Tolerance and passion might seem, at first thought, to be peculiar bedfellows. Charmian Clift, in this series of essays first published in the Sydney Morning Herald and the Herald, Melbourne, combines the two in a dazzling and compellingly readable collection.

Whether tackling political issues head-on, or writing on domestic crises, her free flowing, sometimes eccentric prose sweeps the reader along. Her gift for communication was such that there is an intimacy with the writer, as if the essay was written especially for the reader.