Roland Mathias is one of the key figures of post-war Welsh writing in English. While his importance as a poet, editor, critic and scholar is widely recognised, his contribution to the short story genre remains unassessed, as the bulk of his stories have long been out of print. The Collected Short Stories of Roland Mathias brings together material from The Eleven Men of Eppynt (1956), a handful of early stories that have not appeared previously in book form and three other important tales first published in magazines. These varied and highly individual stories are derived in the main from the personal experiences of the writer and of his father's family. As well as impressing with the energy and variety of the writing and the consistent power of language and imagery, they also exemplify the overarching integrity of Mathias's art. The text of the stories is fully annotated, while the introduction to the volume outlines the writer's life, sets the stories in the context of their times and offers background information identifying the origins and occasional obscurities of the texts.

About the Author
Roland Glyn Mathias was a Welsh critic and writer, primarily known for his poetry and short stories. Sam Adams has written widely on Welsh writing in English. In addition to editing Seeing Wales Whole (1998), he has written several books for the Writers of Wales series, including Roland Mathias (1995); he is the editor of The Collected Short Stories of Roland Mathias (2001).

Reviews
' ... a volume of revelation and words galvanised by the sort of energy that only poets and a few special prose writers can give them ... life-enriching tales of pig-killing and schoolboy trickery, of ways of life now run into the shadows of the past, from a writer who has given us more than most.' (New Welsh Review) ' ... one for the connoisseur.' (Planet)



Book Information
ISBN 9780708316603
Author Roland Mathias
Format Paperback
Page Count 224
Imprint University of Wales Press
Publisher University of Wales Press
Weight(grams) 308g