OUT OF THE ASHES
The restoration of a burned boy
By Peter Gladwin, with Jan Greenough. Monarch Books. 160 pages. £7.99
ISBN 978 1 854 2429 920
The writer of the foreword, Carl Beech, says the book is ‘one of the most compelling biographies I have ever read’. I would agree.
It is about the life of Peter Gladwin, who, as a baby in Halifax, was severely burned in a house fire which resulted in amputations of toes on both feet and part of each foot, as well as other major burns. His difficult family upbringing followed by a life of violence, drugs and gambling brought him to the point of suicide.