Last year as part of the ‘Penned Up’ festival in the prison we had a number of guest speakers in. One of these was the inspirational Harry Parker who talked about his life as a soldier and the aftermath of the injuries he suffered. Click below to see the article as it appeared in the 2018 Penned up magazine or keep scrolling for a text only version.
Anatomy of a Soldier – Harry Parker
Anatomy of a Soldier – Text only version:
Harry had missed his previously scheduled appearance due to heavy snowfall. But despite the potential for a superstitious upset, Harry made it to visit us on Friday 13th April. Here a group of us saw Harry being interviewed by Penned Up co-ordinator, David Kendall. Having listened to Harry speak I am grateful that he made the effort to return.
In 2009 Captain Harry Parker was leading a patrol in Afghanistan. They were crossing a non-descript field when he stepped on an IED. He suffered a double amputation, losing both of his legs as a result of his injuries. “I came from a long line of service men, in fact when I was discharged it was the first time in over 100 years that somebody from my family had not been in the forces.” After a long and arduous rehabilitation process Harry found himself looking for work. He found a job in the tax office but got little satisfaction from his work. Harry had been an Arts student at University before he enlisted and he turned back to the arts as he started to write. His book ’Anatomy of a Soldier’ evolved over the next few years. The first attempt was a short story written from the perspective of a dog. But when this work was not greatly received at a creative writing workshop he went back to the drawing board. With his wife’s support he quit his job and began to work on his book full time. Harry stumbled onto the formula that worked, writing a story from numerous perspectives, but his choice of narrators was quite unique. ‘Anatomy of a Soldier’ is written through the ‘eyes’ of a series of objects. The story’s central character, Tom Barnes is injured by an IED and, like the author, loses his legs. Harry explained that the main character Tom is referred to by his Army number by the items that tell their story. He went on to read Chapter One of for us, it begins… “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 of BA5799’s combat trousers. I stayed there; the pocket was rarely unfastened.”
We learn that the item ‘speaking’ was the soldier’s tourniquet. It’s chapter ends as it is cut off and thrown in the bin of an operating room. As Harry finished reading many of us finally remembered to take a breath. The group shared one of those nervous laughs as Harry told us, “Not all of the chapters are like that!” When asked why he had chosen this style Harry told us that he chose to write individual chapters, to tell each items story and to then knit the stories together into the finished novel.
Describing the fluid timeline of the book, Harry mentioned that some of the book’s readers had opted to read the ‘chapters’ or each of the stories in a random order. They felt that the book still worked, but believed that Harry’s writing order was still the best option. Asked if the novel was autobiographical, Harry acknowledged that there were obvious similarities, however he was adamant it was not his story. “I chose this fictional character in order to remove as much of the politics as possible from the book. I don’t refer to any particular conflict. The fact of the matter is that it is almost impossible to write a non-political book about a war or the events of a specific war. By creating Tom Barnes I can tell the story without mentioning Afghan or Iraq or any specific conflict.”
David Kendall then asked if writing the book was therapeutic, which made Harry think for a moment before he told us, “When I came back and when I left the army, I didn’t have Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, but like everybody that has served I did have Post Traumatic Stress. When I started writing the book I did not set out to use the writing as therapy. But as I described certain parts of Tom Barnes’ story, it certainly brought some emotions back for me. So while I didn’t start the book as some form of cathartic therapy, when I had finished I certainly felt some sort of relief.”
We moved on from ‘Anatomy of a Soldier’ and Harry told us that his next project was a work based on the history and evolution of prosthetic limbs. Rather than the wooden legs and hooks from history he said he had found surprisingly complex prosthetics dating back to medieval times. Harry described his own prosthetics and explained that there were about £70,000 worth of computer chips within the prosthetic. These chips learn and adapt and can be programmed to take on various tasks. Ironically, he told us that the area around the socket that connects the prosthesis to his legs was prone to chafing and irritation. “Designers really seem to get excited about the computer parts and the expensive technology bits, but I wish that they would just focus on the basic elements too!”
Harry’s enthusiasm and positive outlook were an inspiration. He seemed like the type of man that will always find the silver lining. Rather than complain about having prosthetic legs, he highlighted how the Army still financed his healthcare. This means that he receives the very best of attention from the NHS. Sadly, many NHS patients reach a financial cut-off point when the NHS won’t pay for prosthetics. These people are forced to self-fund or make do with the most basic of equipment.
Harry was asked how he would advise his children if they grew up and wanted to join the armed forces he thought for a moment before he spoke to us, “When you become a soldier you have to expect that things like this [his injuries] might happen. It’s part of the job. But I loved being in the service. You meet people from every walk of life; from every background, every race and there is far more good than bad. But when it comes to my kids, if they asked me I think I wouldn’t try to talk them out of it. Kids are more inclined to do the opposite of what they are told.”
Harry’s book, Anatomy of a Soldier is highly recommended and is available in the library. It is a compelling read without being overly challenging. The individual stories or chapters make it manageable for readers of all levels.
