Welcome to the blog, a place to discuss things relating to the book 'A Life Before' and the issues raised in the story. Some of these issues are contentious and divisive but that's exactly why we should be talking about them, not sweeping them under the carpet which only serves to harden opinions on both sides of the argument.
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Please get involved, feel free to comment and share the blog posts. Guest posts are always welcome. The book is priced on Kindle at the lowest price currently permitted by Amazon for this book. Revenue from the sale of books will help go towards making free print copies available for educational purposes and to make the book available in Spanish.
The book is aimed at both adults and young adults. It's a novel that reflects on the human cost of war and examines the way war shapes lives and the sometimes long lasting consequences. It's a story that tackles important issues and one that, hopefully, will help foster a spirit of reconciliation.
While war is the central theme of the book, this is a story about the effect of war rather than a war story. Much of the narrative concerns events that happened before and after the war (the 1982 Falklands Conflict). The story begins in a cemetery where Chris, the narrator, is watching the feuding magpies. With time on his hands Chris recounts his childhood days and everything that led up to the fight that changed his life. He recalls the sudden death of his father, looking out for his kid brother, and his traumatic encounters with the school bully. There are fond memories too: the days at the old signal box playing with his best friend Howard, and his growing friendship with Jules, the girl he falls in love with. And then, of course, there is the fight itself, a fight that Chris could never forget.
The book serves as a reminder of the tragic human cost of a dispute that remains unresolved. We owe it to all those who lost their lives in the 1982 conflict to find a way forward.