Stuart Evans (author)

Stuart Evans (1934 - 1994) was a Welsh novelist and poet. His novels include Meritocrats (1974), The Gardens of the Casino (1976), The Caves of Alienation (1977), and the Windmill Hill Sequence of five novels which included Centres of Ritual, Occupational Debris, Temporary Hearths, Houses on the Site, and Seasonal Tribal Feasts. Prior to concentrating on novel writing, Evans had won the Newdigate Prize in 1955 for his 'Elegy for a Dead Clown'.

Normal Shrapnel, in the Guardian, wrote of Evans' debut novel Meritocrats, that 'I can scarcely recall a more ambitious first novel..and few more interesting ones'.[1] Philip Howard, writing in The Times, described Evans as 'my candidate for the Juvenal, I dare not say the Martial, of our generation.'[2] Peter Lewis, in the Times Literary Supplement, described Evans' Windmill Hill Sequence as 'probably the most ambitious fictional work in progress by a British writer'.[3]

Until the late 2000s much of his work was out of print, but two of his poems were included in the anthology Poetry 1900-2000,[4] published by the Library of Wales. The Library of Wales has also re-published his novel The Caves of Alienation, described by Anthony Brockway as 'One of the most ambitious Welsh novels of the Twentieth Century',[5] with a forward by Duncan Bush. This is his most widely held book; according to WorldCat, it is held in 151 libraries [6]

References

  1. ↑ Norman Shrapnel, The Guardian; Nov 21, 1974; p. 16;
  2. ↑ Philip Howard, "A Novel Today, a Classic for the Future", The Times (London, England), Monday, May 03, 1982; pg. 8; Issue 61223
  3. ↑ Peter Lewis, The Times Literary Supplement (London, England), Friday, June 25, 1982; pg. 702; Issue 4134
  4. ↑ Stephens, Meic (2009) Poetry 1900-2000, Parthian Books. ISBN 978-1902638881
  5. ↑ Bush, Duncan (2009), Forward to The Caves of Alienation, Parthian/Library of Wales. ISBN 978-1-905762-95-8
  6. ↑ WorldCat author listing