Cancer claims writer at 72; Farewell to `wicked wit.Byline: MELANIE HALL NOVELIST and columnist Alice Thomas Ellis, who grew up in North Wales, has died aged 72. The Spectator writer and wife of renowned publisher Colin Haycraft lost her two-year battle with lung cancer lung cancer, cancer that originates in the tissues of the lungs. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the United States in both men and women. Like other cancers, lung cancer occurs after repeated insults to the genetic material of the cell. on Tuesday. With a Welsh-born mum and a half-Finnish dad, she spent her formative years in Penmaenmawr, penning one of her 21 novels and nonfiction books, A Welsh Childhood, about her experiences in the area. Through the book, readers were given an insight into the picturesque Victorian seaside resort on the fridges of Snowdonia National Park Snowdonia National Park Park, northern Wales. Established in 1951, it has an area of 838 sq mi (2,171 sq km). It is best known for its mountains, composed largely of volcanic rock and cut by valleys that show the influence of Ice Age glaciers. through black-and-white snapshots and anecdotes. The family later moved to live there permanently, and Alice, real name Anna Haycraft, went to school in Bangor. She married at the age of 23 and she and her husband settled near Bala. They later moved to London. Dubbed a woman with ``a wicked wit with the grace of an angel'', she often drew from her own experiences of depression, agoraphobia Agoraphobia Definition The word agoraphobia is derived from Greek words literally meaning "fear of the marketplace." The term is used to describe an irrational and often disabling fear of being out in public. and personal tragedy. She never really got over the death of her baby daughter Mary, who lived only two days, and son Joshua, who died aged 19 after falling from a roof. Over the years, her drily ironic and acutely perceptive domestic tales - often based in Wales - were coupled with literary observations of the Roman Catholic faith. Educated at Liverpool School of Art, she converted to Catholicism as a teenager, combining a high degree of tolerance for family muddle with a stern demand for an ordered church. The Liverpool-born writer picked up an Arts Council of Wales The Arts Council of Wales (ACW) is an Assembly Sponsored Public Body, responsible for funding and developing the arts in Wales. It became accountable to the National Assembly for Wales on 1 July 1999 when responsibility was transferred from the Secretary of State for Wales. Literature Award for The Sin Eater and was short-listed for a Booker Prize in 1982 for The 27th Kingdom. She is survived by four sons and a daughter CAPTION(S): Alice Thomas Ellis, who died on Tuesday |
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