The Autobiography of a Super-Tramp


Read by Expatriate

(4.8 stars; 12 reviews)

The Autobiography of a Super-Tramp is an autobiography published in 1908 by the Welsh poet and writer W. H. Davies (1871–1940). A large part of the book's subject matter describes the way of life of the tramp in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States in the final decade of the 19th century. George Bernard Shaw had become interested in Davies, a literary unknown at the time, and had agreed to write a preface for the book, largely through the concerted efforts of his wife Charlotte. Shaw was also instrumental in keeping the unusual title of the book, of which Davies himself was unsure, and which later proved to be controversial with some reviewers. The book was the third published by Davies, having been preceded by The Soul's Destroyer (1905) and New Poems (1907). The 1920 edition of the book concludes with five poems selected by Davies from The Soul's Destroyer. The book was written in the space of six weeks, "a great achievement for a first book by a man with the minimum of education." ( Wikipedia (edited by Expatriate)) (8 hr 14 min)

Chapters

Preface by George Bernard Shaw 15:14 Read by Expatriate
I. Childhood 15:47 Read by Expatriate
II. Youth 15:14 Read by Expatriate
III. Manhood 13:16 Read by Expatriate
IV. Brum 9:06 Read by Expatriate
V. A Tramp's Summer Vacation 9:21 Read by Expatriate
VI. A Night's Ride 14:23 Read by Expatriate
VII. Law in America 13:35 Read by Expatriate
VIII. A Prisoner His Own Judge 14:07 Read by Expatriate
IX. Berry Picking 13:14 Read by Expatriate
X. The Cattleman's Office 19:53 Read by Expatriate
XI. A Strange Cattleman 14:33 Read by Expatriate
XII. Thieves 8:40 Read by Expatriate
XIII. The Canal 9:57 Read by Expatriate
XIV. The House-Boat 16:54 Read by Expatriate
XV. A Lynching 12:01 Read by Expatriate
XVI. The Camp 13:25 Read by Expatriate
XVII. Home 15:26 Read by Expatriate
XVIII. Off Again 15:01 Read by Expatriate
XIX. A Voice in the Dark 18:58 Read by Expatriate
XX. Hospitality 7:25 Read by Expatriate
XXI. London 22:49 Read by Expatriate
XXII. The Ark 20:31 Read by Expatriate
XXIII. Gridling 21:30 Read by Expatriate
XXIV. On the Downright 17:01 Read by Expatriate
XXV. The Farmhouse 17:28 Read by Expatriate
XXVI. Rain & Poverty 10:19 Read by Expatriate
XXVII. False Hopes 11:23 Read by Expatriate
XXVIII. On Tramp Again 18:50 Read by Expatriate
XXIX. A Day's Companion 9:20 Read by Expatriate
XXX. The Fortune 9:46 Read by Expatriate
XXXI. Some Ways of Making a Living 10:14 Read by Expatriate
XXXII. At Last 17:12 Read by Expatriate
XXXIII. Success 11:31 Read by Expatriate
XXXIV. A House to Let 11:23 Read by Expatriate

Reviews


(5 stars)

Caveat: offensive commentary in Ch. 10(?) when he saw a Lynching in Tennessee, and later (about Jews) on one of his 8 boat trips across the Atlantic. However this is a fascinating and detailed story of the life and times of this ‘uneducated’ Tramp who, through sheer determination, desperation, plus a belief in his talent, and by creating his own “Luck”, he finally became one of the Literati. He later did public readings with many luminaries. Yeats. Ezra Pound. There are at least 8 works of biography, and criticism about him, as testament to his importance to his culture.


(5 stars)

Good story. Well written. Reader did an excellent job.