Bitter Lemons of Cyprus

Lose yourself in this classic prize-winning memoir of life in 1950s Cyprus on the brink of revolution by the legendary king of travel writing and real-life family member of The Durrells in Corfu.


'Stunning.' André Aciman


'Masterly . . . Casts a spell.' Jan Morris

'Invades the reader's every sense . . . Remarkable.' Victoria Hislop

'These days I am admiring and re-admiring Lawrence Durrell.' Elif Shafak

'Our last great garlicky master of the vanishing Mediterranean.' Richard Holmes


'Exceptional . . . Revelatory . . . A master.'Observer

'He writes as an artist, as well as a poet . Profoundly beautiful.' New Statesman


Cyprus, 1953. As the island fights for independence from British colonial rule, ancient conflicts between Turkish and Greek Cypriots trouble the glittering Mediterranean waters. Into the brewing political storm enters Lawrence Durrell, yearning for the idyllic island lifestyle of his youth in Corfu.


He settles into a dilapidated villa, and with his poet's eye for beauty - and passable Greek - vividly captures the moods and atmospheres of island life in a changing world. Whether collecting folklore or wild flowers, describing the brewing revolution or eccentric local characters, Durrell is a magician with words: and the result is not only a classic travel memoir, but an intimate portrait of a community lost forever.

WINNER OF THE DUFF COOPER MEMORIAL PRIZE

'Brilliant . . . Never for a moment does Durrell lose the poet's touch.'New York Times