Lawrence George Durrell

Lawrence George Durrell (1912-1990), British novelist and poet, born in India, and educated in India and England. Durrell began writing poetry and novels in the 1930s. His first major success was the autobiographical novel The Black Book, written in Paris in 1938. His most significant work was derived largely from his experiences and observations gathered during long periods of residence and diplomatic service abroad, especially in Greece, Cyprus, and Egypt. Durrell's greatest success came with the Alexandria Quartet, a series of four novels originally published separately as Justine (1957), Balthazar (1958), Mountolive (1958), and Clea (1960). The quartet, a study of love and political intrigue in Alexandria, Egypt, before and during World War II, tells the same story from the point of view of each of several of its characters; the complex structure and richly elaborate style evoke the exotic atmosphere of the city. Prospero's Cell (1945) and Bitter Lemons (1957)—which some consider his finest book—describe contemporary life on the islands of Corfu (Kérkira) and Cyprus, respectively. Later fiction includes Tunc (1968) and its sequel, Nunquam (1970); Monsieur (1975); and Quinx (1985).

Durrell's poetry, which also evinces his powerfully evocative use of language, was published in Collected Poems, 1931 to 1974 (1980). A collection of his travel essays, Spirit of Place, was published in 1969.