My Animals and Other Family
By Clare Balding
Once I have found a book that captures my attention I become a compulsive reader who will only put the book down to eat a meal or sleep, until it ends. One such book was My Animals and Other Family.
My family had initially taken it in turns to read the book while I waited impatiently for my opportunity to steal the book and leaf through its pages. I had watched Clare Balding present racing on the BBC many times and she was and is someone I look up to.
Balding is open, honest and compelling in her memoir and while I am not saying that I used to spend some of my youth pretending to be an animal of some sort, I found in her story a certain relatability. As an aspiring presenter I took particular interest in how she forged a career in media and, of course, the odd story about The Queen and the wonderful horses that lived in her back garden certainly didn't deter this reader.
Balding shares vulnerabilities in this story and perhaps its greatest triumph is the homage she pays to the animals that shaped her childhood and taught her so much. Each of us owe something to our four-legged companions and right now perhaps this book is the perfect escape we all need.
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