I’ve been watching and really enjoying The Durrells on TV and I read a lot of their books way back in the 1970s, so I was interested to see that there’s a new biography of them out now, by Michael Haag called The Durrells of Corfu. It looks from the review though that it might be a bit of a missed opportunity as according to this article by Kathryn Hughes (who seems to know a lot about that family) Haag has stuck to the previous Durrell mythology as written by themselves and has ignored the even more interesting aspects of the family.
There’s a roundup of new thrillers here if that is your interest.
I’m interested in reading a new book called How to be Human by Paula Cocozza which is about an urban fox.
Donna Leon fans will want to read this interview. She tells why she has turned to eco-detective fiction. I have to say that I’ve never read anything by Leon but I know that Joan of Planet Joan is a fan so I’m going to give her a go.
Every Guardian Review section seems to increase my list of books to read, but I can’t not read it!
Thanks for the links, Katrina. I saw Donna Leon speak at the Philadelphia Free Library several years ago. She was quite personable. I appreciate it when popular writers include issues that people, in my opinion, should be aware of. Martha Grimes has done this in her Andi Oliver series. I just wish Leon would always include a heft dose of Paola in all of her Brunetti books.
Joan,
I must get around to reading this series. Going just by her name I thought she was much younger than she is – not that that matters.
The Durrell article is interesting Katrina; I’d read that one previously. Did you see the author’s response to it in the comments? (I don’t read the comments generally but it was right at the top at the time and the name caught my eye.) It’s worth a look if you can: he suggests that the author of the article has presented a somewhat unbalanced review. This did seem to be corroborated in the Sunday Times review (which – heavy sigh – I don’t think can be accessed online unless you are a subscriber which I am not.)
The new series begins this weekend and I’m looking forward to that – and to reading Durrell’s books about the Corfu era. I think I will follow those with this new biography. If I could just add a few more hours to the day!
Sandra,
Michael Haag actually emailed me about that review, he was obviously upset by it, but he presumably didn’t have the advantage of knowing the Durrells. I’m sure his book will do well anyway.
I don’t know whether to be miffed or not at not being able to access the Sunday Times. We DO subscribe to the Guardian, but I’m always saying to Jack that we can get it all (and more) free on the internet – but then again, another part of me thinks that that is a VERY GOOD THING – if it makes people read it! Yes we definitely need more reading time anyway!