Birds, Beasts and Relatives is the second book in Gerald Durrell’s Corfu Trilogy, a series of stories about the time his family upped sticks and moved from drizzy, depressing England to the Mediterranean island of Corfu. I read the first in the series, My Family and Other Animals, last summer (though I believe it was first read to me when I was a child), and found it equal parts difficult (he goes on about animals a lot) and utterly charming.
For some reason I found this to be much quicker and easier to get through. I don’t know if it’s because I’m in a better mental state or because this book moves a bit faster and focuses marginally less on the intimate goings-on of garden insects, but whatever the reason, I really enjoyed myself with this one.
Gerald Durrell is a naturalist who spent as much of his childhood as possible following animals to observe them in their natural habitats so he could understand their habits. He also managed to keenly observe the human animals he was surrounded by – his two brothers, his sister and his mother.
Being that the family is immersed in a foreign culture, doesn’t have much money, and features some rather strong personalities and opinions, there are a lot of amusing anecdotes that he manages to tell with perfect pitch, timing and attention to detail. I adore his family, even the ones I hate (Lawrence is a bit much), and I’m enchanted by their new home.
I’ve been watching the television series based on the books too, and I am finding it charming and inspiring. I think what I love the most about the books and the show is just how human each character is. Durrell manages to capture his family on the page, complete with flaws and quirks, but these only serve to make them more real and relatable. He clearly sees that they’re not perfect, but loves them just the same, which allows us to love them as well. And his passion for animals is also very obvious – for any of you who are budding naturalists, these books will be fascinating. He writes with such enthusiasm that I found myself nearly as interested in the habits of spiders and birds as he was.
If you find any of this interesting in the least, or just enjoy charming stories about ordinary people in slightly less ordinary circumstances, I’d highly recommend giving this series a try. They made me want to pack up my family and run off to a Greek island to watch otters and adopt a donkey or two.
The follow-up to My Family and Other Animals and the inspiration for The Durrells in Corfu: A naturalist’s memoir of his family’s time on a Greek island.
In the years before World War II, Gerald Durrell’s family left the gloomy shores of England for the sun-drenched island of Corfu. Against this picturesque backdrop, Durrell fondly recalls his family’s disorderly household and outrageous antics, including their interactions with locals of both human and animal varieties.
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After a boyhood spent studying zoology and acquiring the island’s exotic insects, reptiles, birds, mammals, and sea creatures as pets, Durrell’s budding naturalism would later bloom into a passion for conservation that would last a lifetime.
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Filled with clever observations, amusing anecdotes, and childlike wonder, Birds, Beasts and Relatives is half nature guide, half coming-of-age tale, and all charmingly funny memoir. – Goodreads
Book Title: Birds, Beasts and Relatives
Author: Gerald Durrell
Series: The Corfu Trilogy #2
Edition: Paperback/Audio
Published By: Penguin Books/Audible
Narrated By: Nigel Davenport
Released: 2006
Genre: Non-Fiction, Memoir, Travel, Nature
Pages: 256
Date Read: April 5-7, 2019
Rating: 8/10
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.33/5 (5,531 ratings)