The Corridor is a gripping story of how mountains, climbing and secret shame can shape a life.
Wild places, vivid characters and turbulent relationships frame a narrative of extraordinary emotional survival in the face of childhood rape.
We follow Iain to Kenya, across Dartmoor, Cornwall, The Alps and the remote, unclimbed peaks of the Cordillera Darwin in Tierra del Fuego. We come to know his eccentric grandfather, a retired Admiral, who inspired in Iain a love of rock climbing that would become his lifeline.
Writing powerfully from the perspective of both child and adult, Iain shares his funny, rebellious, unconventional journey to escape from hidden pain, through disturbing career choices, disastrous mistakes, irrepressible optimism, a menage à trois, expeditions to South America before finally meeting and falling in love with his future wife and mother of his children in the islands of Cape Horn.
This is a uniquely riveting adventure story of physical daring and rare emotional insight.
Buy
£18 including P&P (RRP £20) - UK delivery (2nd Class)
For international orders, please contact me directly through one of the social media links below.
GDPR Agreement *
"Iain Peters’ book is about the survival, recovery, and creation of a life after being sexually abused as a child. It is beautifully written, full of detail that paints a vivid picture of place, time, events, and relationships without a consuming focus on the brutality or any attempt to elicit emotion in the reader.
It is both intelligent and compassionate, portraying the long-term impact of the abuse through his life as a climber and offering critical analysis and deep insight into his own behaviour patterns and responses.
Of the many aspects that make this an outstanding book are how he understands his rejection of power, authority and the values that sustain those systems, his identification of the crucial factors necessary to recover and thrive, and his explanation of why it is so difficult to talk about sexual assault and why people stay in or return to an abusive relationship. The focus on survival strategies and reflective analysis is what makes it possible to read this book without falling into a pit of despair and instead to recognise a life fulfilled and lived with joy despite its early trauma."
Dr Joanna Liddle
Co-founder of the Centre for the Study of Women and Gender: University of Warwick. Founder member of Hereford Women's Aid Refuges
"The Corridor, a memoir about the trauma of childhood sexual abuse, and the profound influence that had on the author, a climber and teacher, isn’t easy to put down. His pitch perfect writing leads you into his world; I was left feeling I had been on that fearful corridor and experienced almost first-hand the thrill of the cliff edge, the deliberate turning away from the prescribed English boarding school route to Cambridge, and all the adventures that followed. There is a universal quality to the writing, which makes it widely accessible and gives voice - and hope - to the men and women who have experiences that echo Iain Peters’ own but struggle to articulate those dark places."
Dr. Elizabeth Peretz
Associate fellow, Department of Social Policy and Intervention, University of Oxford
Other Books by Iain Peters
Rocky Rambler's Wild Walks, the first Lake District walking guide to put children in charge. Winner of the Hunter Davies Prize, Lake District Book of the year Awards, 1992.
Climbers’ Club Guide to North Devon and Cornwall 1988