Originally published in 1955, this is part of a group of books of that period that celebrated odd characters and an alternative childhood to the sterile conservative world of 1950s America and of course included "Auntie Mame", "Life With Father", and "Cheaper By The Dozen". LIke the others, although decades later, this first book of the "Corfu Trilogy" is now a British/PBS TV cooperative venture.

While serving as much of the source for the TV show, this book alone still manages to be as different from the TV show as it is from the reality depicted in Haag's biography of the Durrell family "The Durrells In Corfu", which I bought along with "My Family And Other Animals". The writing is not great---apparently Gerry Durrell never went to school after the last effort, forced on him at age 9 or so, but it has a certain British sense of humor that is engaging. I enjoyed reading it, and am finding the biography just as entertaining.

One can only wonder what might have happened if formal education and better discipline had played a greater role in the Durrell family's upbringing, but as they are all dead, and we are left with the rather fanciful story of their life on this enchanted island, in the sunset of it's pre-tourist idyll, we can only sit back and go along for the ride and it's a fun ride.

41 people found this helpful

Helpful

Serena

A Most Wonderful and Funny Book

Reviewed in the United States on October 14, 2017

Verified Purchase

One of the very few times I've found a book advertised as funny truly is funny. The reader of today may find the flowery, descriptive writing a little old fashioned, but that eventually becomes part of the story and part of the joy of reading this wonderful book. I stumbled across this book reading reviews on Amazon. If I agree with what a reviewer says about a book I read I will often look to see what else he enjoyed and possibly buy it. That method usually works very well.

A couple of things I learned elsewhere: Gerald Durrell is the younger brother of the famous writer, Lawrence Durrell who is "Larry" in this book. Apparently, during the time this book covers, Larry was married and eventually moved out of the house with his wife. Gerald never mentions any of that--he just makes Larry look like an overbearing, self involved jerk. Later, when Lawrence wrote a biographical book he rarely mentions his younger brother. Interesting.

I have the two other books in the Corfu Trilogy, but will save them for the times I need to laugh while I read.

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English

Jennie

Charming & funny book.

Reviewed in Canada on December 10, 2022

Verified Purchase

This has always been a great favourite . This particular edition is beautiful and has a lovely vintage look to it. Good for all ages.

Cliente de Amazon

se los recomiendo

Reviewed in Mexico on August 6, 2022

Verified Purchase

había visto algunos episodios de la serie televisiva y me encantó....el libro igualmente. La presentación del este libro en especial me pareció excelente. Ando buscando otros de esta misma editorial porque valen la pena.

Translate review to English

mukesh

So good, I have bought a copy to gift to a friend

Reviewed in India on February 21, 2024

Verified Purchase

I read the book the first time drawn by the quirky title. Then the back cover told me that it was about animals. I had found a kindered spirit. That was way back in the early seventies.

What the book gave me is, not only the animals, but also a crazy family, like most families are. Gerald brings all them to your drawing room, while taking you to the quaint Corfu.

Really a great read. I was not so much impressed by Durrel's later books. May be because they don't have much of his family.

Massimo

Utile e divertente

Reviewed in Italy on December 22, 2023

Verified Purchase

Molto utile per migliorare il proprio inglese per la grande varietà di vocaboli e modi di dire desueti e poco utilizzati nel linguaggio comune. Aggiungo che è una lettura gradevole e molto divertente.

Translate review to English

Agnès NOVELLA

Merveilleux

Reviewed in France on November 27, 2023

Verified Purchase

Ce livre est un bijou de fantaisie British, d’émerveillement pour la nature, chaque page est un enchantement - à lire et relire (a été adapté en une série charmante également).

Buy for others

Buying and sending eBooks to others

Follow the authors

Image Unavailable

My Family and Other Animals (The Corfu Trilogy) Kindle Edition

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Review

Review

About the Author

Product details

Videos for this product

My family and other animals (A Viking largetype book)

About the authors

Gerlad Malcolm Durrell

Gerald Durrell

Customer reviews

Reviews with images

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Top reviews from other countries