People of the Black Mountains

by Raymond Williams

Raymond Williams' last novel is an imaginary history of Wales from Roman times to the Middle Ages. It is an expansive, profound and insightful panorama of ordinary human life, played out in the foothills of the Black Mountains.

Genres: Historical Fiction, British Literature

330 pages, Hardcover

First published February 6, 1990

About the author

Raymond Henry Williams was a Welsh academic, novelist, and critic. He taught for many years and the Professor of Drama at the University of Cambridge. He was an influential figure within the New Left and in wider culture. His writings on politics, culture, the mass media and literature are a significant contribution to the Marxist critique of culture and the arts. His work laid the foundations for the field of cultural studies and the cultural materialist approach. Among his many books are Culture and Society, Culture and Materialism, Politics and Letters, Problems in Materialism and Culture, and several novels.

Reviews

[Nick Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

The second part of Raymond Williams’ People of the Black Mountains. A series of short stories held together by their geographical location, the Black Mountains on the Welsh-English border, the stories moving through the history of the area. This volume contains seventeen stories, the first set in 82 A.D, the last one in 1415, i.e., from the Roman occupation until the Middle Ages. There are the same themes as in the first volume: how the lives of the characters are formed by the place, how the place is changed by the characters; how the communities shift and change shape as new people move into the area; how the communities are stratified by power, different elites contending for dominance. There wasn’t an original “Welsh” people, the term only comes into use well into the overall narrative, and it is formed in opposition to the Saxons/English/Normans. People come with the Roman Empire, there are Saxons and Vikings, Normans; and there are the different ruling orders that contend for power: the Celtic lords, the Roman authority, the Welsh and Saxon lords, the Norman feudal lords. Armies march by, alliances change, not necessarily formed by nationalistic identities. There is the continuing framing story that fills in the history – I found it a little heavy handed. And sometimes the historical background is not that well integrated into the individual stories – maybe it was needed, but it felt that the history stopped the narratives rather than supported them. I’m sure different stories and episodes will appeal to readers for different reasons, but I thought the book was strongest when the stories focused on the figures lost from history, people living their lives, outer political events impinging on their realities. I was less certain when it focused on the political actors – it could feel as though the narratives were illustrating history. I liked the idea of People of the Black Mountains, but I was never quite convinced of its success.

[Erik Empson · Rating 3 out of 5]

*Note the Goodreads information about this book seems to belong to another one entirely.

I must confess that this book became a chore to read and a relief to finish. There is no questioning the imagination of the author, the scope of his vision, nor the clear accomplishment that these two books are. And the note at the end by Williams' wife indicates that the book was to be more extensive in scope.

However, it is hard work. I know the Black Mountains well and have walked all over them, but the use of Welsh and historic names makes them largely unrecognisable. The mix of fiction and history is disorientating, as one never knows the bearing the stories have on fact, if any. This is, of course, myth making, and if we are honest something like nation-branding, but one does not really ever know where one is with it.

These problems are compounded by the structure of the book, in which each chapter introduces a whole new set of characters, all with impossibly similar names, who we have to get to know in circumstances that are vague. So whilst the various wars between the various factions are interesting, for instance, we never really know what period they are happening in, or in fact who we should be rooting for.

Sad that something this ambitious didn't really work for me, and I think it was written to appeal to a paraochial nationalist cultural scene rather than a wider public.

[GRANT · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. Out of print. Hard to find - but I got a good deal on a used copy through Amazon.

A wonderful history through a series of vignettes from Roman times to 1415.

A little background on the history of the country around the Black Mountains would be helpful. And there are a lot of confusing name changes but a helpful glossary at the back and a map in the front. An OS Landranger Map of the Black Mountains (Map 161) would help a lot. Here is my review on my blog:

http://www.moderatebutpassionate.com/...