by
(Gerald Durrell)
The Durrells, an English family, went to live on the Greek island of Corfu. Gerry, the youngest son, was about ten years old. He was interested in plants and animals- all sorts of animals. They arrived on the island and at once they went to stay in a hotel. But after they look for an house. A black man, Spiro, helped they to find an house. At the end they find a pink villa. The first day they became to do that they want. Gerry walk with his dog, Roger. While he walk met a strange and most interesting man, the Rose-beetle-Man. He sold him a tortoise, Achilles, that however died after a few weeks. So Gerry bought a new animal from the Rose-beetle-Man: a young pigeon, Quasimodo. But he turn out a good-looking male pigeon. Then Mother decided that Gerry needed a teacher. George, a Larry’s friend, occupied oneself to teach to him. Later on some Larry’s friends decided to come and see him (Larry). So they went to stay in a yellow villa because there was too small. There Gerry found a female scorpion with a lot of little babies on her back. He hid they in a matchbox but his brother Larry found they by chance and so the uproar burst. Later on came a new teacher from Oxford: a young man, Peter. Then Gerry’s birthday and a marvellous party, each day was “calm” and timeless, and they didn’t want it to end. But after the night there was a new day, as colourful and unreal as the one before. One day a letter arrived there and it said that the aunt Hermione came there. So they went in a new smaller white villa because Larry didn’t want that she came to stay there. There Gerry found two magpies, and he met a man that was a prisoner because he killed his wife. He gave a very large bird to Gerry. The name of bird was Alecko. Then an other beautiful party, Mother decided to come back in England because Gerry needed some real lessons. So they said goodbye to the friends, included Spiro, and left...