John Llewellyn Rhys Prize
1 appearances
-
Edition 8 (1949) Winner
Emma Smith
エマ・スミス
Emma Smith
Aliases:
Elspeth Hallsmith
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 1923-08-21 （Cornwall, England）
- Died
- 2018-04-24 （Putney, London, England） age 94
- Nationality
- British
- Languages
- English
- Residence History
- Newquay, Cornwall → Paris, France → Radnorshire, Wales → Putney, London
Career
- Occupations
- novelist, children's author, memoirist
- Active Years
- 1940-2010
- Influenced
- Laurie Lee
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1948 | John Llewellyn Rhys Prize | Maidens' Trip | — | John Llewellyn Rhys Prize committee | 受賞 |
| 1949 | James Tait Black Memorial Prize (fiction) | The Far Cry | — | James Tait Black Memorial Prize committee | 受賞 |
John Llewellyn Rhys Prize
1948
Work:
Maidens' Trip
Organization:
John Llewellyn Rhys Prize committee
Result:
受賞
James Tait Black Memorial Prize (fiction)
1949
Work:
The Far Cry
Organization:
James Tait Black Memorial Prize committee
Result:
受賞
Awards & Nominations
James Tait Black Memorial Prizes
1 appearances
-
Edition 31 (1949) Winner
Works
Major Works
Maidens' Trip
1948 autobiographical novel / memoirBased on Smith's experience as a trainee boatswoman on the Grand Union Canal during World War II, the book recounts youthful adventures, camaraderie and the rigours of canal life.
women's wartime labourfriendshipcoming of age
The Far Cry
1949 novel (travel / family drama)Tells the story of a young English girl travelling through India with her difficult father, exploring family relationships and cultural encounters.
familycultural encounterself-discovery
The Opportunity of a Lifetime
1978 novelA novel published in 1978; details are limited but it represents Smith's later fiction output.
middle-age choicesfamily and work
The Great Western Beach: A Memoir of a Cornish Childhood Between the Wars
2008 memoirA memoir of Smith's Cornish childhood between the World Wars, recounting family life and local community memories.
childhoodinterwar lifefamily memory
As Green As Grass: Growing Up Before, During & After the Second World War
2013 memoirA sequel memoir covering Smith's life from 1935 to 1951, describing adolescence through to marriage.
growing upWorld War IIdomestic life
Bibliography
- Maidens' Trip (1948)
- The Far Cry (1949)
- The Opportunity of a Lifetime (1978)
- Emily, The Travelling Guinea Pig (1959)
- Out of Hand (1963)
- Emily's Voyage (1966)
- No Way of Telling (1972)
- A Surplus of Lettuces (1977) (短編)
- Mackerel (1984) (短編)
- Village Children: A Soviet Experience (1982)
- The Great Western Beach (2008)
- As Green As Grass (2013)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- concise, observant proselyrical, memoir-like narrationrealism grounded in lived experience
- Recurring Motifs
- childhood and familywartime domestic lifecanal and waterway life
Legacy
Though highly regarded in the 1940s, Smith's career waned as she raised a family; later rediscovery by Persephone Books and advocates like Susan Hill revived interest in Maidens' Trip and The Far Cry.
Archives
- London Canal Museum (oral history recording)
In Popular Culture
- Photographed by Robert Doisneau in Paris with her typewriter; the image has been used in his collections
Quotes
-
I'd swap all my books for my children.
Source: The Observer / The Guardian interview (2013) (2013)
Trivia
- Birth name Elspeth Hallsmith
- Worked as a female boatswoman on the Grand Union Canal during WWII
- Won the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize for Maidens' Trip (1948)
- Won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for The Far Cry (1949)
- Photographed by Robert Doisneau in Paris in 1948
- Married Richard Stewart-Jones in 1951; he died six years later of a heart attack
- Works were revived later by Persephone Books and advocates such as Susan Hill