About the Author

Peter Barham is a psychologist and social historian of mental health. He has published widely on mental health issues.

Reviews

"'A poignant reminder of the ordinary servicemen who sacrificed their sanity in fighting for their country.' Mark Bostridge, The Independent on Sunday 'Rather than concentrate on such war poets as Siegfried Sasson, who suffered from shell-shock, he tells the story of the rank-and-file servicemen who became psychiatric casualties but were forever after commonly referred to as 'lunatics'.' The Sunday Express 'Like many successful histories, this is a study that allows the past to speak for itself without the historian getting in the way.' Robert Douglas-Fairhurst, The Telegraph 'Barham charts the sagas of bureaucratic indifference, callous ignorance and class prejudice with commendable restraint.' Sian Busby, The Times 'No historian could have brought to this subject the power and passion which Peter Barham sustains.' Ben Shephard, Times Literary Supplement 'A powerful offering at the Tomb of the Unknown Lunatic.' The Independent"

"'A poignant reminder of the ordinary servicemen who sacrificed their sanity in fighting for their country.' Mark Bostridge, The Independent on Sunday 'Rather than concentrate on such war poets as Siegfried Sasson, who suffered from shell-shock, he tells the story of the rank-and-file servicemen who became psychiatric casualties but were forever after commonly referred to as 'lunatics'.' The Sunday Express 'Like many successful histories, this is a study that allows the past to speak for itself without the historian getting in the way.' Robert Douglas-Fairhurst, The Telegraph 'Barham charts the sagas of bureaucratic indifference, callous ignorance and class prejudice with commendable restraint.' Sian Busby, The Times 'No historian could have brought to this subject the power and passion which Peter Barham sustains.' Ben Shephard, Times Literary Supplement 'A powerful offering at the Tomb of the Unknown Lunatic.' The Independent"