198 pages | 5” × 8” | Standard Paperback
Leslie Millar entered the world carrying the consequences of a drug he had never taken. Those consequences would remain with him for the rest of his life.
Born a Thalidomide survivor, Leslie was one of thousands of babies affected after the drug was prescribed to pregnant women for morning sickness and other conditions. For survivors, the consequences could include shortened or absent limbs and damage to internal organs. But the true impact of Thalidomide could never be measured by physical disability alone.
In this deeply personal sequel, Alderman Gary Millar MBE tells the story of his youngest brother, Leslie — not simply as a Thalidomide survivor, but as a brother, a son and an individual determined to find his place in a world that was not always prepared to accommodate or understand him.
Through Leslie’s story, Gary explores the realities that followed survivors into adulthood: changing physical needs, chronic pain, reduced mobility, discrimination, isolation and the continuing struggle for recognition, compensation and appropriate care.
Yet this is not simply a story about disability or tragedy.
It is the story of a life.
A story of family, humour, frustration, determination and resilience — and of a man whose identity was always greater than the medical tragedy that accompanied him from birth.
Thalidomide shaped Leslie’s body. It affected his opportunities and changed the course of his family’s life. But it never defined the entirety of who he was.
He was a survivor. He was a son. He was a brother. His name was Leslie.
And this is his story.