American Interior: The quixotic journey of John Evans, his search for a lost tribe and how, fuelled by fantasy and (possibly) booze, he accidentally annexed a third of North America

(Paperback)

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The psychedelic travelogue from Welsh pop legend Gruff Rhys In 1792, John Evans, a young farmhand from Wales, travelled to America to discover whether there was, as widely believed, a tribe of Welsh-speaking native Americans still walking the great plains. In 2012, Gruff Rhys set out on an 'investigative concert tour' in the footsteps of John Evans, with concerts in New Orleans, Baltimore, St Louis, and more. American Interior is the story of these journeys. It is also an exploration of how wild fantasies interact with hard history and how myth-making can inspire humans to partake in crazy, vain pursuits of glory, including exploration, war and the creative arts.

Reviews

A story about gullibility, contradiction, ambition, inexplicable wanderlust . . . this brilliantly life-affirming book highlights a world of wonder far beyond orthodox history -- John Harris * Guardian *
A charming and entertainingly written book * Independent *
High entertainment . . . written in an exuberant, entertaining style, American Interior is alive to the quixotic nature of Evans's quest, while offering a sideways look at the nexus between history and myth * Financial Times *
A joyous and poignant celebration of the mythical and the real * Caught by the River *
The most comprehensive study yet of this strange historical figure . . . leavened with Rhys's wry humour and neat turns of phrase * Sunday Express *
Rhys has now been a conduit for good ideas for over two decades. You can't help wishing there were more like him * Q Magazine *

Author Bio

GRUFF RHYS is known around the world for his work as a solo artist as well as singer and songwriter with Super Furry Animals and Neon Neon, and for his collaborations with Gorillaz, Mogwai, Dangermouse and Sparklehorse amongst others. The latest album by Neon Neon, Praxis Makes Perfect, based on the life of radical Italian publisher Giangiacomo Feltrinelli, was recently performed as an immersive live concert with National Theatre Wales.