The Shock of the Fall: WINNER OF THE COSTA BOOK OF THE YEAR 2013

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Matt’s traumatic past is so profound that he begins manifesting “commanding hallucinations” of Simon. When Matt begins summoning Simon’s voice in his head, his father Richard and mother Susan send him to be treated at a mental hospital called Hope Road Day Centre. At the ward, Matt experiences a repetitive routine of treatment that he loathes. He complains about the rigid schedule enforced by Dr. Edward Clement, saying: “it tells me exactly what I have to do with my days, like coming in for therapy groups…what tablets I should take, and the injections, and who is responsible for what.” He continues by grousing: “there is literally nothing to do.” When Matt begins seeing an art therapist named Denise Lovell, he’s asked to perform a genogram. Matt agrees, and slowly begins to remember what happened to Simon by writing about the night he died. I have become an evangelist for Where the Moon Isn't. It won me heart and soul with its crazy, wild, fine voice, its bravura, its ambition, its harrowing corners, and the dense rich tiny core of love at its glowing, radiant center. The descriptions of family life before and after the tragedy are bittersweet and wonderfully etched, especially Matthew's relationship with his nan and his sole friend, Jacob. The tragedy, when it is fully revealed, is stark.

A compelling story of grief, madness and loss. Filer has an ear for the dark comedy of life, and Matthew is a charismatic lead character who draws you in even as his world falls apart’ It's a story about a family coming to terms with grief and it is a character study of Matthew Holmes and one of the things about him is that he's got schizophrenia. But it's not a novel about schizophrenia and it's not a novel about the NHS," said the author.In poetry, Symmons Roberts won for his sixth and most ambitious collection, in which all 150 poems have 15 lines. The judges described it as "contemporary life filtered through the form of common prayer with a musicality sustained across a memorable body of work". The novel made book world headlines last year when 11 publishers bid for it, a "dizzying and unexpected" experience, said Filer. The winner, with "a substantial six figure sum", was HarperCollins. Nathan Filer is a registered mental health nurse as well as a performance poet and his real-life experience is evident in this, his debut novel. The story is narrated by Matthew, a nineteen year old schizophrenic who recalls the sudden, tragic death of his older brother, Simon – a death which he believes he caused.

I am so fascinated by books that depict mental illnesses. Books such as The Bell Jar, Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine and Countless just to name a few, have really touched me. The focus on the frailty of the human mind is something that resonates really strongly with me, and telling these stories is vital. Certainly for me, they remind me that none of us are alone in our suffering. This is the second book I have read recently, which I am unsure if I liked it or not. There wasn't anything I disliked but equally there was nothing which made me love the book. There was supposed to be an element of suspense but sometimes it just frustrated me, We knew simon died early early but the whole book lead up to how, which wasn't that difficult to guess.She's known sadness. That's what it is. I only just thought that as I wrote it. She's known sadness, and it has made her kind.” The Telegraph praises the novel as bittersweet and wonderfully etched, noting that it is "an unsettling read but a perceptive and moving one". [9] Awards [ edit ] In the present, Matt is being treated at the Hope Road Day Centre mental hospital. He was committed there by his parents, Richard and Susan, after his grandmother found him attempting to make a giant ant farm in his flat, which a hallucination of Simon told him to do. Matt finds his experience at the ward repetitive, and often complains about the rigid schedule. One of Matt's therapists asks him to perform a genogram – which eventually makes him remember what happened to Simon by writing about the night he died. It is revealed that Simon's death was the result of a harmless prank gone wrong, where Simon accidentally fell off of a short cliff. The 19 year old protagonist of the novel, is a schizophrenic artist, son, and grandson. Suffering from the guilt of his down-syndrome brother, Simon's, untimely death. The novel is told from Matthews point of view beginning with a vacation with his family ten years earlier. With his dark sense of humor the reader follows Matthew on his descent into schizophrenia. Matthew is staying at a psychiatric day ward and with his regular medicine injections he is slowly spiraling into his uneasy mental state and struggling with the mental health system. Nathan Filer still does the odd Sunday shift as a registered mental health nurse, although they may well become less frequent after his debut novel – originally the subject of an 11-publisher bidding war – was on Monday night named winner of one of the UK's leading book prizes.

Filer has been awarded the honorary degree of Master of Letters from the University of the West of England [24] and the honorary degree of Doctor of Liberal Arts from Abertay University. [25] These degrees were conferred in recognition of his role in raising awareness through literature and his commitment to mental health care. [24] [25] National Book Awards 2014 - Overall winner announced". The Reading Agency. 2014 . Retrieved 15 April 2019. It contains an easy-to-inject needle with a dose of hormone called epinephrine. You can use it to treat anaphylaxis. Showering during a thunderstorm is not safe. Learn more about staying safe in your home during a thunderstorm and activities you should avoid. READ MORENathan Filer wins Costa Book of the Year with debut novel". BBC News. 28 January 2014 . Retrieved 15 April 2019. The worst thing about this illness isn’t the things it makes me believe, or what it makes me do. It’s not the control that it has over me, or even the control it’s allowed other people to take. Starred Review. In this very assured debut, performance poet and mental-health nurse Filer shows that he knows what he's writing about. One of my more unique reads this one, I was wary of the hype around it, but really enjoyed reading it. I love the way the book is written, for a debut novel it's quite exceptional, it's an emotion stirring book and thought provoking too.