Simons Mith
There can have been few people who had as idyllic a childhood as Gerald Durrell. And I can think of none who have written about it with such warmth, perception and eloquence. (Albeit if with a bit of, um, selective exaggeration.) And Gerry wasn't even the family writer. This was the first book in a long long time that made me cry with laughter, but I'm afraid the Great Sparrow Massacre really got to me. And there are some new characters introduced that I hadn't previously known, just as warmly portrayed (and just as loony) as Spiro and the Captain.
There can have been few people who had as idyllic a childhood as Gerald Durrell. And I can think of none who have written about it with such warmth, perception and eloquence. (Albeit if with a bit of, um, selective exaggeration.) And Gerry wasn't even the family writer. This was the first book in a long long time that made me cry with laughter, but I'm afraid the Great Sparrow Massacre really got to me. And there are some new characters introduced that I hadn't previously known, just as warmly portrayed (and just as loony) as Spiro and the Captain.