A review by stuartbalcomb
Prospero's Cell by Lawrence Durrell

5.0

This wasn’t meant to be a travelogue or complete history of Corfu. Durrell was fairly young, early in his career as a writer, and I think he was finding himself. As with Shakespeare’s marooned Prospero who taught himself magic from a book, Durrell much of the time was looking inward, and he writes about the many influences of the island on himself. We see its beauty through his eyes, and the observations, experiences, and philosophies of his friends create a wondrous palette of sights, sounds, smells, flavors, customs, and ideas. Having stayed at the “inn” next to the White House at Kalami Bay, and having visited Paleokastritsa, the Ropa Valley, and Corfu Town, I could savor and identify each place he wrote of. In fact, I’ll bet that “Count D” was of the Theotoky Winery in the Ropa Valley.