Virginia McKenna - Light of My Years

Review by Maggie Perkovic on show 9th Dec 2010
THIS IS WHAT ONE WOULD SAY IS A NICE BOOK WRITTEN BY A NICE PERSON!!
I DON'T MEAN TO SOUND PATRONISING, I HAVE ALWAYS ENJOYED HER WORK AND ESPECIALLY WHEN SHE AND HER HUSBAND BILL TRAVERS BECOME INVOLVED WITH THE BORN FREE FOUNDATION LATER TO BE 'ZOO CHECK' THEY HAD APPEARED IN THE FILM BORN FREE WHICH SHOWED THE LIFE OF ADAMS AND THEIR INVOLVEMENT WITH THE LIONS. IT WAS A GREAT SUCCESS BUT THEY THEN SAW WHAT BECAME OF THE ANIMALS USED IN FILMS, THE STANDARD OF THE ZOOS THEY WERE SHUNTED OFF TO AND THEN DECIDED TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!!
ALL WELL AND GOOD AND THEY WERE DEDICATED TO THEIR CAUSE BESIDES APPEARING IN LOTS OF FILMS AND HAVING 4 CHILDREN!!
IF THIS BOOK HAD BEEN WRITTEN BY A BETTER PROFESSIONAL WRITER I THINK IT WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER. MRS MCKENNA ADMITS THIS IS MORE A BOOK OF RAMBLINGS, POETRY APPEARS NOW & THEN INTERWOVEN WITH INTERESTING NARRATIONS OF HER ACTING IN CERTAIN FILMS (CARVE HER NAME WITH PRIDE & TOWN LIKE ALICE), BRILLIANT FILMS & WHERE THEY WERE FILMED AND HER INTERACTION WITH OTHER STARS IS VERY INTERESTING. ALSO HER LIFE WITH BILLTRAVERS IS SHOWN TO BE VERY HAPPY AND FULFILLING BUT HIS SUDDEN DEATH WHICH MUST HAVE SHATTERED HIS FAMILY IS MENTIONED AS A MERE FACT, I THOUGHT. PERHAPS IT WAS TOO PERSONAL, BUT THEN THE SECRET OF A GOOD AUTOBIOGRAPHY IS TO FEEL PART OF THEIR LIFE IF ONLY FOR A WHILE ISN'T IT??
HOWEVER, I CAN RECOMMEND THIS BOOK IF ONLY TO LEARN OF THE SAD FATE OF POLE POLE (SLOWLY SLOWLY IN SWAHILI) AN ELEPHANT THEY FILMED WITH AND FOUND HER SOME YEARS LATER IN BRITAIN IN A TOTALLY UNSUITABLE SURROUNDING ONLY FOR HER TO DIE BEFORE SHE COULD BE MOVED TO SAFETY.
THEY ARE A TOTALLY CRUSADING FAMILY. AFTER THE DEATH OF BILLTRAVERS HER SON TOOK ON THE BURDEN AND THEY STILL DO THEIR BEST TO HELP ANIMALS, ORPHANED CHILDREN & POLITICAL PRISONERS!!
I JUST FOUND SHE WANDERS A BIT BUT THAT IS NOT NECESSARILY A CRITICISM!!
review by Maggi (Vera Lynn)