News

A new book published by Y Lolfa called Land of Lead charts the story and recollections of four generations of the same family, from the 19th century to the mid-1960s. The history has been collected from detailed family records, including detailed notebooks, postcards sent home during WWI and notes left by a great-uncle whilst working on the Rheidol Valley narrow gauge railway. The snapshot of one north Ceredigion family is presented by one of their descendants, Brian Davies, originally from the village of Penrhyncoch, near Aberystwyth.  read more

An award-winning Welsh author has just published her first children’s book in English. Manon Steffan Ros has won numerous awards for her work, including the Welsh Book of the Year and the Prose Medal at the National Eisteddfod (both for Llyfr Glas Nebo), as well as the prestigious Tir na n-Og children’s fiction prize on numerous occasions. Those People Next Door carries an important message about showing kindness to all and to not judge people who are different.  read more

“I don’t expect everyone to agree with everything in the book – it will be too radical for some, and for others it won’t be radical enough,” says author Llywelyn ap Gwilym about his new bilingual book, Llyfr Du Cymru Fydd / The Black Book of the New Wales, which is published this week.  read more

With 2020 such a tough year, most of us have found life harder than usual. This week sees the publication of an easy-to-follow self-help book that promises to furnish readers with an effective toolkit to take control of their lives and make lasting, positive changes that could radically increase your happiness. Let It Go by David Rahman is a book for “people who feel blocked and are looking for a way to reset their lives.”  read more

A new timely book summarizes the journey for Welsh independence, focusing mainly on the last four years, from 2016 to 2020. Annibyniaeth / Independence is a bilingual book by Mari Emlyn.  read more

The true stories behind 20 of the toughest players to ever play the game, from pre-WW1 firebrands to modern-day YouTube sensations. They are shocking, gruesome, often very funny and sometimes tragic, but what unites these men is their total commitment to the sport.  read more

The second part of a Welsh historical series, seen as Ceredigion’s Tess of the D’Urbervilles, is published this week. Described as “lyrical, visceral and angry” Nanteos: The Dipping Pool is a gothic novel set against the dramatic backdrop of 1750s Cardiganshire.  read more

Since opening in 1999 Tŷ Hafan, the charity that offers care and support to children and young people with shortened life expectancy, has supported over 850 children and their families. Juliet Bebbington, one of its volunteers, has written a warm and funny book to help fundraising for this important charity, with all the profits going towards the hospice.  read more

Where was Britain’s first centre of learning founded? Oxford? Cambridge? St Andrews? Think again: it was in Llantwit Major in south Wales – known as Llanilltud Fawr in Welsh. St Illtud’s monastery and training school was founded in c.500 A.D., making it in all probability the oldest centre of learning in Britain. Scholars of church history have emphasised its importance by calling it ‘the Christian axis of the Celtic-speaking peoples’ and ‘the University of the Atlantic of the Celtic period’.  read more

The author of an unusual new handy pocket-sized book is hoping to use humour to inspire people to learn and use a few simple bits of Manx. Unlike many traditional phrasebooks, Teach Your Cat Manx shows that learning useful expressions doesn’t have to be boring or daunting, and makes picking up a few basics accessible to everyone.  read more