Funny and at times sad tales of animals in the zoo that became the New Jersey Wildlife Trust.

The 3rd book in The Zoo Memoirs Trilogy, published in 1964, Durrell lets you in on what it was like, day-in and day-out, to work a private zoo, Managerie Manor, on Channel Isle in Jersey, and care for 500 to 600 animals. I'm surprised he found time to write so many books while running a zoo. Being a private zoo, the islanders provided great support with food, which was the greatest challenge. Grocers gave them faulty, but still good, fruits and vegetables. Farmers gave them their young bulls they culled, and others helped gather acorns and such from around. There were so many things to consider when working a zoo, like settling-in new animals so they weren't so fearful of the hand that fed them, watching for sudden illnesses and diseases, whether contracted from inside the zoo or if it arrived with the disease, of which antibiotics and vitamin B12 were most useful, administering first aid for broken bones, breeding (zoo marriages), and rounding up escaped animals. He gives examples of each of these in cute little stories, especially the introduction and marriage of the two gorillas, N'Pongo and Nandy.

His main goal, as a conservationist wanting to keep rare animals from becoming extinct, was to turn his private zoo into a scientific Trust, which he finally was successful after 22 years. He was able to get together a council of people on the Island to help raise the money for the Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust and to support the zoo, now called Durrell Wildlife Park. ( )

This wonderful book is about a young zoo. Durrell was determined to start his own zoo against all odds; he parked his collection of wild animals in his sister's back garden while looking for a location. Happily acquired the grounds of an expansive estate to convert into his zoo. Some of the book is about the management, brief purchasing trips to foreign countries, public relation efforts and necessary fund-raising. But most of it is just about the animals, which delights me. Durrell describes with obvious fondness the antics and behavioral quirks of many of his wild charges, as well as their efforts to provide the proper diet, improve housing, treat diseases, deal with accidents and breed certain species..... Near the end of the book Durrell realizes that the zoo's purpose should be to keep more rare specimens and attempt to breed them to aid conservation efforts, and he closes with an environmental appeal in particular asking for donations to further the zoo's cause and hopefully slow the extinction rate of wildlife.

As usual, I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the animals' behavior, and efforts made with their care and husbandry. There's plenty of very amusing passages as well which had me laughing aloud. Durrell has a real knack for telling a story. The book has some beautifully expressive pen-and-ink drawings by Ralph Thompson illustrating nearly every other page. I love that so many were included, and found through one of the descriptions that the artist made at least some of these drawings (perhaps all?) from life, which you can tell by their liveliness and quality.

more at the Dogear Diary ( )

A light and entertaining read, but not as good as the books of the Corfu trilogy in my opinion. ( )

A great read!: This is a great book for all those who have a special place in their hearts for animals. Gerald Durrell takes us through his experiences in setting up a zoo in Jersey. It is a marvelous book full of humor. It sends out a message about saving wildlife. So, even if you are not the one to start a zoo, this book is a must read for you!