Gwenlyn Parry (University of Wales Press - Writers of Wales) - Softcover

Owen, Roger

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0708326625 ISBN 13: 9780708326626

Publisher: University of Wales Press, 2013

Synopsis

This is the first book-length study in English of Gwenlyn Parry (1932–91), the Welsh writer best known for his major stage plays, including Saer Doliau, Y Twr, and Panto, as well as his works for television and film, such as the soap opera Pobol y Cwm, the sitcom Fo a Fe, and the cult BBC TV film Grand Slam. Roger Owen takes into consideration the scope and variety of Parry’s work, which often dwells on a despairing and solitary search for meaning in existence. He reveals Parry as a writer whose theatrical vision was both facilitated and impeded by his dedication to the spoken dialect of his native Arfon and whose work mediated between the extremes in his life and work: the personal and private, absurdism and populism.

About this title

About the Author

Roger Owen is a lecturer in the Department of Theatre, Film, and Television Studies at Aberystwyth University, UK.

Review

This book is a great success in introducing Gwenlyn Parry to a new audience: an audience which is not conversant with the original plays. One can only regret that it was not available in Welsh first, as there is only one full critical examination of Parry's work available in that language, Dewi Z. Phillips's Gwenlyn Parry. Roger Owen's is the most sophisticated critical guide to Gwenlyn Parry's work in any language, and it should be read by anyone - whether familiar with his work or not. John Rowlands A review from www.gwales.com, with the permission of the Welsh Books Council.

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Wales Press
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 0708326625
• ISBN 13: 9780708326626
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 191