11.6" x 10.7" x .7" 144pp 1988. Photos of swans geese ducks grebes cormorants from around the world; 18pp. of text. Coffee-table book. Not in particul11.6" x 10.7" x .7" 144pp 1988. Photos of swans geese ducks grebes cormorants from around the world; 18pp. of text. Coffee-table book. Not in particular order except clumped by swans / geese / ducks / grebes and cormorants. Not a complete set of birds....more
My Family and Other Animals, Gerald Durrell, 1956, 273 pp., ISBN 9780142004418
Budding zoologist Gerald Durrell, age 10–15, explores the Greek island oMy Family and Other Animals, Gerald Durrell, 1956, 273 pp., ISBN 9780142004418
Budding zoologist Gerald Durrell, age 10–15, explores the Greek island of Corfu, teeming with collectible wildlife, off the coast of Albania, living there with his widowed mother and his three older siblings, 1935–1940.
He describes magpies’ near-human intelligence, mischief, and sense of humor. His pets know which parts of the house they may and may not enter. Brother Larry’s room they’ve never been allowed into: he screams abuse and throw things at them when they try. They wait until he’s swimming at the beach with his window open. They open tins, strew paper clips and bicarbonate of soda everywhere; knock over ink and track it everywhere; pull the ribbon out of the typewriter; defecate repeatedly on the keyboard; scatter manuscript pages everywhere, and poke holes in them. Author Larry was “Upset? Upset? Those scab-ridden vultures come flapping in here like a pair of critics and tear and besmatter my manuscript before it’s even finished, and you say I’m upset?” Larry’s books: goodreads.com/author/show/8166.Lawren...
Then the birds are caged on the porch. “Confined as they were, they were able to devote a lot of time to their studies, which consisted of getting a solid grounding in the Greek and English languages, and producing skilful imitations of natural sounds. Within a very short time they were able to call all members of the family by name, and they would, with extreme cunning, wait until Spiro had got into the car and coasted some distance down the hill, before rushing to the corner of their cage and screaming, ‘Spiro . . . Spiro . . . Spiro,” making him cram on his brakes and return to the house to find out who was calling him. They would also derive a lot of innocent amusement by shouting “Go away” and “Come here” in rapid succession, in both Greek and English, to the complete confusion of the dogs.” They also waited until the chickens had just gone to roost, then imitated the maid’s chicken-food calls—bringing the hens hurrying to the magpie cage, where the magpies chuckled at them. (Chapters 15 & 16, pp. 205–213, 220–222, 257–258)
Thomas Ray
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