My Book of Treasures is a collection of favourite writings that Joanna Lumley has found interesting, comforting, humorous or thought-provoking over the years. Fabulous is a word closely associated with Dame Joanna. Her many fans will not be surprised that she considers the collection fabulous.
Many of the quotes are from playwrights, poets and commentators long dead; some from people she met and was able to gush her appreciation.
Spike Milligan became a friend. One limerick of his is included: ‘Said Hamlet to Ophelia/I’ll do a sketch of thee/What kind of pencil shall I use/2B or not 2B?’
If, by Rudyard Kipling, is included in full. Until I read it in this book, I’d only been aware of snippets. Joanna mentions that the lines about triumph and disaster appear over the doors in Wimbledon for the tennis players to see before they go on court.
In a section devoted to death and dying, Joanna quotes her grandmother, Thyra Letitia Alexandra Weir. After a lifetime of travelling as a diplomat’s wife, she said that the good thing about dying is that you don’t have to pack.
This book is a slim volume with a striking cover and a distinctive layout designed to ensure the reader’s attention is focused on the profound, wistful and waspish pearls of wisdom encountered on each page.
I puzzled over the poems, giggled at the trivia, and laughed out loud when reading British artist David Hockney’s description of watching Pablo Picasso paint without a stitch on.
Reviewed by Clive Hodges
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
ABOUT THE AUTHORJoanna Lumley is an English former model and actress, born in 1946 in British India. She gained fame in the 1960s as a model and later as an actress, with her most iconic role being Patsy Stone in the sitcom Absolutely Fabulous.
Lumley is also an award-winning presenter, author, and human rights activist known for her work with the Gurkha Justice Campaign and for documentaries on places like the Northern Lights and Bhutan.
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