I walked up to the booking-office and uttered the magic words: 'Three singles to Adventure, please,' I said. 'First or second class?' said the clerk.... So begins Gerald Durrell's account of the trip he made to South America in his quest to capture specimens that had never been brought back alive before. And what an adventure it was, encountering such creatures as the timid squirrel monkeys, wailing rats, an overly affectionate bird christened Cuthbert, a bad-tempered anaconda, and even piranhas.
But out in the wilds, bringing back a living collection of animals can be frustrating and damned hard work.... But it's never dull.