A Bibliography of Llewelyn Powys

Citation

Baker, W. (2008), "A Bibliography of Llewelyn Powys", Library Review, Vol. 57 No. 2, pp. 160-162. https://doi.org/10.1108/00242530810854062

If Llewelyn Powys (1884‐1939) is remembered at all today, it is as the younger brother of the more well‐known John Cowper Powys (1872‐1963), author of the autobiographical A Glastonbury Romance (1932) and the historical novel Owen Glendower (1940) and other works. Another brother, Theodore Francis Powys (T.F. Powys) (1874‐1953) is also noted for his trilogy of novels, Mr Weston's Good Wine (1927), Unclay (1931), and Kindness in a Corner (1930), still in print and republished by the enterprising Brynmill Press. Llewelyn Powys is the neglected brother. The Powys Journal, run by the Powys Society actively propagates the importance of the brothers' life and work. Volume 10 (2000) contains a considerable amount of unpublished, interesting Llewelyn Powys material edited by Peter J. Foss, emphasizing how powerful a writer he is.

Peter J. Foss observes in the “Introduction” to his A Bibliography of Llewelyn Powys that several of Llewelyn Powys works cross the genres. For example, his final work “that was not a collection, Love and Death (1939), he called ‘an imaginary autobiography’ ”. Foss adds that “these difficulties of classification” have “militated against a just appreciation of Llewelyn Powys” (p. vii). Foss' bibliography draws heavily upon his own A Study of Llewelyn Powys: His Literary Achievement and Personal Philosophy (1991), based upon Foss' doctoral dissertation. It includes “an extensive bibliographical check list of Llewelyn Powys' works” (p. 262). Somewhat curiously details of his dissertation are absent from Foss' A Bibliography of Llewelyn Powys. This, as Foss acknowledges, draws upon previous work by, for instance, the Cincinnati book collector Lloyd Emerson Siberell, Margaret Eaton, a London bookseller and “several collections of cuttings kept by Llewellyn Powys (and his wife and sisters), which provided an invaluable record of many of his periodical and newspaper contributions” (p. x).

Foss' bibliography is divided into two parts. The first has three sections. The second has five parts. Section A of the first section is devoted to “Books and Pamphlets by Llewelyn Powys” (pp. 4‐102). A1 is “Confessions of Two Brothers” (pp. 4‐8) published in 1916. It concludes with A34 “The Diary of a Reluctant Teacher” (pp. 101‐2), in fact Powys's 1908 Diary, first published in 2006. An enumerative synopsis listing titles and dates begins the section. Foss' descriptions are extensive, replete with detail, drawing upon biographical records and letters, extend to a brief description of manuscripts and contemporary reviews (see, for instance, A1a, the first edition, initially published in Rochester, New York, of his first published book, Confessions of Two Brothers pp. 4‐7). There is even a record of a French translation from c. 1992 (p. 8).

Section B of the first part consists of six items and describes “Selections from the Works of Llewelyn Powys” (pp. 103‐15). Again, it contains a plethora of detail. It is followed by two inserted leaves of black and white photographs, four to a page, so 16 in all, illustrating covers, title pages, wood‐engravings and other illustrative material found in Section A, including some dustjackets. Section C has four items devoted to “Collections of Letters of Llewelyn Powys” (pp. 117‐30). C2a describes the first English edition of The Letters of Llewelyn Powys published by John Lane, the Bodley Head, in 1943. Whether it is necessary to enumerate the 366 recipients and dates of the letters (pp. 120‐4) is questionable.

Part Two opens with Section D “Original Material Published in Other Books” and has eleven items (pp. 133‐7). Two of these items describe dustjackets written by Powys (D3 and D5). Section E is long. It enumerates and describes “Articles, Essays and Stories Contributed to Periodicals and Newspapers”. There are 452 items, the first in 1913, the last in 2002 published in the Powys Society Newsletter (pp. 139‐214). Enumeration and description varies considerable in length. For instance, E13‐E15 are sparce, E11 fairly detailed (p. 142).

Section F consists of 181 items under the rubric “Reviews and Notices Contributed to Periodicals and Newspapers” (pp. 215‐39). The initial item, F1, is interesting, being a review of Steward March Ellis” study of today largely forgotten George Meredith: His Life and Friends in Relation to his Work (New York, 1920). As Foss notes, “This was Powys's first piece” for the weekly “New York Freeman, a weekly magazine” intended “to appeal to America's liberal intelligentsia” (p. 215). Its chief literary editor during the period was the then influential Van Wyck Brooks (1886‐1963). Unfortunately, Foss does not supply information on the nature of this or Powys” other reviews. We can assume that the reviews of books on Robert Browning by Stopford A. Brooke and Francis A. Sim penned by Powys and published in the New York Times Book Review, 23 March 1924, were hostile. Foss notes “these two reviews gave rise to a vehement letter of protest from an E.R. Corson printed in the New York Times, 13 April 1926” (p. 221).

Section G describes “Letters Contributed to Periodicals and Newspapers” (pp. 241‐6). Most appear to be responses to reviews. There are only 28 items in the section. This rather low number indicates that Powys apparently was not a letter writer to periodicals or newspapers, or perhaps that Foss has missed Powys letters of this category. The final section H describes “Books and Articles Containing Material about Llewelyn Powys (pp. 247‐64) including fictional accounts (see for instance H3: p. 247) and reminiscences (see for instance H10: pp. 248‐50). Extracts and in some instances complete texts are cited, and although it is not stated which in each instance (see for instance H21: pp. 252‐4). Obituaries of Powys are enumerated but largely unannotated (H29‐H52: pp. 255‐6).

An Appendix provides “Tabulation of Variation Between Early Editions of Three Books” (pp. 265‐73), that is firstly A7 Skin for Skin, the first American Edition (1925) and the first English Edition (1926). Secondly, the first American Edition (1926) and the first English Edition (1927) of The Verdict of Bridlegoose (p. A8). Thirdly, the first English edition (1934), and the second English edition (1938) of Glory of Life (p. A18). No explanation is given of these choices and the user has to turn back to the “Synopsis of Section A” at the beginning of Foss' bibliography to make some sense of what is happening.

A Bibliography of Llewelyn Powys concludes with a detailed “Index” (pp. 274‐92). Item number rather than pages are used and bold, italics and roman are usefully employed. Clearly typeset and sturdily bound, Gertrude Mary Powys portrait in oil, of Llewelyn Powys c. 1926 is used on the front jacket. The back jacket is sadly blank. Foss has produced a most comprehensive thorough bibliography that will stand the test of time. Llewelyn Powys has been well served. This book should be in all collections containing reference material on British literary culture during the early years of the twentieth century.