mammybearsbooks Blog Lawrence_Durrell 20200921

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Mammy Bears Books 21 September · Author Lawrence Durrell. Today, I would like to talk about the work of Lawrence George Durrell ( 27 February 1912 – 7 November 1990) was an expatriate British novelist, poet, dramatist, and travel writer. He was the eldest brother of naturalist and writer Gerald Durrell. An interesting fact about Lawrence Durrell is that in 2012, when the Nobel Records were opened after 50 years, it was revealed that Durrell had been on a shortlist of authors considered for the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature - won by American John Steinbeck. Apparently the Academy decided that "Durrell was not to be given preference this year"—probably because "they did not think that 'The Alexandria Quartet' was enough, so they decided to keep him under observation for the future." They also noted that he "gives a dubious aftertaste … because of monomaniacal preoccupation with erotic complications." (Wikipedia)...Oh dear!!! A prolific writer, he started writing poetry at the age of 15 and his first book was published in 1935 at the age of 23. Durrell spent many years thereafter living around the world. His most famous work is The Alexandria Quartet, a tetralogy published between 1957 and 1960 and of these books the most famous is the first 'Justine'. Durrell supported his writing by working for many years in the Foreign Service of the British government. His sojourns in various places during and after World War II inspired much of his work - 'Esprit Du Corps', 'Sauve Qui Peut' etc Durrell's poetry has been overshadowed by his novels, but Peter Porter, in his introduction to a Selected Poems, calls Durrell "One of the best poets of the past hundred years. And one of the most enjoyable." (most of this information is from Wikipedia) All I can add, is that this author's books are very interesting, humourous at times and immensely readable. If you would like to get a feel for his work, dip in to www.mammybearsbooks.com for a selection...Enjoy.