A Review By Rev. David Boulton

I’m not surprised to find this wonderful book, written in 1908, is still in print. The copy I have has a Preface by George Bernard Shaw, no less, who calls it “this amazing book;” and amazing is what it is. Consider, Davies was born in a pub and grew up in Wales at the beginning of the 20^th century; he was educated only to elementary school level. He learned early on to rely on his wits; he also learned to drink at an early age, yet he had a certain literary ambition which would, in later life, make him an acclaimed poet.

Davies took to the life of a tramp, but no ordinary tramp. He became a tramp in America (where they are nowadays called ‘bums’ or ‘hobos’), working round the continent, taking casual jobs where he could, thieving and begging where there was no work to be had. His adventures were rich and varied, as were the characters he met. He was thrown into jail in Michigan, beaten up in New Orleans, was witness to a lynching in Tennessee.

A serious accident forced his return to England, and to the world of the doss-house and seedy down-and-outs like Boozy Bob and Irish Tim.

I first read this book at Secondary School, where it was a set text. I was about fourteen, and the memory of the book stayed with me. As a teacher, I later introduced my own English classes to it, and only last month tracked down a copy in an Oxfam second-hand bookshop. When my 2^nd hand copy was published in 1986, it had been through seven editions.

George Bernard Shaw was even more impressed than I was. He professed himself stunned by what he called the “raw power” of the book’s “unvarnished narrative.” It was largely due to Shaw’s enthusiasm that the book had its initial success, and Davies began to gain recognition as a writer and poet. Highly recommended.