Mark Wilkerson

The scene that bulldozed the path from prog and glam to punk and new wave, pub rock was a short-lived phenomenon in the U. K., emerging amidst the bloated landscape of prog rock and an increasingly oppressive economic outlook. In the U. K. in the early ‘70s, in response to the glitz of glam and the pomp of prog there emerged a DIY, back to basics scene known as pub rock: no-fuss, grass roots rock’n’roll bands playing in tight, sweaty rooms to packed throngs in the Victorian pubs of north London. Pub rock was a relative flash in the pan, lasting only a handful of years, but it produced a seismic shift, bridging the gap between rock’s Baroque period and the ensuing punk and new wave scene, and crucially, restoring the visceral connection between artist and audience. Through trailblazing artists like Brinsley Schwarz, Dr. Feelgood and Kilburn and the High Roads, pub rock paved the way for countless acts of monumental stature including the Clash, Madness, the Sex Pistols, Blondie, and the Pretenders. Pub Rock explores the genre’s hardscrabble evolution, and examines its significant and enduring legacy.

Tomas Young's War is the tragic yet life-affirming story of a paralysed Iraq War veteran who spent his last 10 years battling heroically with his injuries, while courageously speaking against America's wars before his death in 2014. Based on hours of interviews with Young and those closest to him, this emotional and powerful book sheds light on many crucial but often overlooked issues such as veterans' care, public attitudes toward the disabled, medical marijuana and the terminally ill.

Tomas Young’s War is the tragic yet life affirming story of a paralyzed Iraq War veteran who spent his last ten years battling heroically with his injuries, while courageously speaking against America's wars. Based on hours of interviews with Young and those close to him, the book puts the reader alongside Young as he struggles with life as a paralyzed veteran, suffering frustration and humiliation as he attempts to reenter society and resume as normal an existence as possible. It shows his fight to balance his precarious health with his drive to speak out for veterans care and against the war, and the impact his catastrophic injuries had on his family and his relationships. This emotional and powerful book sheds light on many crucial but often overlooked issues such as veterans’ care, public attitudes toward the disabled, medical marijuana, and the terminally ill. Tomas Young’s War shares everything, as unflinchingly honest as Tomas himself: the depression, the pain, the love, and laughter . . . the life of this man whose world was turned upside down by an Iraqi bullet more than ten years ago. Throughout, it serves as a powerful testament to the true cost of war.