Lawrence Durrell

LAWRENCE DURRELL d1990. British novelist, poet, dramatist and travel writer. He was the eldest brother of naturalist and writer Gerald Durrell. His most famous work is The Alexandria Quartet, published between 1957 and 1960. The best-known novel in the series is the first, Justine. Beginning in 1974, he published The Avignon Quintet, using many of the same techniques. The first of these novels (Monsieur or the Prince of Darkness) won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize in 1974. The middle novel (Constance or Solitary Practices) was nominated for the 1982 Booker Prize. By the end of the century, he was a bestselling author and one of the most celebrated writers in England