That Vital Spark by Neil Munro
Neil Munro's reputation fluctuated wildly: an immensely successful novelist in the early years of the twentieth century, he was attacked in the 1920s by Hugh MacDiarmid for not addressing contemporary Highland issues. At his death in 1930 he was commonly referred to as the heir to Scott and Stevenson, but by the 1980s the novels which built that reputation were out of print and one incomplete edition of his Para Handy stories was all that remained available. Lacking a comprehensive anthology, readers have been unable to judge his work as a whole and have missed much of real delight and merit. That Vital Spark meets this need and presents a rich and varied selection of some of the best of Munro's light fiction, literary short stories, journalism, criticism, descriptive writing and poetry. Also included are two very early short stories in the thriller genre and the opening chapters of his unfinished last novel, The Search. His work as novelist, poet, journalist and critic can for the first time be properly assessed. More than seventy per cent of the material in this collection is not otherwise available and over half of that seventy per cent has never been presented in book form at any time. This anthology appears at a time of growing academic and public interest in Munro's work. The editors have drawn on a wide variety of sources and provide full introductions to the texts and where necessary explanatory notes. Osborne and Armstrong edited the successful Birlinn editions of Munro's Erchie, Para Handy, and Jimmy Swan anthologies, which played a significant part in the Munro revival.
Neil Munro was born in 1863. He followed a career in journalism, eventually becoming editor of the Glasgow Evening News. He achieved great success as a poet and novelist, writing masterpieces of historical fiction such as John Splendid and The New Road as well as the humorous tales of Para Handy and Jimmy Swan. Neil Munro died in 1930.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781841582047 |
| ISBN 10 | 1841582042 |
| Title | That Vital Spark |
| Author | Neil Munro |
| Series | Birlinn Historical Guides |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Birlinn General |
| Year published | 2002-05-30 |
| Number of pages | 320 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |