Gerald Durrell

I love reading books. One of my favorite styles of writing is one where the narrative is a first-person account of events and people. It gives you a feel of being in the author's shoes and trying to see the world as he/she describes it.
Currently I am reading Gerald Durrell's "Marrying off mother and other stories". This is the third book by Durrell that I have gotten my hands upon other than the most famous "My family and other animals" and "Birds, beasts and relatives". I was first introduced to the author during my school days.....the English reader had a very interesting humorous account of a boy and his pet donkey in "My donkey Sally". Besides being in the autobiographical style, Durrell's books have this subtle "fun" element in them. Because he is describing real-life events involving himself and his family (including poking fun at them and the absurdity of situations) there is this sincerity which touches you. His ability to delightfully put into words the simplest of events is definitely worth a mention. Additionally, I admire his ability to recall so many of his childhood events, especially in My family and other animals and Birds, beasts and relatives. He claims to have semi-fictionalized some of the stories but most anecdotal accounts involving his brothers Larry and Leslie, sister Margo, mother, Roger the dog and the driver Spiro are true. They are a delight to read, and I must admit I enjoyed them more in comparison to his stories which narrate events of his adult life and his adventures around the world.
One thing that I find interesting about him is that he has not written these lovely books and accounts out of his love for writing; instead, in his own words "they were simply a means to make money to enable me to do my animal work"!! His love for animals definitely shows up in his work and stories.
For anyone who enjoys simple, fun, light reading, Gerald Durrell's works are highly recommended by me. :)