The White Umbrella

‘Mr B, a wiry little man of fifty with white hair, was sitting in the back of a big white Land Rover when he saw the donkey. It was early evening and the dense rush-hour traffic in Peshawar was moving at a snail’s pace—which was just as well, for Mr B suddenly opened the door, leaped down onto the road and, without a word, sprinted away between the carts and lorries, the buses and the motorcycles…’ Brian Sewell strays from the art world to tell the enchanting story of a man and his pet donkey, Pavlova, as they make their way together from Peshawar to London in the company of monks, book collectors, rugmakers and smugglers. Beautifully illustrated by the celebrated cartoonist Sally Ann Lasson, The White Umbrella is an allegorical tale about taking personal responsibility for our environment and the importance of both compassion and empathy. It is the perfect book for children and adults alike—a classic in the making to keep and to cherish.