From cottages surrounded by impressive gardens to days spent exploring sandy beaches and deep woods filled with wildlife, in My Family and Other Animals, English writer Gerald Durrell provided a vivid account of his family’s time on the Greek island of Corfu in the 1930s.
Come for the arresting descriptions of Corfu landscapes and stay for Durrell’s laugh-out-loud tales of his unusual family. This book, Durrell wrote humorously in the introduction, “was intended to be a nostalgic(怀旧的)account of natural history, but in the first few pages, I made the mistake of introducing my family.”
Durrell, later known for his zoo keeping and the preservation of wildlife, was just a child during his family’s five-year stay in Corfu. He is 10-year-old Gerry in the book—curious, passionate about animals and a detailed storyteller of his strange family: his imaginative elder brother Larry with his literary ambitions, lovestruck sister Margo, sporty brother Leslie and his ever-calm, loving mother.
Durrell’s attention to detail is what makes the book so winning, with every sight, sound and smell of the island brought to life. One minute you’ll be laughing as Larry’s clever literary friends walk down to the daffodil-yellow cottage, the next you’ll be catching your breath as Durrell describes swimming at night in the Ionian Sea: “Lying on my back in the silky water, staring at the sky, only moving my hands and feet slightly, I was looking at the Milky Way stretching like a silk scarf across the sky and wondering how many stars it contained.”
My Family and Other Animals is quite difficult to classify, being one part travel, one part autobiography, one part natural history, and one part comedy, with a thread of descriptive language running throughout that sometimes raises it nearly to poetry.
As a real delight to read, it’s the perfect literary escapism for any adult or older teenager who is currently walking down a tough road in life.
8. Which word best describes Durrell’s life in Corfu?
A.Diverse. | B.Busy. | C.Risky. | D.Tough. |
9. What does the underlined sentence mean in paragraph 2?
A.I just introduced my family by mistake. | B.I shouldn’t have introduced my family. |
C.I gave false information about my family. | D.I couldn’t help introducing my family. |
10. What are paragraph 4 and 5 mainly about?
A.Durrell’s rich imagination. | B.Some interesting plots of the book. |
C.The book’s writing feature. | D.Some vivid descriptions of the island. |
11. What is the purpose of this text?
A.To share an experience. | B.To introduce a writing style. |
C.To recommend a book. | D.To describe an unusual place. |