Next to Normal

About the Book

Ted Parker grew up on the wrong side of the tracks, the son of an alcoholic house painter and a truck-stop waitress mother. In high school, he was a gifted athlete which gained him limited access to the “in crowd” of his high school. He soon began attending parties at the homes of some of the wealthiest kids in school. There was often alcohol served at these parties and he discovered that he seemed to fit in much easier when he had a bit of a “buzz” on when he drank. Little did he know that these early drinking experiences were priming him for a long and difficult battle with booze.

As he grew older, Ted was to become what is known as a “highly functioning alcoholic.” Sex was also to become a damaging co-obsession. For years, he justified his sexual behavior because he didn’t screw around with other women when he wasn’t drinking. When he was his “good self,” he was a loving husband and father. His “demon self” only surfaced when he was drinking which, as time passed, he found himself doing more and more.

At times, “Next to Normal” is humorous in ironic and sometimes disturbing ways. But, for the most part, it is a brutally honest look at how well meaning human beings can become dominated by demons that seem beyond their control. It will also give hope to others either fighting the same battles with their own personal demons or those involved in a close relationship with another person who is.

About the Author

As did the main character of his novel, Parke E. Simmons was born and bred “Next to Normal,” in Bloomington; one half of the twin-cities of Bloomington-Normal, Illinois. This area, in the heart of the Midwest, serves as the beginning location for this, his fi rst novel, “Next to Normal”.

Parke graduated from Bloomington High School and attended Illinois State University. He married his high school sweetheart, Susan Patrick, and they have two grown sons and three grandchildren.

Now that he is retired, Parke and Susan spend their time enjoying their extended families, visiting their vacation home and traveling. Both are working on their golf games and Parke has started writing his second novel.