Overview

• Lorna is Paul Maar’s first novella aimed at an adult audience.
• The story is set in the 1970s and follows a self-assured young woman who lands in a psychiatric hospital.
• Maar dedicates the work to his late sister Barbara, whose manic-depressive illness and suicide underpin the narrative.
• He draws directly on experiences from visits to his sister’s psychiatric ward to depict the hospital’s conditions.
• At 87, the author says reaching grown-up readers has strengthened his confidence beyond his famed Sams series.