I love my old friends. As long-term subscribers to the soap-operas of each other’s lives, we are already familiar with the full cast of characters and all of the possible plot permutations. It’s a very efficient form of friendship: you can jump straight in with the latest instalment. And we are all very fond of each other – after all, we’ve made the effort to stay in touch – which makes for a comfortable and safe environment in which we can all say what we really think.

Well, now I have a new one. That’s right: a new old friend!

How is this possible, you might ask? Well, her name is India Knight and – as improbable as this may seem – she wrote me a book!

I know that she wrote it for me because, like all my old old friends, she knows exactly what I am interested in and what I want to talk about; she’s frank and intimate, she sounds just like one of the gang, she is wise, and she is well-informed, with masses of good advice across a wide range of topics.  She knows that I live in London and has shared the contact details of some of her favourite therapists with me.  She is a bit obsessed with her feet, but at our age we all repeat ourselves occasionally and get fixated on things – it’s part of our charm.

This book covers the most common life experiences of the middle-aged woman and it is laugh-out-loud funny in places.  (Please accept this apology if you were in the dentist’s waiting room with me when I was reading about friends cancelling dates!)  Sections on handling elderly relatives and coping with divorce are sad but realistic and helpful.  Better out than in!

My one concern is her business plan: she seems eminently sensible, but writing whole books for individual readers at only £7 a pop cannot be profitable?

Anyway, clearly she spotted that in this transitional time of life I need reassurance and a pep talk. She saw that I was feeling a bit wobbly, and I have to say that reading her book has been uplifting and affirming. And even though this book was clearly written with me in mind, she seems like such a reasonable person that I’m sure she wouldn’t mind if you read it too.