{"product_id":"a-ladder-of-words-david-cottis-9781913640040","title":"A Ladder of Words: Mid-Twentieth-Century Welsh Plays in English","description":"When the north Wales-born actor and playwright Emlyn Williams performed his one-man show about Dylan Thomas, the critic Richard Findlater described him as 'unravelling a ladder of words' which he then climbs up, and pulls the spectators after him. Findlater called this 'the Cambrian rope trick, ' highlighting the process by which writers, and Welsh writers in particular, use the power of language to take an audience into an unfamiliar world. This volume brings together three Welsh plays from the middle of the twentieth century: \u003ci\u003eRhondda Roundabout\u003c\/i\u003e (1939) by Jack Jones, from his own novel, a panoramic view of politics, religion, sport, and music in the Valleys, described by the \u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e critic James Agate as 'too good for the West End'; \u003ci\u003eThe Druid's Rest \u003c\/i\u003e(1944) by Emlyn Williams, a semi-autobiographical comedy about the fantasy life of an over-imaginative boy who suspects that an Englishman on a walking tour is actually a famous murderer; and \u003ci\u003eAfter My Fashion\u003c\/i\u003e (1952) by Diana Morgan, in which the widows of men who died on a Tibetan expedition discover untold secrets when approached by a film company, inspired by the Cardiff-born author's own experiences as a screenwriter at Ealing Studios, which also formed the basis for the recent novel and film \u003ci\u003eTheir Finest\u003c\/i\u003e. Edited and with an introduction by David Cottis, and following on from \u003ci\u003eA Dirty Broth\u003c\/i\u003e, which looked at the pioneers of the Welsh theatre in English, \u003ci\u003eA Ladder of Words \u003c\/i\u003eexplores the period either side of the Second World War, a time when Welsh playwrights enjoyed unprecedented commercial success, both at home and in the West End.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e David Cottis\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1913640043\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781913640040\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Parthian\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 05\/01\/2021\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 300\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.95lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 7.90h x 5.00w x 1.40d","brand":"David Cottis","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":46571142709503,"sku":"9781913640040","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_05ad3ff4-9e0e-4a9a-a88d-0d439a92d271.jpg?v=1738807359","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/a-ladder-of-words-david-cottis-9781913640040","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}