Making Space (for a book?) – by Sheila’s sister Leslie

Which book? It’s one of the questions Desert Island Disc celebrities are always asked at the end of the programme. Automatically given the Complete Works of Shakespeare and either the Bible or another religious or philosophical work, they have to decide, what will the third book be? In the next few weeks 3G Kili climbers will have to make hard decisions about what to pack, and for them, of course, it is for real. I wonder, will they make space for books? Sheila says she can put anything she likes in her bags, so long as she carries her day pack and the bag for the porters is no heavier than 15kg.  She actually does have “books” on her list of things to take, but has not chosen anything yet – so please, dear readers, feel free to advise!

Reading can be a problem as dark happens early, but she will definitely take something to read, maybe snuggled in her sleeping bag with her cat headlight on. Or she could take a Kindle, with built-in back light to read in the dark and that way carry any number of books. But batteries run out very quickly in cold and at altitude. Maybe better to take an old fashioned book that can be dropped, bashed, soaked or squeezed and still be a huge source of comfort and pleasure.

One of the many hundreds of kindnesses my compassionate sister has done for me down the years was to rescue some of my beloved childhood books. Parents were moving, leaving lots of stuff behind in our old house. Sheila made a plan. I was to walk past, pushing my baby Katharine in her pram and Sheila would bring out The Color Kittens (who were American), the Flower Fairies, Dinkle Donkle Doo, Margaret the Fieldmouse, and Brumas the Polar Bear Cub. They were all laid on the base at the foot of the pram and transported to safety. I think Little Dog and the Rainmakers were there too but they have gone missing. The others I still have and treasure more than I can say. But at least I can say, thank you Sheila.

The Colour Kittens - a book Leslie is very fond of
The Colour Kittens – one of the rescued books
One of the precious books
Another precious book – Margaret Field-mouse
Dinkle Donkle Doo
Dinkle Donkle Doo – a poem Sheila and Leslie can both still recite by heart over half a century on

Brumas was quite a celebrity. Born in November 1949 and the first polar bear to be reared at Regents Park Zoo, this tiny cub became an instant attraction with the public, generating books, toys, postcards and other souvenirs, so much so that in 1950 the zoo’s annual attendance rose to over three million, an all-time record. At first, Brumas was thought to be male and so was named after his keepers, Bruce and Sam, but by the time my book was published, March 1950, Brumas has kept her name but is now referred to as she.

A page from the Brumas book showing real photos of Brumas and her mother Ivy in Regents Park Zoo
Pages from the Brumas book showing real photos of Brumas and her mother Ivy in Regents Park Zoo

A page from the Brumas book

The day earlier this year when we visited Jae’s sister Gwen and Gwen’s husband Ste in Sydney was quite special. Samson aged five had just been promoted! He’d moved up to a higher reading group and to celebrate, read an exciting story aloud to us. Maybe that’s what will happen on those cold nights on Kilimanjaro. Will 3G read stories to each other?

Samson, proudly holding a certificate from school
Samson, proudly holding a certificate from school