She kept yammering away, like a stupid little budgie in a cage, just baby stuff and doll stories. It drove Mama mad to listen to her, never mind me. It was a funny thing but right where we lived on rue des Lions all the other children were girls – or boys who were very young, just babies, really....
Those were the words Mr Bristol used when the big day came and he was invited to have first sight of my mother’s finished portrait. They were the same words he used with his gentlemen friends when their deals worked out, or their law cases were won. For weeks, Mr Hickey had become coy about his w...