A poignant exploration of sanity, madness, and the search for purpose within the walls of a mental institution. Harrison Rhodes, a young psychiatric health worker, grapples with career choices and moral dilemmas during a summer at a New England mental hospital. Amidst the chaos and disillusionment, he encounters eccentric patients and struggles to make a difference in their lives. As Rhodes navigates the complexities of institutional life, he questions his own sanity and purpose. Will he find meaning in his work, or will the weight of the bughouse blues crush his spirit? Perfect for readers seeking thought-provoking literary fiction with psychological depth. "Peter Thompson’s work is always assured and can take a reader from the profane to the sublime. It’s provocative and poetic, and funny and sometimes discomfiting. In his man Harrison Rhodes, Thompson explores ego, uncertainty and hope in someone who, like the rest of us, struggles with all of those." —Ted Delaney, author of Broken Irish   Praise for Winter Light : "An action-packed romp as the Latin teacher Rhodes maneuvers the absurd banalities and long winter of a New England prep school. Thompson’s writing is fresh and irreverent, keenly intelligent with flashes of light and music. —Sonja Livingston, author of Ghostbread   "Practical vs. Reckless. Confused vs. Focused. Conformist vs. Renegade. In Winter Light , Peter Thompson’s protagonist, Rhodes, embodies these various opposing and conflicted psyches that have defined the idea of yearning within the modern American novel. And through them, Rhodes certainly takes his place among that cast of unsettled, well-meaning yet troubled characters of the literary landscape—standing alone in the fields, parting the weeds, and trying to spot their dream." —Adam Braver, author of November 22,1963 Peter Thompson has taught in prep schools (hence the misadventures chronicled in the Harrison Rhodes novels) for 18 years, and in college for 23. After early work on Antonin Artaud, Léon-Paul Fargue, and Gérard de Nerval, his research has centered on the Négritude movement and on African heritage literature.