FEAST OR FAMINE

A hundred and thirty one years ago, on 28 October 1886, the people of France dedicated the gift of The Statue of Liberty to New York Harbour. The Statue of Liberty, La Liberté éclairant le monde ( Liberty Enlightening the World) is a copper statue in New York Harbor in New York City, America. French sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi designed it, and engineer Gustave Eiffel (who built the Eiffel Tower in  Paris) constructed it. Construction commenced in May 1876. It was France’s gift to America to commemorate its independence on 4 July 1776. Liberty holds a torch in her right hand, above her head, and carries a tablet in her left hand, with a broken chain at her feet. MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Kni...

Memories, dreams & reflections (2007) is the second memoir by British singer Marianne Faithfull (1946-). There is a hundred names on every page – celebrities and stars, musicians and producers, designers and authors. Name-dropping is a casual affair to her, from the Sixties when she came to prominence to the current day as she continues to write and record music. As a memoir, the first sections are most interesting – the early years with Mick Jagger and Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones, as well as socialising with the members of The Beatles and other groups. But overall, this is a collection of random thoughts about music - her music and the music that inspires her – as well as events and reminiscences over the years. It is not chronological and has no structure. Just whatever pops into her head. This a lazy way of writing a memoir, but Faithfull is Faithfull, in all her creative and imaginative rambings. I loved her then, I love her now. Even if this isn...