Ros Barber Libros

Exploring the creative journey of a playwright, this book delves into the struggles and triumphs of crafting timeless theatre. It highlights the emotional depth of characters and the intricacies of plot development. Readers will encounter the challenges of originality, the impact of historical context on storytelling, and the transformative power of art. Through a blend of personal anecdotes and insightful commentary, the author invites readers to reflect on the essence of dramatic expression and its resonance across generations.

Ros Barber’s second book forms a meditation on human loss; it is a more personal and autobiographical collection than her first, described by Neil Rollinson as an honest, unflinching and hugely satisfying debut’. Sarah Law described her as a "traditional" contemporary poet along the lines of Larkin’ and it is Barber’s sure hand with rhyme and meter that gives the hard material of these poems (both personal losses and those experienced through others) their steady focus and makes them so readable. Throughout, the poetry remains strong, thoughtful and refreshing. Ros Barber was born in 1964 in Washington DC. She grew up in Colchester, studied Biology at the University of Sussex, and then English Literature and Philosophy with the Open University, while working as a computer programmer. Since 2000 she has worked as a freelance writer and creative writing tutor for the University of Sussex. She is married with four children and lives in Brighton.

An outstanding verse novel, winner of the 2013 Desmond Elliott prize, which recreates the dramatic story of Christopher Marlowe's life and shows how he could have written the works attributed to Shakespeare - a provocative, persuasive and enthralling tour de force.

April is angry.Only nineteen, she is an elective mute, accused of a religiously motivated atrocity. Dr Finlay Logan is broken. A borderline-suicidal psychologist still reeling from his daughter’s death, he must assess April’s sanity in a world where – ten years after the death of Richard Dawkins – moves have been made to classify religious belief as a form of mental illness. Both April and Finlay struggle to understand what has happened to them, sharing secrets, silence and an inability to deal with the world around them. Gently unpicking the lives of these two broken characters, Barber offers a psychologically acute and deeply moving exploration of grief. An extraordinary novel from one of the brightest rising stars in fiction.

30-Second Shakespeare grapples with the world's most famous playwright. From what we know of his life, to the meanings of concepts and themes, and his enduring literary and linguistic legacy.