The setting is an island in the Ionian Sea off the coast of Greece. Here the Finchberry-Whites, wth their children, Amanda and David, came each year from England to spend the summer.
But this summer Amanda and David found their friend Yani in trouble. The Mayor, who held the mortgage on the land Yani had inherited, was about to foreclose. Something had to be done.
Ans so one morning the villagers found themselves donkeyless—all twenty donkeys and the Mayor's horse had mysteriously vanished, and the only clue was a sign which read, "Donkeys of the world unite."
"Witchcraft! Witchcraft!" yelled a villager.
"Don't be foolish," said the Mayor. "It's obviously Communists. Who else would ask donkeys to unite?"
How everything is finally put to rights in a most unconventional example of island justice brings delight to villagers, children, and reader.
Gerald Durrell's gift for portraying human and animal foibles, at the same time droll and sympathetic, gives his books a special gat wit and easy-going charm.
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