A Few Selected Exits

Thomas (1913-1981), a prolific and versatile Welsh writer, gave this work the subtitle 'An Autobiography of Sorts' an apt description, since it tells more about the author himself than about his life. Many digressions, and digressions from digressions, occur. In these comic episodes he uses a cast of hilarious characters to describe his youth in a south Wales mining valley during the depression of the 1920s and 30s. His varied pursuits provided ample material for his exhilarating anecdotes, full of mordant wit and trenchant observations. Not only a vivid introduction to a most entertaining writer but an eloquent version of a narrative which has a more general interest. This narrative, which is also to be found in the novels of the eminent literary critic Raymond Williams, deals with the cultural destiny of the Welsh during this century - bound to stimulate fresh interest in an attractive author and in the literature of his native country."" - Magill Book Reviews.