Corfu Geralda Darrella

One day, when a black streak came in my life and it seemed that there would be no gap, I once again opened Gerald Durrell’s book “My Family and Other Animals”. And I read it all night. By morning, the life situation no longer seemed so terrible, and in general, everything looked in a much more rosy light. Since then, I have recommended Darrell’s books to anyone who is sad or who wants to bring more positivity into their lives. And especially his trilogy about life in Corfu.

In the photo: three books by Gerald Durrell about life in Corfu. Photo: google

In the spring of 1935, Corfu was made happy by a small delegation – the Durrell family, consisting of a mother and four children. And Gerald Durrell, the youngest of the children, dedicated his five years in Corfu to his books My Family and Other Beasts, Birds, Beasts and Relatives, and The Garden of the Gods.

Gerald Durrell “My Family and Other Animals”

“My Family and Other Animals” is the most complete, truthful and detailed book of the entire trilogy dedicated to life in Corfu. All the characters mentioned in it are real, and very reliably described. This applies to both people and animals. And the manner of communication, adopted in the family and giving special pleasure to readers, is also reproduced as accurately as possible. True, the facts are not always presented in chronological order, but the author specifically warns about this in the preface.

My Family and Other Animals is a book about people more than about animals. Written with such an amazing sense of humor and warmth that will not leave anyone indifferent.

In the photo: young Gerald Durrell during his stay in Corfu. Photo: thetimes.co.uk

Gerald Durrell “Birds, Beasts and Relatives”

As the title suggests, in the second part of the trilogy, the book “Birds, Beasts and Relatives”, Gerald Durrell also did not ignore his loved ones. In this book you will find the most famous tales about the life of the Durrell family in Corfu. And most of them are completely true. Although not all. However, the author himself later regretted that he included some stories, “completely stupid”, in his own words, in the book. But – what is written with a pen … 

Gerald Durrell “Garden of the Gods”

If the first part of the trilogy is almost completely true, in the second the truth is interspersed with fiction, then the third part, “The Garden of the Gods”, although it contains a description of some real events, is still for the most part fiction, fiction in its purest form.

Of course, not all the facts about the Durrells’ life in Corfu were included in the trilogy. For example, some events are not mentioned in the books. In particular, that for some time Gerald lived with his older brother Larry and his wife Nancy in Kalami. But that doesn’t make the books any less valuable.

In the photo: one of the houses in Corfu where the Darrells lived. Photo: google

In 1939, the Durrells left Corfu, but the island remained forever in their hearts. Corfu inspired the creativity of both Gerald and his brother, the famous writer Lawrence Durrell. It was thanks to the Darrells that the whole world learned about Corfu. The chronicle of the life of the Durrell family in Corfu is dedicated to the book by Hilary Pipeti “In the footsteps of Lawrence and Gerald Durrell in Corfu, 1935-1939”. And in the city of Corfu, the Durrell School was founded.