Alun Lewis by Alun Lewis

Alun Lewis by Alun Lewis

Alun Lewis (1915-1944) is one of the most impressive and important writers of the 20th century. The leading author of World War Two, perhaps the leading poet, he is still an influential figure, particularly in his native Wales. In this new and revised edition of his biography John Pikoulis draws on unpublished material and Lewis's now extensively available work to present a portrait of the man: passionate, thoughtful, serious with an often romantic nature. From his childhood days in the depressed valleys of south Wales, Lewis felt he had a vocation to be a writer. Pikoulis traces Lewis's development from the remarkable schoolboy stories written as an unhappy boarder, through his university education at Aberystwyth and Manchester to his return to the valleys as a teacher. His extended treatment of Lewis's military service, especially in India and Burma (where he was to die aged twenty-eight), reflects his standing as a war writer. Lewis's poems and stories, authentic and moving, were popular with both readers and critics, catching the tone of the 'phoney war' years and later the disturbing but exciting experience of his war in India. His vivid letters home, which have been compared to Keats's letters, capture both the atmosphere of war and the essence of Lewis's character, and Pikoulis draws on them, and on contemporary photographs, to portray a fascinating man and writer. Dr. John Pikoulis is a lecturer in the Department of Continuing Studies at Cardiff University. His other books include a critical study of William Faulkner.

Alun Lewis, (1915-1944), the remarkable poet and short story writer, died, aged 28, in Burma in the Second World War. Some critics see him as the last of the great Romantic poets, a twentieth century Keats. Others describe his poetry as the path from pre-war Yeats and Auden to post-war poets like Hughes and Gunn. In Wales there are those who think his greater versatility and finer intelligence place him above his contemporaries Dylan Thomas and R.S. Thomas. Born and brought up near Aberdare in south Wales, Lewis read history at Aberystwyth and Manchester. After a brief period teaching and despite pacifist inclinations, he enlisted in the Royal Engineers. He later joined the South Wales Borderers and was posted to India. Becoming a soldier had a stimulating effect on Lewis's writing: Raiders' Dawn, a collection of forty-seven poems, appeared in 1942 and early in 1943, The Last Inspection, a book of short stories, was published, both to considerable critical acclaim. Lewis died in an accident on active service in Burma in 1944. His second volume of poems, Ha! Ha! Among the Trumpets, was published in 1945 and his Indian short stories, together with some letters, in In The Green Tree (1948).

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781854110183
ISBN 10	1854110187
Title	Alun Lewis
Author	Alun Lewis
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Poetry Wales Press
Year published	1995-02-23
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.