I Would Fix You.

I've been meaning to post this for a few days now.  It's been a funny old week.  An up-and-down week.  A hurry-up-and-wait sort of a week.

Anyway, last week I was very lucky to attend the lovely book launch for my friend Sara Barnard's wonderful new book Beautiful Broken Things.  I was also extremely lucky, as Sara and I share our brilliant editor, that I got to read the book in proof form a while ago (things like this absolutely delight me).

It's a gorgeous book about the intensity of female friendship - something that I can hugely relate to.  You know, that feeling of having a new friend and it being even more exciting than a new boyfriend (apparently this is a teenage thing, but I still experience it today).  Crucially, in this book, the premise is: it's not boys who have the power to really break your heart; it's your best friends.

The book also holds a special little place in my heart for being set in Brighton - and my favourite adopted home town is really brought to life in beautiful and perfect detail.  So, it was fitting that the launch took place in Brighton - and I was wildly excited to be in the Brighton branch of Waterstones AT NIGHT!  Drinking a glass of Prosecco, no less.  It was pretty awesome.

There were even Toblerone-flavoured Shakeaway milkshakes (read the book and this will make sense, as if there needs to be a reason for Toblerone being in a milkshake).

It was a lovely night for a really special book.  And for some reason, today especially, thinking of Sara's book puts me in mind of this song - a long-held favourite for me.

I'm in pieces, can no-one see it?
I am stronger on the outside, it's easy when you know why.
This feeling sad, it's not so bad.
I've got friends who lift my spirits, I've got songs that no-one hears...