Beasts in My Belfry (Pan Heritage Classics) - Softcover

Durrell, Gerald

4.13

2,266 ratings by Goodreads

9781509815364: Beasts in My Belfry (Pan Heritage Classics)

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1509815368 ISBN 13: 9781509815364

Publisher: Pan, 2017

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Written with Gerald Durrell's usual sharp eye for observing humour in any situation, Beasts in my Belfry will delight fans both old and new.

At the age of two I made up my mind quite firmly and unequivocally that the only thing I wanted to do was study animals. Nothing else interested me.

Beasts in My Belfry is a charming account of Gerald Durrell's first job in 1945 as a student keeper at Whipsnade Zoo. Over a year, we encounter a typically absurd cast – including Albert the lion, who's a dab hand at ventriloquism, and Teddy the brown bear, with whom the young Durrell sings duets. With notebook and pen in hand, the eager young Durrell observes his co-workers and animal charges alike. Whether getting dirty mucking out the buffalo enclosure or attempting to cajole a jitter-bugging gnu into a transportation crate, life at the zoo is certainly never boring.

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From the Inside Flap:

From the age of two, Gerald Durrell was fascinated by zoology, over the years assembling a large, and not altogether savory, collection of pets, strays, and specimens. As his unofficial zoo grew, so did his family's discomfort. The solution was to find another, more permanent outlet for his passion. So in 1945 he joined Whipsnadea new concept in open-range animal exhibitsas a student keeper, with Albert the lion, Babs the polar bear, and a baby Pre David's deer among his first charges. In this entertaining history, he recaptures all the passion that permeated those early years, while conveying his insight into and affection for both four- and two-footed creatures. This is Durrell at his zoophilic best.

About the Author:

Gerald Durrell was one of Britain's best loved authors and pioneering naturalists. His books, such as the bestselling My Family and Other Animals which celebrated its 50th Anniversary in 2006, continue to entertain generations of children and adults alike.

The Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust is an international conservation charity with headquarters in Jersey, UK.

'A renegade who was right . . . He was truly a man before his time' Sir David Attenborough

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