Rhiannon Ifans has been awarded the Literary Medal at the 2019 National Eisteddfod for her novel, ‘Ingrid’.
Rhiannon Ifans has been awarded the Literary Medal at the 2019 National Eisteddfod for her novel, ‘Ingrid’.
This year’s medal is presented for a volume of creative prose of no more than 40,000 words, on the theme of ‘Cylchoedd ‘ (‘Circles’). The adjudicators were Mererid Hopwood, Alun Cob and Aled Islwyn.
The winner of the Daniel Owen Memorial Prize for 2018 is Guto Dafydd for his novel, Carafanio.
Guto Dafydd, a native of Drefor, has won the Daniel Owen Memorial Prize for 2019 at the National Eisteddfod at Llanrwst, for his novel Carafanio.
This literary prize is awarded for an unpublished novel with a strong story line, and this year’s adjudicators were Haf Llewelyn, Dyfed Edwards and Llwyd Owen.
Get ready to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Summer Reading Challenge with Space Chase, a very special reading mission.
The Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism, Lord Elis-Thomas, launched the challenge in Newtown Library on Friday, 12 July 2019, and was joined by popular author and illustrator Max Low.
This year’s Summer Reading Challenge is Space Chase, which coincides with the 50th anniversary of the moon landings. Endorsed by parents, teachers, the Welsh Books Council and Welsh Government, the Summer Reading Challenge reaches children and young people of all ages, with over 40,000 children taking part last year in Wales.
Helgard Krause, Chief Executive of the Welsh Books Council, said: “The Summer Reading Challenge is an important and exciting initiative encouraging children to make time during the school summer holidays to read their favourite books. What is so fantastic is that you can take part in this challenge wherever you are – on holiday by the pool, in your bedroom or whilst you are sitting in your garden. I can’t wait to hear about what books you choose to read during the holidays and you can post your Summer Reading Challenge pictures on social media using the hashtag #SummerReadingChallenge.”
To take part in the Space Chase challenge, children can sign up for free at their local library, where they will be given their very own Space Chase mission folder to get them started. Those taking part must read at least six library books over the school summer holidays and collect stickers which will help them find aliens and complete the challenge.
Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism, Lord Elis-Thomas, said: “The Summer Reading Challenge is a key event for the summer holidays and I know libraries, schools and children all over Wales look forward to it every year because we all know how important it is for children to keep reading over the summer holidays. I’m delighted that the Welsh Government can support libraries to run the Challenge and this year’s theme of space chase will certainly capture the imagination of children across Wales and encourage them to join in for an out of this world adventure.”
Children are encouraged to use the Summer Reading Challenge website to create a profile, chat about books, and get information on what books to read next, via the digital Book Sorter, which offers over 600,000 peer-to-peer children’s book recommendations in child-friendly categories.
Helen Jones, Head of Children’s Books and Reading Promotion at the Welsh Books Council and former primary school teacher, said: “We find that when children return to school after the summer holidays, some have taken a step back and have not come into contact with books for six weeks, which can have a detrimental impact on their development. Reading can impact how children discuss their emotions, as well as their ability to share ideas and to understand the world around them. My advice would be to make time every day for reading with your children, whether it be five minutes or an hour, and to make this part of a daily routine. This will have a positive impact all round and I urge families across Wales to take part in this fun Summer Reading Challenge.”
The challenge also offers volunteering opportunities for young people, including placements at libraries to inspire them to think about their futures and gain useful life skills. Last year, 134 young people aged between 12 and 24 chose to take part in volunteering opportunities.
The Summer Reading Challenge is the UK’s biggest annual reading promotion for children aged 4–11. Its aim is to encourage children to visit their local libraries and inspire them to read for pleasure. During last year’s challenge 663,851 children’s books were issued in libraries across Wales and over 3,000 children joined the library as new members.
On 25 and 26 June, scores of children from 34 schools across Wales took over the Arts Centre in Aberystwyth for two days of keen competition. It was the national round of Darllen Dros Gymru, the Welsh Books Council’s Welsh-language books competition for primary schools.
All pupils were competing for the prestigious title of Darllen Dros Gymru 2019 Champions. The national round is the culmination of reading activities across Wales, with the regional winners making it through to the final in Aberystwyth. The challenge involves discussing books and performing short dramatic presentations based on titles they have read, and this year’s eagle-eyed judges were Mair Heulyn Rees and Rhian Cadwaladr. As part of the day’s activities, the children and teachers had the opportunity to enjoy sessions in the company of actor and author Meilyr Siôn who inspired the avid readers with a presentation based on his latest novel, Hufen Afiach (Atebol). Rob Kenyon, a teacher at Ysgol Sant Baruc, Vale of Glamorgan, said “The pupils really enjoyed the whole experience of discussing and performing the books. It gives us the opportunity to develop literacy in a relevant and fun way. The chance to meet the author was the icing on the cake.” The competition for Years 3 and 4 took place on Tuesday, 25 June, and Ysgol Llannon, Carmarthenshire were crowned national champions as well as taking the trophy for the best presentation with their interpretation of Llanast by Mari Lovgreen (Gomer). Ysgol y Garnedd, Gwynedd, came second and also took home the award for best discussion group, with Ysgol y Wern, Cardiff, in third place. On Wednesday, 26 June, it was the turn of pupils from Years 5 and 6 to compete, with Ysgol Gymraeg Rhydaman, Carmarthenshire as overall champions as well as discussion award winners. Ysgol Pen Barras, Denbighshire, took second place as well as the trophy for best performace for their interpretation of Pren a Chansen by Myrddin ap Dafydd (Carreg Gwalch), with Ysgol Sant Baruc, Vale of Glamorgan in third position. Helen Jones, Head of the Children’s Books and Reading Promotion Department at the Welsh Books Council, said: “Darllen Dros Gymru is a great opportunity for children to reach for a book, read it and really enjoy its content. Children can use their imagination, dissect the book’s themes and discuss what’s happening in the story. Special thanks go to the dedicated organisers for their hard work in the county rounds, and to the teachers and supporters for ensuring the success of this event.” Thanks to the support of Gomer, Carreg Gwalch, Y Lolfa, and Rily Publications, every child who took part was invited to choose a free book to take home.
From 26 June, health professionals in Wales will be able to prescribe free library books to assist people in managing their mental health or dealing with difficult feelings and experiences in what experts behind the scheme are calling ‘bibliotherapy’.
The Reading Well Books on Prescription for mental health scheme has been developed by The Reading Agency and public libraries, leading health organisations including the Royal College of Psychiatrists, Mind, the Royal College of General Practitioners, the British Psychological Society and the Royal College of Nursing, as well as individuals who have personal experience of mental health needs and their relatives and carers. The scheme is being launched in Wales following its success in England which has seen 931,000 people borrow over 2 million Reading Well books from public libraries. Debbie Hicks, The Reading Agency’s Creative Director, said: “One in four of us will face a mental health issue at some point in our lives. Reading has proven power to help people manage their own mental health and wellbeing. We are delighted to be launching this life-changing programme in Wales, with many of the books available in Welsh for the first time, enabling the scheme to reach even more people.” Free copies of the books will be available to members of the public to borrow from all 22 public library authorities in Wales from 26 June, as well as supporting promotional material including leaflets containing the booklist. The Reading Agency is working with Welsh Books Council to translate most of the books into Welsh and all programme materials are bilingual. The books can be recommended by a health professional and borrowed free of charge from a local library, or users can self-refer and borrow the titles as they would any other library book. Professor Neil Frude, a consultant clinical psychologist and founder of the original Book Prescription Wales initiative, said: “Reading Well Books on Prescription for mental health in Wales is a useful and highly cost-effective additional resource for providing psychological help for many people across the principality. It is estimated that there are currently over 400,000 adults in Wales with a diagnosable mental condition. Thankfully there are several highly effective ways of delivering psychological help, including the use of self-help books written by expert clinicians, otherwise known as ‘bibliotherapy’. “The beauty of this scheme is that it recommends the very best books and delivers them freely through the public library service. In this way the scheme has the added benefit of bringing more people into the library, that precious community asset, where they will find many other resources that can help to boost their wellbeing, to build resilience and to thrive.” The collection of 37 books includes health information, self-help and inspirational personal stories such as Reasons to Stay Alive by award-winning author Matt Haig, which explores his personal experience of coming close to committing suicide at the age of 24, and The Recovery Letters, an anthology of heartfelt letters written by people who have recovered or are recovering from depression. Author Malan Wilkinson from Caernarfon, North Wales, an ambassador for Reading Well Books on Prescription for mental health said: “It’s been a year since I wrote my book about living with a mental health condition and it is true to say that reading and writing about my experiences has been invaluable for my own health. After six years of living with mental health problems, it’s wonderful to see this scheme being launched in Wales. Having this collection of 37 self-help books will be of great assistance to people across the country.” Ainsley Bladon, Mental Health Strategy Lead at Welsh Government, said: “The Reading Well scheme, funded by Welsh Government, presents a wonderful opportunity in Wales – to continue the legacy of our Book Prescription Wales scheme, to empower individuals to manage their own wellbeing using public health approaches, and, uniquely, to offer a full range of Welsh language titles in our libraries, representing one the biggest ever translation projects undertaken in Wales.” Nic Pitman at SCL Cymru said: “Public Libraries are vital community hubs for health and wellbeing support, and this list of expert-endorsed titles is another way we can support public health in Wales. SCL Cymru is enormously excited to work with The Reading Agency to deliver this programme that has been widely endorsed by health professionals as part of our drive to promote good mental health.” The scheme aims to make health information publications more readily available to members of the public. Reading Well Books on Prescription in Wales has been launched by The Reading Agency and Society of Chief Librarians Cymru and is funded by the Welsh Government. For more information about the Reading Well Books on Prescription for mental health visit: https://reading-well.org.uk/wales
The Welsh Books Council is delighted to announce the publication of the first Welsh-language adaptations of titles dealing with mental health from the Reading Well Books on Prescription scheme. Working with the translation company Testun, we have been able to translate the first four out of 20 selected books into Welsh in time for The Reading Agency’s launch of the scheme in Cardiff on 26 June. The books, published by Y Lolfa, are: Cyflwyniad i Ymdopi â Gorbryder Cyflwyniad i Ymdopi â Galar Cyflwyniad i Ymdopi ag Iselder Canllaw Bach Sheldon i Ffobia a Phanig Helgard Krause, Chief Executive of the Welsh Books Council, said, “Having books of this nature available in Welsh is of the utmost importance to us. It is a big project to bring into being, one that involves the hard work of many people – translators, editors, designers and publishers. We are thrilled that these first four books will be available in libraries and bookshops across Wales to offer help and support to readers. It is hoped that these books will inspire original work in the Welsh language, as well as offer advice and guidance to those wishing to use self-help reading to understand an array of mental health conditions.” For more information on these titles, please go to http://www.gwales.com/home/?lang=CY&tsid=2
