Angels aren't what they used to be. According to St Luke's Gospel, the shepherds keeping watch over their flock by night (currently being portrayed by small children wearing tea towels in nativity plays across the country) were 'sore afraid' when the angel of the Lord came upon them. Even the Virgin Mary was at first 'troubled' by Gabriel's visit. No such anxieties seem ever to have afflicted Jacky Newcomb, 'the Angel Lady', who writes a number of columns in the mystical press, teaches at Colin Fry's International College of Spiritual Science and Healing in Ramsbergsgarden, Sweden, runs www.angellady.co.uk, and has now written a book, An Angel Treasury: A Celestial Collection of Inspirations, Encounters and Heavenly Lore (Element, £12.99).[*] Colin Fry - he of the International College in Ramsbergsgarden - says it is 'probably the most fascinating book on angels yet made available to the public'.

LRB 16 December 2004 | PDF Download