Hidden in Bushey resident Peter Collins’ drawers was a forgotten story that would one day become his first published novel.
In 1962, while in Italy, Peter fell in love with a girl which started him writing the poems, and he realised he had a flare for writing. When he got back home, he watched a film called The Cardinal, about a village priest, his younger sister, and her love for a Jewish boy.
Years later, reflecting on his own life and the film, Peter picked up a pen and six lined pads and decided to write a book about a young American soldier.
Life moved on and the story was shelved, with his own love story ending in heartbreak with the tragic death of his wife Josephine.
Over twenty-five years ago, now aged 81, Peter stumbled across the forgotten manuscript and decided he would start looking for agents and publishers to finally tell his tale.
The book follows the journey of Jeff, a young American Jewish soldier wounded in the Iraqi war.
Waking up in the middle of the night in a hospital in Milan, he meets Maria, a beautiful Roman Catholic nurse who, in every way, is ‘forbidden fruit’.
Speaking to BusheyNEWS, Peter shared: “The places in the story describe where I have been so people say they feel like a fly on the wall. I also show Jewish customs, like what happens on a Friday night.
“This book is unique and the most wonderful story. You will feel all the emotions and when you have finished the last page, will want to continue to find out what happened.”
Peter’s book is available at 45 different outlets, including Amazon: https://shorturl.at/JD0J8
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