e-Books

Opis: On this speck of volcanic soil in the middle of a vast sea, a complete, unique and peaceful world was created slowly and carefully. It waited there for hundreds of thousands of years for an annihilating invasion of voracious animals for which it was totally unprepared, a cohort of rapacious beasts led by the worst predator in the world, Homo sapiens… In an incredibly short space of time, a number of unique species had vanished…' Mauritius, the green and mountainous island in the Indian Ocean, was once the home of the ill-fated dodo, and by the 1970s it still had many unique but endangered species, hanging onto their existence by their fingernails.When Gerald Durrell went to rescue some of these creatures from extinction, he experienced danger and discomfort, but enjoyed the adventures greatly. He spent nights in the jungle looking for bats and pink pigeons, and climbed near-vertical rock faces to find Telfair's skinks and Gunther's geckos, spending his spare time exploring the enchanted worlds of the coral reefs with their many species of multicoloured fish. By the end of his trip, he had an extraordinary collection of animals to take to his Jersey sanctuary from where the progeny could, in time, be restored to Mauritius.

Opis: But why did it have to happen to us? Because he was a Siamese, of course, with his own ideas on things… Doreen Tovey enchants us again with stories of life with her husband Charles in a West Country village, where they are driven to distraction by Siamese cats, Annabel the donkey, nesting swallows, bucking horses, and the villagers who still regard them as inept townsfolk, even after 18 years. In an effort to get away from it all, they take a trip to Canada to see the bears and wolves – much to the alarm of Father Adams and Miss Wellington. If they can’t handle Siamese cats, how will they handle a grizzly? However, after hearing what the villagers have been up to in their absence, they wonder if they might have been safer in Canada. As for the cats, Seeley and Shebalu start acting strangely when they develop a taste for dog food. But it is time for another solemn little Seal Point to come into their lives – who takes some settling in.

Opis: Most children at the tender age of six or so are generally full of the most impractical schemes for becoming policemen, firemen or engine drivers when they grow up… I knew exactly what I was going to do: I was going to have my own zoo… Menagerie Manor is the hugely entertaining account of how the wellknown and much-loved conservationist and author, Gerald Durrell, fulfilled a lifelong ambition by founding his very own private zoo in Jersey. With the help of an enduring wife, a selfless staff and a reluctant bank manager, the zoo grows. The reader is introduced to the village idiocy of Trumpy, the grey-winged trumpeter, who wakes the zoo every morning; the riotous antics of Claudius the tapir; the moving romance of N’Pongo, an African gorilla; and the antics of a whole menagerie of orang-utans, lions, bears, porcupines and other creatures. Hilariously illustrated by Ralph Thompson, this book about the trials and wonders of living in the middle of a zoo is a classic that will continue to bring pleasure to those who grew up reading Durrell, and deserves a whole new readership.