CAMILLA: My favourite books to help you get through lockdown
She offers reading-list remedy from Scots home
SITTING on the steps of her Scottish hideaway, the Duchess of Rothesay takes solace in a good book – and now more than ever.
From modern fantasy to wartime thriller, Camilla has revealed her favourites to inspire others during the long days of lockdown.
As patron of the National Literacy Trust and a fervent reader, she is known for her love of books from a wide range of genres.
And during the pandemic, she has found comfort in reading, particularly after her husband Prince Charles tested positive for the virus last month and they had to self-isolate on their Birkhall estate, at Balmoral, Royal Deeside.
The duchess said: ‘In these challenging times when we are isolated from the ones we love, many of us are finding comfort in reading to fire up our imaginations, to take us on journeys and to make us laugh.
‘With that in mind here are a list of my dearest “friends”.
‘Ernest Hemingway famously once said, “There is no friend as loyal as a book”.’
Included in her recommendations is Travels On My Elephant by Mark Shand, her late brother. He was a travel writer and conservationist who documented the journey from Konarak on the bay of Bengal to the Sonepur Mela.
Camilla said: ‘It always brings a tear to my eye.’
She also suggests historical novel A Tale Of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, describing it as ‘one of my favourites’ by the influential 19th century author.
Scottish author William Boyd’s espionage novel Restless – adapted into a film in 2013 – is another favourite of the Duchess. She describes it as a ‘great read’.
For those who want to lose themselves in crime fiction novels, the Simon Serrailler series by Susan Hill is recommended.
With 13 books in the collection, lockdown is the ideal time to delve into the mystery world.
Meanwhile, fantasy lovers might be more drawn towards The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman. Camilla described this title as ‘storytelling at its best’.
However, the duchess revealed she would take The Cazalet Chronicles by Elizabeth Jane Howard if she were stranded on a desert island.
She describes it as a ‘multigenerational saga by this brilliant author.’ She also urges people to pick up a copy of Amor Towles’ novel A Gentleman In Moscow.
It tells the story of a Russian aristocrat living under house arrest in the city’s Metropol Hotel for more than 30 years.
The duchess said it is a ‘wonderful book which gives the reader an understanding of life in post revolution Moscow’. Sticking with an international theme, she has also picked The Red Notebook by Antoine Laurain, set in France.
She described the novel as ‘clever and funny’ and ‘a masterpiece of Parisian perfection’.
Finally, another recommendation to battle the boredom that lockdown can cause is a book by Turkish author Elif Shafak. The Architect’s Apprentice is set in 16th century Istanbul during the height of the Ottoman Empire.
It is hailed by the Duchess as a ‘magical, colourful tale’.
Camilla said she hopes the list will help offer a little bit of escapism and relief during the coronavirus pandemic.
‘The list will help offer a little bit of escapism’