Anatomy of a Soldier

My serial number is 6545-01-522. I was unpacked from a plastic case, pulled open, checked and reassembled. A black marker wrote BA5799 O POS on me and I was placed in the left thigh pocket BA5799’S combat trousers. I stayed there; the pocket was rarely unfastened. Imagine if your whole life changed in the blink of an eye... Captain Tom Barnes is leading British troops into a war zone when he is gravely injured by an exploding IED. This devastating moment and the transformative months that follow are narrated here by forty-five objects, shifting back and forwards in time, separate pieces in a puzzle, telling one unforgettable story. 'Marvellously told' - Alan Bennett 'Alive to every nuance of feeling' - Hilary Mantel 'A brilliant book' - Edna O'Brien