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'Superb, moving, beautiful' Joanna Cannon, author of The Trouble with Goats and Sheep

He will be allowed to visit his mother soon. His mother who is terminally ill, his mother who he has been barred from seeing as he recovers from his own bout of pneumonia.

Until then, with the help of his physiotherapist Freya, he must navigate his increasingly empty and isolated existence: his father, who finds solace in the bottom of a glass; his Nana Q, whose betting-slip confetti litters her handbag; his friends, who simply wouldn’t understand.

Time passes with the promise of soon, but one hundred and fifty-two days later the boy will come face to face with his grief, and move beyond to a world full of possibility, hope and love.

'Oh God, a novel made up of poems about a teenage boy whose mother is dying and it captures so much sorrow and confusion. It's BRILLIANT' Marian Keyes

'This book is superb, moving and beautiful' Nick Offerman

'A soul-stirring exploration of loss, grief, and hope; its raw melody will stay with me for a long time' Susie Dent

'A beautiful, perfect book' Kate Mosse

Physio Day 108

The clapping under my arms,

my back,

my chest,

is relentless.

“The infection was really severe,” she says

“You've been coming here for quite a while.”

The clapping is percussive, and I close my eyes

The rhythm is somehow soothing, then I ready myself

my position is crucial to make the procedure effective,

to loosen the secretions caused by the infection.

“That's it” she says

“You're doing a good job”

Clap... Cough...

and the cup below becomes stained with green spit

Each cough removes just a little bit more.

It's been weeks since I started,

I hope it's nearly all gone.

Before

I try to remember

what it felt like before

I try to remember

before it all happened

before she was ill

before I was ill

I try to remember...

...before

One Hundred and Fifty-Two Days

Giles Paley-Phillips
Status: Published
Publication date: 05.03.2020
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'Superb, moving, beautiful' Joanna Cannon, author of The Trouble with Goats and Sheep

He will be allowed to visit his mother soon. His mother who is terminally ill, his mother who he has been barred from seeing as he recovers from his own bout of pneumonia.

Until then, with the help of his physiotherapist Freya, he must navigate his increasingly empty and isolated existence: his father, who finds solace in the bottom of a glass; his Nana Q, whose betting-slip confetti litters her handbag; his friends, who simply wouldn’t understand.

Time passes with the promise of soon, but one hundred and fifty-two days later the boy will come face to face with his grief, and move beyond to a world full of possibility, hope and love.

'Oh God, a novel made up of poems about a teenage boy whose mother is dying and it captures so much sorrow and confusion. It's BRILLIANT' Marian Keyes

'This book is superb, moving and beautiful' Nick Offerman

'A soul-stirring exploration of loss, grief, and hope; its raw melody will stay with me for a long time' Susie Dent

'A beautiful, perfect book' Kate Mosse

Physio Day 108

The clapping under my arms,

my back,

my chest,

is relentless.

“The infection was really severe,” she says

“You've been coming here for quite a while.”

The clapping is percussive, and I close my eyes

The rhythm is somehow soothing, then I ready myself

my position is crucial to make the procedure effective,

to loosen the secretions caused by the infection.

“That's it” she says

“You're doing a good job”

Clap... Cough...

and the cup below becomes stained with green spit

Each cough removes just a little bit more.

It's been weeks since I started,

I hope it's nearly all gone.

Before

I try to remember

what it felt like before

I try to remember

before it all happened

before she was ill

before I was ill

I try to remember...

...before

Giles Paley-Phillips has written a beautiful honest heartstopping bookpoem about grief. His enormous gorgeous heart is laid bare. Thoroughly recommend
Dawn French

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