A book in which writer and broadcaster Lloyd Robson goes in search of the original Hollywood badboy and one of the greatest screen actors of the twentieth century, Robert Mitchum. His pre-fame life is cloaked in mystery, and the truth hidden behind his time spent as a Depression-era hobo, prizefighter, escaped felon and secret poet.

Yn y llyfr hwn mae'r awdur a'r darlledydd Lloyd Robson yn mynd ar siwrnai i ddarganfod rhagor am un o actorion sgrîn mwyaf nodedig yr ugeinfed ganrif, Robert Mitchum. Ychydig a wyddys am ei fywyd cyn iddo ddod yn enwog; mae'r cyfan yn gymysg, a'r gwirionedd yn llechu rhywle yn ei gyfnod fel cardotyn adeg y Dirwasgiad, fel lleidr ac fel bardd dirgel.

Writer, broadcaster and poet Lloyd Robson has been hailed as ‘a national treasure’ by Niall Griffiths and ‘just not what people expect a poet to be’ by Peter Finch. Having never read any of his work before, I came to his latest book with few conscious expectations, but some considerable curiosity. Such openness is precisely what is needed to get the most out of this genre-defying doorstopper of a book, which offers a richly-textured blend of road stories, film criticism, life writing and personal musings on what it means to be a ‘real man’. And the writing is as multifaceted as the content.

Seemingly bedevilled by a father who fails to appreciate his son’s ‘sissy’ sensitivity and poetic inclinations, Robson goes in search of a role model who can embrace both his father’s notion of ‘a man’s man’ and his own, more fluid idea of what it means to be a whole person in the modern world. Robert Mitchum emerges as his ideal – a man with a big, bad-boy image who also wrote poetry and somehow pulled off the mean trick of having an enduring and loving marriage whilst dallying with a fair few beauties.

Oh Dad! A Search for Robert Mitchum is an account of Robson’s literal travels around America, visiting places of significance in Mitchum’s life and researching some of the best- and least-known stories about the actor; but it is also the story of the author’s and his hero’s metaphorical and psychological journeys through life. I imagine the book might appeal more to men than to women, but to call it a ‘man’s book’ would be as crass as the stereotypings Robson seeks to debunk.

Suzy Ceulan Hughes

It is possible to use this review for promotional purposes, but the following acknowledgment should be included: A review from www.gwales.com, with the permission of the Welsh Books Council.

Gellir defnyddio'r adolygiad hwn at bwrpas hybu, ond gofynnir i chi gynnwys y gydnabyddiaeth ganlynol: Adolygiad oddi ar www.gwales.com, trwy ganiatâd Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru.