In this wonderful memoir, Gillian Clezy weaves together three strands: the outward events of her 80+ years, psychological insight and a profound, inclusive religious faith. She writes with verve, drawing the reader into her experiences—such as, at the age of four, having to leave Turkey precipitately with her mother to return to England on the outbreak of war; a long and often hazardous journey culminating in the dangers of the Battle of the Atlantic. Returning to scenes of her earlier life years, coupled with reminiscences from taped conversations with her mother, enables Gillian to evoke the sights, sounds and smells of many other countries she visited or lived in. Her training as a Jungian analytical psychologist give her psychological insights into life’s experiences real authority; and her gentle references to her faith with its openness to other belief systems is inspiring.

This memoir is in many ways a counter to T.S. Eliot’s line from The Dry Salvages that “We had the experience but missed the meaning”, for her reflections on a life’s worth of considerable experience allow meaning to be discovered, deepened and integrated, and the reader is privileged to be able to share it. I fully commend this book.

Richard Skinner — poet and (as R.N.F. Skinner) novelist.