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Pat Barker Books In Order

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Publication Order of Brooke Family Books

Publication Order of Regeneration Books

Regeneration (1991)Description / Buy at Amazon
The Eye in the Door (1993)Description / Buy at Amazon
The Ghost Road (1995)Description / Buy at Amazon

Publication Order of Women Of Troy Books

The Silence of the Girls (2018)Description / Buy at Amazon
The Women of Troy (2021)Description / Buy at Amazon
The Voyage Home (2024)Description / Buy at Amazon

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Union Street (1982)Description / Buy at Amazon
Blow Your House Down (1984)Description / Buy at Amazon
The Century's Daughter / Liza's England (1986)Description / Buy at Amazon
The Man Who Wasn't There (1989)Description / Buy at Amazon
Another World (1998)Description / Buy at Amazon
Border Crossing (2001)Description / Buy at Amazon
Double Vision (2003)Description / Buy at Amazon

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

Granta 7: Best of Young British Novelists(1983)Description / Buy at Amazon
The Great Basin: People and Place in Ancient Times(2008)Description / Buy at Amazon

Pat Barker is one of the reputed novelists and writer from England, who likes to write her books based on the literature and fiction genres. She has received many awards for her fiction novels, most of which are based on the themes of trauma, memory, survival, and recovery. Many critics have described the works of author Barker as blunt, direct, and plainspoken. Her novel series, Regeneration Trilogy, is particularly popular among the masses. It has been named by The Observer as one of the top 10 historical novels. Author Barker was born as Patricia Mary W. Drake, on May 8, 1943. Her family belonged to the working class living on Thornaby in Yorkshire, England. The mother of Barker died in the year 2000, while the identity of her father is not known. Author Barker has said that her mother named Myra became pregnant with her getting highly drunk during a night out. At that time, being pregnant illegitimately was considered a shame in the society. Therefore, after Barker’s birth, her mother told the people that she was her sister and not her daughter. She and her mother used to live with her grandparents, until Moyra got married and settled down. Barker was just 7 years old at that time. In an interview given to The Guardian in the year 2003, author Barker has said that she chose to remain with her grandparents instead of joining her mother.

Barker was deeply attached to her grandmother and even did not feel any connection with her stepfather. Barker used to sell fish along with her grandparents, but that business did not last for long and she had to live in a poor condition for a long time along with her grandparents. When she was 11 years old, author Barker was able to win a place at a grammar school, and as a result, she joined the King James School in Knaresborough. Author Barker says that she was also an avid reader. During the later stages of her academic studies, Barker enrolled herself at the London Economics School for studying International history. She graduated in the year 1965, after which Barker returned home in order to look after her sick grandmother. She met David Barker in a pub in the year 1969. At that time, he was working as a neurologist and zoology professor. Even though David was senior to her by 20 years, he left his wife from his first marriage to stay with author Barker. The two got married in the year 1978 and became parents of two children. Barker’s daughter, Anna Barker Ralph, has also started her career as a novelist.

When author Barker was in her twenties, she used to write fiction books. The first 3 books written by her never got published and in an interview, she has told that they did not deserve to be released. Barker believes that she was very sensitive as a writer at that time, which is not the case with her now. Over the years, she has undergone a lot of changes and has grown considerably as a writer. The first novel that she was able to release in her writing career is called as Union Street. This book consists of 7 stories related to the working class English women, which are interlinked with each other. These stories revolve around the violence and poverty that the women face in their lives. For around 10 years, author Barker had to face rejections wherever she went to get the novel published. Then she met a novelist named Angela Carter, who suggested her to take it to a feminist publisher. Eventually, the book was published by Virago. It not only became successful, but was also adapted into a movie called Stanley and Iris, featuring Jane Fonda and Robert De Niro. Author Barker was awarded with the Fawcett prize in the year 1983 for a Union Street novel. In the year 1993, she received the Guardian Prize and then the Booker Prize in 1995. She was given an honorary Doctorate degree by an Open University in 1997. Barker was named a CBE in the year 2000.

The Regeneration series written by author Pat Barker consists of a total of 3 books, which were released between the years 1991 and 1996. The debut book of this series is titled as ‘Regeneration’. It was published in the year 1991 by the Penguin Books publication. The story takes place in Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom, at the time of the year 1917. Author Barker has described the main characters in this book in the form of Robert Graves, Billy Prior, Wilfred Owen, William Rivers, Lewis Yealland, David Burns, Sarah Lumb, etc. The central plot of the novel revolves around the psychological effects of the First World War and the treatment methods used at that time. It also confronts the story of an English officer who is sent to the military hospital after his public declaration of not willing to fight anymore. Author Barker has written the novel in a sparse prose, which seems to be shockingly clear. The electronic treatments that she has described appear to be particularly harrowing. The novel combines the actual events and characters with the fictional ones and examines the war insanity in a particular way. Author Barker has also weaved in the issues of politics and class in the plot.

The second book in the series is titled as ‘The Eye in the Door’. It was released by the Plume publication in the year 1993. The central characters introduced in the plot of the book by author Barker include Billy Prior, William Rivers, Siegfried Sassoon, and Charles Manning. At the start of the book, it is shown that Britain is facing the possibility of defeat at the hands of Germany in 1918. At the same time, the vengeful public and a beleaguered government target the homosexuals and pacifists as scapegoats. A number of people get jailed while many others live with fear. In such testing times, the paranoiac symbol of “eye in the door” threatens to destroy the British society. The character of Dr. William Rivers appears as one of the richly imagined, compassionate, brilliant, and compelling ones. Even the character of Billy Prior as an intelligence agent seems very rich. Author Barker has written the plot with the help of realistic and compelling dialogues. By attempting to write this novel, Barker has tried to highlight the social issues at the time of War, which were mostly overlooked by the mainstream media.

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One Response to “Pat Barker”

  1. Bob Campbell: 3 years ago

    I just finished Union Street: an incredible tour of poor English women! In checking to see your other books, above, I discovered that I’d already read and greatly enjoyed the Regeneration trilogy. Ms. Barker, you are a wonderful writer. Thank you very much for giving us your novels. I look forward to reading more of your work! Best regards to you, Bob Campbell (from the the U.S., land of illiteracy and arrogance)

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