From a Dormitory Window
A coming-of-age true story about first love during A-levels
About the Book:
For the author as a young lad, there was nothing particularly special about growing up abroad. It was rather taken for granted providing numerous benefits: half-day schooling, almost continuous sunshine and sandy beaches. It was an idyll that was to be rudely shattered with the advent of teenage years with an education that could only be continued via a boarding school in the UK. A rude awakening it proved to be, and the author vividly portrays the brutal juxtaposition between the two contrasting lifestyles.
The author then faithfully documents life in the senior boarding house whilst studying for A-levels. A two-year period underscored by a war of attrition with school discipline and tetchy teachers! But then, in the final year of study, a disruption that put all else in the shade. Falling in love with a young lady in the academic year below changed everything.
From that time onwards, priorities were, to paraphrase W. H. Auden, ‘jumbled in one common box…’ What would come out on top? There was surely only one answer! The author takes us through that final year of study during which an increasing love of poetry and literature is more than matched by an obsession with a ‘country girl’. The story, told in conversational style, is a mixture of humour, melancholy and with periods of contemplation and reflection – and, as might be expected, is laced with the arrogance of youth!
Excerpt from Book:
“The inherent interest in this attractive young lady, coupled with a continuing close study of romantic English Literature, is now providing an irresistible combination. It seems logical and common sense to test out the skills one might possess, combined with what one has learnt. However successful or otherwise, the poetry written cannot be handed in to Ducky for evaluation! It will have to stay hidden. A recent study period in the school library had the added and unexpected bonus of Barbara also doing some research and reading. Well, hardly unexpected! Once the knowledge of her study periods had been gleaned, it was odds on that she could be found in the library at specified times. It has been possible to sit at the same table as Barbara whilst in the library but, generally, opposite her so that any interest did not appear too obvious, particularly with others studying in the library. The golden rule of library research and reading – no talking. There has been, however, a mutual acknowledgement of the others presence, with attendant smiles being exchanged. Have you noticed, Barbara, that there has been considerably more interest in you than in the library books detailing, for instance, the events leading up to the end of the French religious wars? The library study periods have spawned the following, scribbled out in this dormitory room at an ungodly hour – but the mind is brimming over – the brain is bursting, in turmoil almost, with the vision of this young lady.
Somehow, it needs to be expressed,
What thoughts surrounded that pretty-head,
Whilst quietly she sat and mused?
Was her heart firmly implanted on future love?
I envy him: to feel that smooth light inviting skin,
Her light brown hair falling far down her back:
Oh creation, what does she lack?
The firm face matches an excellent figure,
A sturdy stance, an upright walk.
Oh, for a small chat, a private talk with her:
Is that calm temperament so real?
Then to touch those smooth rose cheeks,
To feel her charm.
But oh, I am troubled by the most horrible thoughts.
Dear Barbara, are you really as quiet, as tame, as you look?
“From a Dormitory Window: A Boy’s Life & Love at Boarding School” by Ian McCart is available in hardback from Amazon at:
This book is also available in paperback at:
You can download the e-book version from:
Press/Media Contact Details:
New Generation Publishing
Tel. 01234 711 956
E-mail: [email protected]
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I Meant No Harm
A real-life account of the challenges of becoming a successful surgeon having learned the skill in turbulent and troubled times
About the Book:
What does it take to become a surgeon? There are many prerequisites to be a successful one. Those range from maintaining composure when the unexpected happens. Having the mental and physical endurance that matches the unpredictable nature of surgery. Communication and leadership skills. Above all, the humility of adopting an ongoing strive to learn in order to sharpen one’s skills, such as critical analysis and creativity.
Achieving these goals appears challenging, but for them to be achieved in exceptional circumstances of escaping a war-torn country, traveling between cities, working as a second class citizen and fighting to save patients and loved ones lives is captivating.
“I Meant No Harm” provides a distinctive perception into many turbulent journeys through illness towards cure. Those who succeed in their journey become the lighthouse that guides the surgeon through the dark times. Those who succumb to their illness while battling their disease leave their surgeons scarred for life.
Excerpt from Book:
“It was 6th August 1994. I swore my oath to help people and do no harm the day I graduated from Baghdad Medical School, after surviving the second Gulf War.
Having been through the first Gulf War as a child, you’d think this one would be different. I was wrong. To be told as a third-year medical student, just before the mid-term exams, that there was a good chance we would be hit with chemical weapons, was rather daunting. We were told to expect the worst. Wrap your face with a wet towel, trench through the flood of dead birds, and hope.
Nevertheless, we were still expected to continue our preparation for the mid-term pharmacology exam, which was supposed to take place on 7th January 1991. At the time, my cousin, an officer in the army, managed to get us four chemical masks. We were a family of five, with my father as a retired university professor (being against the principles of the Arab Baath Socialist Party principles), my mother a gynaecologist, and then me and my older two sisters, all medical students – third, fourth and sixth year.
We had an argument between us, with each one declining to get a mask to save the four masks for the other members of the family. We eventually decided to donate all the masks to another family, and I was given the task to prepare a WMD (weapons of mass destruction)-proof of our house!”
“I Meant No Harm: Sculpted by War, Motivated by Scalpel” by Ali Thwaini is available in hardback from Amazon at:
This book is also available in paperback format from Amazon at:
You can also download the e-book version from:
Press/Media Contact Details:
New Generation Publishing
Tel. 01234 711 956
E-mail: [email protected]
Bound 4 Escape