Tales of dragons, families, myths and magic set amongst the mountains and coastlines of Wales feature in the English-language books shortlisted today (27 March 2020) for the Tir na n-Og Awards 2020.
Tales of dragons, families, myths and magic set amongst the mountains and coastlines of Wales feature in the English-language books shortlisted today (27 March 2020) for the Tir na n-Og Awards 2020.
The Welsh-language shortlists include picture books promoting tolerance, tackling materialism and highlighting inspirational women from Wales in the primary age category, whilst books exploring mental health, eating disorders and migration dominate in the category for secondary schools.
Organised by the Books Council of Wales and sponsored by CILIP Cymru Wales, the awards celebrate the work of authors and illustrators published in 2019.
There are three main categories: Welsh-language books for primary school age, Welsh-language books for secondary school age, and English-language books for children of any age with an authentic Welsh background.
English-language Shortlist
• The Secret Dragon by Ed Clarke (Puffin 2019). A magical adventure story for ages 8+ about science, dragons and friendship set on the Welsh coast with a strong sense of place.
• Max Kowalski Didn’t Mean It by Susie Day (Puffin 2019). A contemporary story for ages 8+ about families, being a boy and coping with loss, full of empathy and a strong sense of place in Snowdonia.
• Storm Hound by Claire Fayers (Macmillan Children’s Books 2019). A fantasy adventure for ages 8+ set in the Welsh mountains, combining Norse legend with Welsh myth.
• Where Magic Hides by Cat Weatherill (Gomer 2019). A diverse collection of seven short stories for ages 9+, all set in Wales, where young characters encounter kings and trolls, wild horses and rainbow-coloured sheep as they learn to find the magic in the stories all around them.
Eleri Twynog Davies, Chair of the English-language judging panel, said: “All four books on the shortlist are of very high quality, from the covers, illustrations and design to great character depiction and excellent storytelling. They take us from Abergavenny to Ogmore and Snowdonia, giving us a real sense of place – one of the central criteria for this award. It is so important that the children of Wales can see themselves reflected in Welsh literature, and that children outside Wales have a window on another culture.”
Welsh-language Shortlist – Primary
• Y Ddinas Uchel (The High City) by Huw Aaron (Atebol 2019). Petra lives in a city of towers where people spend all day building them higher and higher. A picture book dealing with the materialism of society in an indirect, lighthearted way.
• Genod Gwych a Merched Medrus (Great Girls and Skilled Women) by Medi Jones-Jackson (Y Lolfa 2019). A picture book about 14 inspirational women from Wales including Tori James, Laura Ashley, Eileen Beasley, Amy Dillwyn and Haley Gomez. Full of fun, facts, puzzles, activites and colourful cartoons and illustrations.
• Pobol Drws Nesaf (The People Next Door) by Manon Steffan Ros and Jac Jones (Y Lolfa 2019). A picture book about the importance of not judging people who look and behave differently to us, and the need to respect everyone.
Welsh-language Shortlist – Secondary
• Byw yn fy Nghroen (Living in my Skin) edited by Sioned Erin Hughes (Y Lolfa 2019). A collection of autobiographical accounts about the experiences of twelve young people who have fought against long-term conditions including cancer, epilepsy, Crohn’s disease, spina bifida, blindness, OCD, depression and anxiety.
• Tom by Cynan Llwyd (Y Lolfa 2019). A YA novel from a debut author about 15-year-old Tom who lives in a block of flats with his mother and who befriends an 81-year-old neighbour. Themes cover bullying, conflict, migrants, violence and illness.
• Madi by Dewi Wyn Williams (Atebol 2019). A powerful YA novel about a teenage girl living with anorexia and bulimia who tries to hide the illness.
Gwawr Maelor Williams, Chair of the Welsh-language judging panel, said: “We have heard the voices of new, exciting and unique writers this year – books by young people for young people. In the midst of adventure and fantasy, there’s a voice for children’s well-being, a voice for Welsh women, a voice for mental resilience and mental health, and a voice for young people with physical ailments and conditions.”
The Chief Executive of the Books Council of Wales, Helgard Krause, said: “The Tir na n-Og Awards are an opportunity for us to celebrate the talents of our writers and illustrators, who are creating world-class content for our children and young people. The awards also reflect the subjects that are important to this audience and address some of the burning issues of the day – from eating disorders and mental health problems to questions around diversity, broadening horizons and respect for others. This is a further indication of how reading can support our health and well-being, as well as developing skills and being a delight in itself.”
The names of the winners will be announced in May 2020 and further details about the shortlisted books are available on the gwales.com books website.
Following the introduction of more stringent measures to try to slow the spread of coronavirus, the Books Council’s offices at Castell Brychan and our Distribution Centre in Aberystwyth are now closed at least until mid April.
Following the introduction of more stringent measures to try to slow the spread of coronavirus, the Books Council’s offices at Castell Brychan and our Distribution Centre in Aberystwyth are now closed at least until mid April.
A number of our staff are working from home as we continue to do all that we can to support the publishing industry in exceptional circumstances and ensure we come through these difficult times.
We are therefore able to continue to offer the following services:
• Strategic and operational leadership, which includes assessing the current needs of the wider books sector with Welsh Government.
• Financial advice and planning (mererid.boswell@books.wales)
• Processing of regular payments to the industry including publishing grants, support for editorial staff, support for writers and other freelance workers (arwel.jones@books.wales)
• Book editing services (huw.meirionedwards@books.wales)
• Design services (sion.ilar@books.wales)
• Promotion of books and reading for pleasure on digital and other platforms (mari.sion@books.wales).
You can contact staff in the above posts either through their work email addresses or via post@books.wales. Booksellers should contact their usual sales representatives.
Distribution Centre
The temporary closure of the Distribution Centre is of course a blow to our operations as an institution and for the sector in Wales and beyond. However, the health and wellbeing of our communities is a priority at the moment, and we need to pull together to support the efforts to halt the spread of the virus.
Our Distribution Centre will not be able to accept or deliver stock during this period so we are asking our publishers to postpone sending books, magazines and other resources until we re-open.
The Centre’s management team are available to answer any questions our customers may have and the best email address for queries is post@books.wales.
Tir na n-Og Awards
We will be pressing ahead with our plans to publish the shortlists for the 2020 Tir na n-Og children’s literature awards by issuing a news release on our website and through the media this Friday 27 March. Our intention is to announce the names of the winners in May but we have not yet set new dates, following the cancellation of the CILIP Cymru Annual conference and the Urdd National Eisteddfod where the ceremonies were due to be held.
Our industry, like others across the country, is facing truly unprecedented challenges and it is impossible to predict the scale and scope of the impact at this time. However, our central role and contribution to the culture, education and Welsh-language remain undiminished. For now, our focus must be on protecting our people and supporting our communities.
The Books Council of Wales is monitoring developments closely and implementing a series of special measures in response to the latest situation and guidelines.
The Books Council of Wales is monitoring developments closely and implementing a series of special measures in response to the latest situation and guidelines.
The aim is to take appropriate steps to ensure our core mission of supporting the publishing industry continues, while doing all that is practically possible to help reduce the potential spread of the virus and safeguard our staff and stakeholders.
• Our Distribution Centre for books and resources in Glanyrafon, Aberystwyth, is still operating but is closed to external visitors, with the exception of pre-arranged essential collections and deliveries to a designated area. If you need to make any such arrangement, please contact the Centre on 01970 624455 or distribution.centre@books.wales.
• From Wednesday 18 March 2020, the majority of staff based in our main offices at Castell Brychan in Aberystwyth are working from home. They continue to provide our usual services such as book editing, design and grant administration, and their work contact details remain the same (both telephone and email).
• Castell Brychan is closed to visitors during this period. Staff will not be travelling to face-to-face meetings with external contacts and will use video or phone systems for such meetings. Our contact details for general enquiries are 01970 624151 or castellbrychan@books.wales.
• We have cancelled or postponed all public events until the end of May, including book launches and school visits. We will re-assess the situation in the light of circumstances at the time but in the meantime, we are planning and discussing alternative arrangements for the promotion of books and reading.
• We are in regular contact with publishers, booksellers, distributors and others to ensure that we fully understand the challenges they face and work with them to offer advice and practical support. We encourage the industry in Wales to get in touch with us to discuss any business concerns they may have.
• For those who are self-isolating and looking for reading material, we have a series of reading lists on our gwales.com website. These curated lists include publications suitable for all ages and interests, as well as our latest best sellers, new titles, books of the month, reviews and more.
We know this is an extremely challenging period for everyone and that the situation is likely to continue for some time to come.
Our mission as the Books Council of Wales remains unchanged, and we will do all that we can to support the publishing industry and our community during these worrying, uncertain days.
Welsh Government has announced additional capital funding for the Books Council of Wales to invest in information technology systems which will support the growth of the publishing industry in Wales.
Welsh Government has announced additional capital funding for the Books Council of Wales to invest in information technology systems which will support the growth of the publishing industry in Wales.
The additional £750,000 has been secured from the 2020-21 budget and will allow the Books Council of Wales to introduce a new integrated IT system to manage the sale, supply and distribution of books, which will also support the work of Wales’ publishers.
In a further boost to the publishing industry, the Books Council of Wales will receive additional capital funding of £145,000 during the current financial year. Publishing has been identified as a sector for growth following the launch of Creative Wales in January. A healthy publishing industry is an essential part of Wales’ cultural identity and Creative Wales’ support of the Books Council of Wales, will help support essential services for the publishing industry in both the Welsh and the English languages.
Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism, Lord Elis-Thomas, said: “On World Book Day when we celebrate stories and the love of reading, I’m delighted that we are able to support the Books Council of Wales to invest in this vital sector of the Welsh economy. This will be a significant boost to the Books Council of Wales but also the whole publishing industry in Wales. Supporting a successful, bilingual publishing industry in Wales not only makes a contribution to our wider economic growth strategy for the creative industries in Wales, it also supports numerous micro business initiatives mainly based in rural Wales that contribute to their local economies.”
The Chief Executive of the Books Council of Wales, Helgard Krause said: “We are very grateful to the Welsh Government for supporting our exciting plans to upgrade our IT systems, ensuring we continue to compete with the publishing industry across the UK and beyond. Our distribution centre provides an excellent service to publishers and booksellers and will be able to offer an even better service following this system upgrade. By investing now in a series of transformational improvements, we will help publishing and bookselling businesses to grow thereby supporting the growth of Wales’ foundational economy and the creative industries, as well as promoting reading.”
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