I remember vividly seeing for the first time the drawing of Sophie’s parents taking her out to tea – after dark! She had cheated the Nazis and for a while it looked like she would cheat death itself. At book events she walked into the venue with the swagger of a prizefighter, dressed like she was ready to party. For all that they celebrate the good things in life, the books glitter with an awareness of how fragile life is. That day in Edinburgh she chatted about the nearness of death as cheerily as she chatted about colouring cats.

Source: The Guardian May 25, 2019 16:00 UTC