The Penguin Book of Welsh Short Stories [antikvár]

INTRODUCTIONIt was an American wit who listed one of man's greatest virtues as the art of making the long story short, but he was saying nothing about the short story which has its own necessary length, neither too long, nor too short, and is - in this editor's view - at its best when it presents a revealing insight into a person in a particular situation. What interests me most is being at the core of another life, seeing new light thrown upon it through the mind and world of the central character. It is a help if I am so involved at the outset that my attention does not wander and that my sympathies are immediately engaged, but, ultimately, I must know more at the end than I did at the beginning. Now and again, let it also be stated, I can certainly do with a smile.These stories have been chosen to fulfil such requirements where they can be met, but they are, in addition, of a place and a time. The place is Wales and the time is this century, since the short story is a comparatively new arrival here. They reflect Wales, not always flatteringly, as it is and has been. English writers, it has been said, are often refugees from society, but almost all the stories in this book written by Welsh men and women show a concern for a particular landscape or community. It is as if Welsh writers cannot escape this involvement, and often there is also a sense of characters off stage, present but unseen at the storyteller's elbow. Perhaps the reason for this awareness of others is that so many of us have lived in such crowded places, and, while it is not always healthy, it is a part of the Welsh experience which is very different from that of our neighbours.I have not otherwise been able to define a specific characteristic of the Welsh short story which makes it immediately identifiable, save for the nationality or place of residence of the writer, but it should be pointed out that some Welsh writers writing in English have faced particular difficulties when they have felt the need to emphasize their difference