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When the novelist James Hanley wrote to John Cowper Powys in 1929, to request a copy of Wolf Solent, he initiated a correspondence that was to lead to a life-long and mutually supportive friendship. The two men first met in 1935 in Dorchester, Powys promptly bestowing on Hanley and his wife the nicknames 'Lord Jim' and 'Lady Tim', and it was largely due to their influence that Powys and his companion Phyllis Playter made their permanent move that year to Wales, where the Hanleys lived. Despite the significant differences in their ages and backgrounds, Powys and Hanley had much in common, not least their experiences of writing and publishing, and their distinctive but compelling inner vision which informed their art. The author brings a particular appreciation of Hanley's qualities and literary influences to this informative tale of his life and friendship with Powys, having himself, like Hanley, spent his early years at sea.
Recently retired as senior policy adviser to the Department of Health, Chris Gostick, previously Secretary of the Powys Society, is Co-ordinator of the James Hanley Network, and is currently editing the letters between Powys and Hanley for publication.
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