Description

& Other Poems

By Andrew Aldred

ISBN: 978-1-78382-264-5
Published: 2016
Pages: 47
Key Themes: Mental Health, Poetry, Relationships

Description

This book covers a variety of topics. These include urban life, health and wellbeing, alcohol abuse, breakdown of a relationship, war and politics and a lot more besides. The author has moved on from his last book which was more about prison, hospital and the army to try and give his perspective on what he sees as normal life.

About the Author

Andrew Aldred is an ex-soldier and Falklands veteran. He became ill in the army and suffered a twenty year psychotic illness resulting in ten years in hospital. He suffers from depression, paranoia and a bipolar condition. His illness is treatable and he has come out of hospital some years ago and come off his Home Office section. He has held various jobs and currently works at Prestwich Hospital assisting in running Creative Writing and ICT courses. He has recently split up with his wife and partner of the last eight years and is currently getting divorced.

Book Extract

Plastic Surgery

I saw a bunch of Doctors
Doing something abnormally worthwhile
For a group of people working in the “beauty” trade
A group of plastic surgeons no less
Who worked all year round on the rich and famous
And then took a holiday
To work on badly disfigured and diseased children
In Africa and Asia
It was on my television
And it brought it home to me
What plastic surgery should be about
Not vanity but acceptability
To create something normal instead of an aberration
Of bigger lips and breasts and penises
Something that could actually make life better for someone
Instead of just boosting an ego large enough
To cut off someone’s nose in order to spite their own face