Memoirs of a Political Officer's Wife: in Tibet, Sikkim and Bhutan (Wisdom Tibet Book. Yellow Series)

To say she descibes a world that is lost to us is an understatement. She describes Tibet when it was ruled over by the previous Dalai Lama who died in 1935. Long before the Chinese invaded. She talks of Sikkim a tiny state that was invaded by India as recently as the 1970s. It is only in Bhutan where life is still recognisable from the decsriptions in this book.

Her description of a long lost life style in this mostly barren part of the world together with her observations of colours, fabrics and the minutiae of life provides a colourful view of life at a political level in these countries. Her marraige lasted two short years, her husband was buried in Tibet where his grave was eventually washed away by floods. She remains convinced to the end that " if I were to be offered the chance of lilving that all too brief period over again, I would do so without a moment's hesitation - even if I knew at the same time what the final outcome would be"

A fascinating view of life in the Himalayas in the 1930s where women travellers were the exception. And a way of life that is apart from anything we shall ever experience .