Mirrorstage (Paperback)

Peter Scalpello

ISBN 10: 1917008198 / ISBN 13: 9781917008198

Published by Cipher Press, 2026

About this Item

Paperback. Following their discharge from hospital, Mirrorstage follows its narrator on a road trip through the grey, liminal landscapes of modern Britain. As they pass graffitied bus shelters, construction sites and flooded motorways, factories and high-rises, the narrators internal and external journeys begin to converge, leading them down paths they have been trying to avoid: the mental illness and substance use that led them to the inpatient ward, the uneasy balance of their own gender identity, their troubled relationship with their estranged father, the perils and pleasures of the queer scene, and the shame that has haunted them throughout their life. Woven around the psychoanalytic concept of its title, Mirrorstage is an experimental fable exploring the boundaries of selfhood and literary forms, told in fragments of prose and verse that are equal parts heartbreaking, sexy, and witty. A raw and profound novel in verse about mental health, addiction, queerness and shame that explores ideas of hybridity and identity. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9781917008198

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Mirrorstage (Paperback)
• Publisher: Cipher Press
• Publication Date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1917008198
• ISBN 13: 9781917008198
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

A raw and profound novel in verse about mental health, addiction, queerness and shame that explores ideas of hybridity and identity.

Following their discharge from hospital, Mirrorstage follows its narrator on a road trip through the grey, liminal landscapes of modern Britain. As they pass graffitied bus shelters, construction sites and flooded motorways, factories and high-rises, the narrator’s internal and external journeys begin to converge, leading them down paths they have been trying to avoid: the mental illness and substance use that led them to the inpatient ward, the uneasy balance of their own gender identity, their troubled relationship with their estranged father, the perils and pleasures of the queer scene, and the shame that has haunted them throughout their life.

Woven around the psychoanalytic concept of its title, Mirrorstage is an experimental fable exploring the boundaries of selfhood and literary forms, told in fragments of prose and verse that are equal parts heartbreaking, sexy, and witty.