“I enjoyed this book so much. A wonderful collection of stories by women from different backgrounds, parts of the world and stages of life. I admire and appreciate the honesty they have brought to us through their experiences and the lessons they have learned along the way. Reminding me that we are all a work in progress.”

Julie Siddiqi MBE is a mentor, consultant and gender equality campaigner with a focus on interfaith relations and on applying that to social action work, together. She is also a regular contributor to BBC Radio 4’s Thought for the Day.

“A Life Less Serious is a collection of sparkling, glowing, precious jewels. The contributions from these remarkable women all, through the uniqueness and exquisite variety of their own voices and experiences, point consistently to what lies beneath those voices and experiences. Shifting from laugh-out-loud funny to deeply moving from one line to another, it is truly a treasure trove of all human life. Open it, dive in and savour each word.”

Clare Dimond, author of REAL: The Inside-Out Guide to Being Yourself and other books in the REAL series.