Rhys Davies - A Writer's Life - Hardcover

Meic Stephens

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1908946717 ISBN 13: 9781908946713

Publisher: Parthian Books, 2013

Synopsis

Rhys Davies (1901-78) was among the most dedicated, prolific and accomplished of Welsh prose writers. This is his first full biography, describing the early years of the Blaenclydach grocer's son, his abhorrence of 'chapel culture', his bohemian years in Fitzrovia, his visit to the Lawrences in the south of France, his unremitting work ethic, his patrons, and much more.

About this title

About the Author

Writer and editor Meic Stephens was one of the leading figures in Welsh literature in both languages over more than fifty years. In an early career that encompassed work as a teacher, journalist and Welsh language activist, which included standing as a parliamentary candidate for Merthyr, Stephens had things to say and the ability to communicate them. He was born in Trefforest and educated there, Pontypridd and Aberystwyth. A fluency in languages took him to France. He always claimed French was his second-language, which he mastered before Welsh. Once fluent in Welsh he would write, edit and translate from all its literary forms. As a committed internationalist he wanted to enable a wider readership to engage in a literary tradition he loved. He founded the magazine Poetry Wales in 1965 and edited it until 1973, providing a platform for emerging Welsh literary talent at the time such as Gillian Clarke and more established figures like Leslie Norris with whom he developed a life-long friendship. From 1967 to 1990 he was the literature director of the Arts Council of Wales. He joined the University of Glamorgan in 1994 and was awarded a Chair as Professor of Welsh Writing in English 2000. He was series editor for the Writers of Wales series, the editor of the New Companion to the Literature of Wales and a founder of the Rhys Davies Literary Trust. A serious writer throughout a long-life he wrote poetry, prose and criticism in both English and Welsh and occasional penses in French. He married Ruth Meredith, a fellow Welsh language-activist, who he had met as a student. They had four children. His anthology of the best of Welsh poetry in the twentieth century Poetry 1900-2000 is a set text for the study of English in schools in Wales. He died, aged 79, in 2018.

Edition details

• Publisher: Parthian Books
• Publication date: 2013
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1908946717
• ISBN 13: 9781908946713
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 366