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Wikipedia

Rhys Davies (writer)

January 31, 2023

For other people with similar names, see Rees Davies and Rhys Davies (disambiguation).

Vivian Rees Davies OBE (9 November 1901 – 21 August 1978), known as Rhys Davies, was a Welsh novelist and short story writer, who wrote in the English language.[1]

Rhys Davies in 1921

Life

One of the most prolific Welsh prose writers of the 20th century, Davies wrote approximately one hundred short stories, as well as twenty novels, three novellas, two books about Wales and an autobiography. Though he mostly lived in London, Davies' work is often set in Wales, typically either in a fictionalised Rhondda or further west in his rural stories.

Davies was born on 9 November 1901 in Blaenclydach, a side-valley of the Rhondda. His father was a grocer and his mother a schoolteacher.[2] His parents spoke Welsh, but did not pass it on to Rhys or his siblings. Rhys Davies's younger brother, Lewis Davies, was a Welsh librarian and philanthropist. As a child he attended Gosen Chapel, and later switched to St Thomas's Church, but ultimately declared himself an atheist in later life. He attended Porth County School,[3] but left at fourteen and worked for his parents' shop. He briefly worked in Cardiff at a corn-merchant's warehouse before moving to London,[4] where he began his literary career with the publication of a number of short stories. The publisher Charles Lahr published some of Davies' early work in The New Coterie, a small avant-garde magazine. In 1927 Davies published his first short story collection The Song of Songs and first novel The Withered Root. The Withered Root had a favourable critical reception, receiving good reviews and published in an American edition. He received an advance for his second novel that helped him remain a full-time writer.

It was at this time (1928–29) that Davies was invited to stay with D. H. Lawrence and Frieda Lawrence in France. Their meeting has been dramatised in Sex and Power at the Beau Rivage (2003), a play by contemporary Welsh author Richard Lewis Davies. Rhys Davies smuggled a manuscript copy of Lawrence's Pansies into Britain and arranged for it to be published by Charles Lahr. Though Lawrence's death in March 1930 made their friendship a brief one, Lawrence appears to have been an important influence on Davies' work. Davies was homosexual,[5] though he never wrote publicly about his own sexuality.

 
Rhys Davies (in the middle) with his friends at Much Hadham, July 1931.

During the 1930s Davies led a peripatetic life, for although he was writing prolifically, he had limited financial success. He would often return to Blaenclydach when money ran low and to seek inspiration for writing. He stayed at the home of Vincent Wells until 1945 when the house caught fire and many of Davies's papers were destroyed. During the Second World War Davies wrote many short stories, for despite shortages in paper, magazines were exempt from rationing and there was considerable demand for reading material.

After the war he lived with the Scottish writer Fred Urquhart for a few years before moving to Brighton with friends. By 1955 he had moved back to London, to Bloomsbury, where he lived the rest of his life.

Davies was made financially secure by two legacies left to him, one from the estate of novelist Anna Kavan and the second from Louise Taylor, the adopted daughter of Alice B. Toklas. Davies based The Honeysuckle Girl on Anna Kavan's early life. D. J. Britton wrote a play, Silverglass, about the extraordinary relationship between Rhys Davies and Anna Kavan, presented as a premiere during the Rhys Davies Short Story Conference 2013 held in Swansea.[6] The play is set in the late 1960s and reveals Davies' late literary recognition as well as Kavan's final tragedy. Both of them lived 'a life of self-inventin, in which secrets, sexuality and deep questions of personal identity lurked constantly in the shadows'. He died of lung cancer, at age 76.[7]

Awards

Davies was awarded an OBE in 1968, as well as the Welsh Arts Council Prize in 1971. His story "The Chosen One", originally published in The New Yorker, won an Edgar Allan Poe Award in 1967. In 1991, after his death, the Rhys Davies Trust was established by literary critic Meic Stephens to promote short fiction by Welsh authors in the English language.[8] The trust sponsors the Rhys Davies Short Story Competition.

Writing

Short Stories

Many of Rhys Davies's short stories were released as collections including:

  • The Song of Songs (1927)
  • A Pig in a Poke (1931)
  • The Things Men Do (1936)
  • A Finger in Every Pie (1942)
  • The Trip to London (1946)
  • Boy with a Trumpet (1949)
  • Collected Stories (1955)
  • The Darling of Her Heart (1958)

Novels

Davies also wrote twenty novels, including:

  • The Withered Root (1927)
  • Count Your Blessings (1932)
  • The Red Hills (1932)
  • Honey and Bread (1935)
  • A Time to Laugh (1937)
  • Jubilee Blues (1938)
  • Tomorrow to Fresh Woods (1941)
  • The Black Venus (1944)
  • The Perishable Quality (1957)
  • Nobody Answered the Bell (1971)
  • The Honeysuckle Girl (1975)
  • Ram with Red Horns (1996)

Other works

Davies wrote an autobiography, Print of a Hare's Foot (1969), and a successful play, No Escape (1954), as well as several works of non-fiction, including the travelogue My Wales (1937). There was also a stage musical Jenny Jones based on his stories that ran in the West End but was not a success.

See also

References

  1. ^ . Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
  2. ^ . Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
  3. ^ . Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
  4. ^ . Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
  5. ^ Osborne, Huw Edwin (2009). Rhys Davies. University of Wales Press. ISBN 978-0-7083-2167-6.
  6. ^ March, Polly (10 September 2013). "Play sheds new light on strange friendship of Rhys Davies and Anna Kavan". BBC. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  7. ^ Huw Osborne (1 July 2009). Rhys Davies. University of Wales Press. p. 131. ISBN 978-0-7083-2242-0.
  8. ^ Phil Morris (4 July 2018). "Remembering Meic Stephens". Wales Arts Review.

External links

January 31, 2023
rhys, davies, writer, other, people, with, similar, names, rees, davies, rhys, davies, disambiguation, vivian, rees, davies, november, 1901, august, 1978, known, rhys, davies, welsh, novelist, short, story, writer, wrote, english, language, rhys, davies, 1921,. For other people with similar names see Rees Davies and Rhys Davies disambiguation Vivian Rees Davies OBE 9 November 1901 21 August 1978 known as Rhys Davies was a Welsh novelist and short story writer who wrote in the English language 1 Rhys Davies in 1921 Contents 1 Life 1 1 Awards 2 Writing 2 1 Short Stories 2 2 Novels 2 3 Other works 3 See also 4 References 5 External linksLife EditOne of the most prolific Welsh prose writers of the 20th century Davies wrote approximately one hundred short stories as well as twenty novels three novellas two books about Wales and an autobiography Though he mostly lived in London Davies work is often set in Wales typically either in a fictionalised Rhondda or further west in his rural stories Davies was born on 9 November 1901 in Blaenclydach a side valley of the Rhondda His father was a grocer and his mother a schoolteacher 2 His parents spoke Welsh but did not pass it on to Rhys or his siblings Rhys Davies s younger brother Lewis Davies was a Welsh librarian and philanthropist As a child he attended Gosen Chapel and later switched to St Thomas s Church but ultimately declared himself an atheist in later life He attended Porth County School 3 but left at fourteen and worked for his parents shop He briefly worked in Cardiff at a corn merchant s warehouse before moving to London 4 where he began his literary career with the publication of a number of short stories The publisher Charles Lahr published some of Davies early work in The New Coterie a small avant garde magazine In 1927 Davies published his first short story collection The Song of Songs and first novel The Withered Root The Withered Root had a favourable critical reception receiving good reviews and published in an American edition He received an advance for his second novel that helped him remain a full time writer It was at this time 1928 29 that Davies was invited to stay with D H Lawrence and Frieda Lawrence in France Their meeting has been dramatised in Sex and Power at the Beau Rivage 2003 a play by contemporary Welsh author Richard Lewis Davies Rhys Davies smuggled a manuscript copy of Lawrence s Pansies into Britain and arranged for it to be published by Charles Lahr Though Lawrence s death in March 1930 made their friendship a brief one Lawrence appears to have been an important influence on Davies work Davies was homosexual 5 though he never wrote publicly about his own sexuality Rhys Davies in the middle with his friends at Much Hadham July 1931 During the 1930s Davies led a peripatetic life for although he was writing prolifically he had limited financial success He would often return to Blaenclydach when money ran low and to seek inspiration for writing He stayed at the home of Vincent Wells until 1945 when the house caught fire and many of Davies s papers were destroyed During the Second World War Davies wrote many short stories for despite shortages in paper magazines were exempt from rationing and there was considerable demand for reading material After the war he lived with the Scottish writer Fred Urquhart for a few years before moving to Brighton with friends By 1955 he had moved back to London to Bloomsbury where he lived the rest of his life Davies was made financially secure by two legacies left to him one from the estate of novelist Anna Kavan and the second from Louise Taylor the adopted daughter of Alice B Toklas Davies based The Honeysuckle Girl on Anna Kavan s early life D J Britton wrote a play Silverglass about the extraordinary relationship between Rhys Davies and Anna Kavan presented as a premiere during the Rhys Davies Short Story Conference 2013 held in Swansea 6 The play is set in the late 1960s and reveals Davies late literary recognition as well as Kavan s final tragedy Both of them lived a life of self inventin in which secrets sexuality and deep questions of personal identity lurked constantly in the shadows He died of lung cancer at age 76 7 Awards Edit Davies was awarded an OBE in 1968 as well as the Welsh Arts Council Prize in 1971 His story The Chosen One originally published in The New Yorker won an Edgar Allan Poe Award in 1967 In 1991 after his death the Rhys Davies Trust was established by literary critic Meic Stephens to promote short fiction by Welsh authors in the English language 8 The trust sponsors the Rhys Davies Short Story Competition Writing EditShort Stories Edit Many of Rhys Davies s short stories were released as collections including The Song of Songs 1927 A Pig in a Poke 1931 The Things Men Do 1936 A Finger in Every Pie 1942 The Trip to London 1946 Boy with a Trumpet 1949 Collected Stories 1955 The Darling of Her Heart 1958 Novels Edit Davies also wrote twenty novels including The Withered Root 1927 Count Your Blessings 1932 The Red Hills 1932 Honey and Bread 1935 A Time to Laugh 1937 Jubilee Blues 1938 Tomorrow to Fresh Woods 1941 The Black Venus 1944 The Perishable Quality 1957 Nobody Answered the Bell 1971 The Honeysuckle Girl 1975 Ram with Red Horns 1996 Other works Edit Davies wrote an autobiography Print of a Hare s Foot 1969 and a successful play No Escape 1954 as well as several works of non fiction including the travelogue My Wales 1937 There was also a stage musical Jenny Jones based on his stories that ran in the West End but was not a success See also EditLewis Davies younger brother References Edit National Library of Wales Rhys Davies Papers Archived from the original on 11 August 2011 Retrieved 4 November 2009 National Library of Wales Rhys Davies Papers Archived from the original on 11 August 2011 Retrieved 4 November 2009 National Library of Wales Rhys Davies Papers Archived from the original on 11 August 2011 Retrieved 4 November 2009 National Library of Wales Rhys Davies Papers Archived from the original on 11 August 2011 Retrieved 4 November 2009 Osborne Huw Edwin 2009 Rhys Davies University of Wales Press ISBN 978 0 7083 2167 6 March Polly 10 September 2013 Play sheds new light on strange friendship of Rhys Davies and Anna Kavan BBC Retrieved 27 September 2017 Huw Osborne 1 July 2009 Rhys Davies University of Wales Press p 131 ISBN 978 0 7083 2242 0 Phil Morris 4 July 2018 Remembering Meic Stephens Wales Arts Review Rhys Davies Decoding the Hare Stephens M ed 2001 ISBN 0 7083 1694 8 External links EditRhys Davies Collection at the Harry Ransom Center Biographical details Brown T 2001 The Ex centric voice The English language short story in Wales N Am J Welsh Studies Vol 1 Portrait by William Roberts Theodore Dalrymple on Rhys Davies Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Rhys Davies writer amp oldid 1135918388, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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