Compatriots of Desire
Published on 27. March 2026
Book
Hardback
122 pages
978-1-0358-6327-3 (ISBN)
Description
Compatriots of Desire follows one man's unflinching journey through debt, disillusionment, addiction, and the quiet collapse of a life lived under capitalism's relentless glare. Once an intelligent family man commuting across London's bridges to the Financial Quarter, he becomes worn down by pressure, expectation, and the slow erosion of his mental health. When the 2020 Coronavirus pandemic brings the country to a standstill, he finds an unexpected lifeline - yet every rescue comes with consequences. As he abandons work, technology, and the noise of society, he begins to question everything he once believed about success, money, and meaning. The bridges he crosses - both real and metaphorical - mark the turning points of a life in search of something better. But where does the journey lead? Toward contentment, or further into the unknown? Told in lyrical prose woven with poetry, Compatriots of Desire is a continuous, immersive story of collapse, clarity, and the fragile hope of starting again.
More details
Person
Compatriots of Desire is the fifth book by the author. Written as prose, with poetry twinning, the book is one man's life story, which includes all the traits of our society we currently live with. As an intelligent family man, hungover with debt, he becomes an alcoholic and steps off the 'big wheel' to start a new life without any burdens of family life, work, mobile phones and social media. Always observant of the capitalist society around him, he becomes a believer that money is not the answer. He's been there, seen it and done it. Tired of crossing the bridges of London to commute to the Financial Quarter, his mental health becomes so bad he is only saved by the Coronavirus Pandemic that hits the UK in 2020. But this has consequences due to the Government's restrictions. The physical bridge is relatable to the personal bridges he has crossed as parts of his life to change direction, hoping for something better. Where does he end up? Will he find contentment or happiness? The book is to be read from first page to last as one continual story.