The Donkey Rustlers
First edition (publ. Collins) | |
Author | Gerald Durrell |
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Language | English |
Genre | Children's |
Publisher | Collins |
Publication date | 1968 |
Publication place | United Kingdom |
The Donkey Rustlers is a 1968 novel for older children by Gerald Durrell, the well-known British writer and naturalist.
Plot summary
On a Greek island, two British children, Amanda and David, who regularly vacation on the island, make friends with two Greek children, Yani and another who has a speech impediment. Yani has financial difficulties which put him in danger of losing his land to the villainous local mayor. Together they embark on a plot to help Yani by abducting all the donkeys in the village. Amanda and David's father finds out what they are up to, but he ends up surreptitiously assisting them. After Yani's financial problems are solved, the villagers realise what the children were up to, but laugh it off as they are glad to see the mayor defeated.
Structure
The Donkey Rustlers resembles stories by Enid Blyton, with children getting up to adventures and fooling adults in a way which would be unlikely to succeed in real life (although not all of the adults are fooled for all of the time, and it does touch on some mature issues in a few places). Readers have enjoyed its imaginative feel-good plot, and well-drawn characters and location. It is influenced by Durrell's own childhood on Corfu.
External links
- Fantastic Fiction guide
- some book covers
- v
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- e
- The Overloaded Ark
- Three Singles to Adventure
- The Bafut Beagles
- The New Noah
- The Drunken Forest
- My Family and Other Animals
- A Zoo in My Luggage
- The Whispering Land
- Menagerie Manor
- The Donkey Rustlers
- Birds, Beasts, and Relatives
- The Talking Parcel
- The Garden of the Gods
- The Mockery Bird
- The Fantastic Flying Journey
- The Fantastic Dinosaur Adventure
- Catch Me a Colobus
- The Stationary Ark
- Ark on the Move
- My Family and Other Animals (TV series, 1987)
- My Family and Other Animals (TV film, 2005)
- The Durrells (TV series, 2016-2019)
- Lawrence Samuel Durrell (father)
- Louisa Durrell (mother)
- Lawrence Durrell (brother)
- Margaret Durrell (sister)
- Jacquie Durrell (1st wife)
- Lee McGeorge Durrell (2nd wife)
- Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust
- EcoHealth Alliance
- Durrell Wildlife Park
- Les Augrès Manor
- Mauritian Wildlife Foundation
- Madagascar Fauna and Flora Group
- Wildlife Preservation Canada
- World Conference on Breeding Endangered Species in Captivity as an Aid to their Survival
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