Wild World Heroes Summer Reading Challenge 2021

Jul 9, 2021

Winner of children’s picture book illustration competition announced

Jun 3, 2021

Contemporary stories about the courage of two girls win 2021 Tir na n-Og Awards

May 20, 2021

Modern-day stories about the bravery of two girls who find themselves in very challenging but very different situations have triumphed in the Welsh-language categories of the prestigious Tir na n-Og Awards 2021 for children’s and young people’s literature.

The winner in the primary school age category was Casia Wiliam for her novel Sw Sara Mai (‘Sara Mai’s Zoo’, published by Y Lolfa), with #helynt (‘#trouble’) by Rebecca Roberts (Gwasg Carreg Gwalch) taking the top prize in the secondary school age category. It’s the first time both authors have won a Tir na n-Og Award.

The titles of the winning books were announced on S4C’s Heno programme at 19:00 on Thursday, 20 May. The two authors receive a cash prize of £1,000 each as well as a specially commissioned poem by Bardd Plant Cymru (Welsh Children’s Laureate) Gruffudd Owen.

Now in their 46th year, the annual Tir na n-Og Awards celebrate the best books for children and young adults in Wales published during 2020. They are organised by the Books Council of Wales and sponsored by the librarians’ association CILIP Cymru Wales.

Winner of the primary age category

Sw Sara Mai by Casia Wiliam is a contemporary story about a girl aged around 9 called Sara Mai who grows up on her parents’ zoo, and who finds it easier to understand the behaviour of the remarkable creatures who live there than the other girls in her class.  

Commenting on Sw Sara Mai, the chair of the Welsh-language judging panel, T Hywel James, said: “This is a novel that deals with contemporary issues of bullying and prejudice against people from a different ethnic background. It is a book which fills an important gap in provision for this age group and is a step in the right direction in terms of better reflecting the diverse and inclusive nature of the Wales in which we live.”

Casia Wiliam, who lives in Caernarfon, said: “I’m over the moon! I’ve been reading the work of authors who have won a Tir na n-Og Award since I was a small child, and I can’t believe that I’m in the same league as them! I’m also very proud of Sara Mai – she’s the real winner. It’s so important that young Welsh people who are black or mixed race see themselves as main characters in Welsh-language books, and it means so much to me that this book has received this special recognition.” 

The other two books on the Welsh shortlist in the primary category were also highly commended by the judges – Ble mae Boc? Ar Goll yn y Chwedlau (‘Where Is Boc? Lost in the Legends’) by Huw Aaron (Y Lolfa) where a small dragon called Boc can be found hiding on each page; and Mae’r Cyfan i Ti (‘It’s All For You’) by Luned Aaron (Atebol) which introduces the wonders of the natural world to a child.

Secondary age category winner

The secondary age category was won by a novel aimed at older teenagers. #helynt by Rebecca Roberts tells the story of a teenage girl and what happens to her after she misses the school bus one morning – a commonplace event but one that changes the course of her life.

Chair of judges, T Hywel James, said: “This is a story that grips the reader from start to finish and conveys some of the reality of the impact of poverty and domestic violence on a young person in contemporary Wales. A very sensitive and subtle portrait of a main character with a disability is skilfully woven into the story – but the focus of the narrative is on a brave girl, not on her disability. As a panel, we believe that this novel is an excellent if not ‘classic’ example of the young adult genre – and achieving that is no mean feat.”

Rebecca Roberts, who lives in Prestatyn, said: “#helynt is a story about loving yourself, about being different and proud of it – a message I think young people need to hear often. Rachel is dear to my heart, and I’m thrilled that the judges felt the same way about her. Winning the Tir na n-Og Award is a huge honour, and a personal high point. A massive ‘thank you’ to everybody who helped bring #helynt into being.”

Also highly praised by the judges on the Welsh secondary shortlist were Llechi (‘Slates’) by Manon Steffan Ros, about the murder of perfect, beautiful, clever Gwenno in Bethesda; and Y Castell Siwgr by Angharad Tomos (Gwasg Carreg Gwalch), about the harrowing experiences of a young slave girl working on the Penrhyn family’s plantations in Jamaica and a maid at Penrhyn Castle in Gwynedd. 

Helen Jones, Head of Children’s Books and Reading Promotion at the Books Council, said: “Huge congratulations to the authors and publishers of the winning books, and to all the other fantastic titles published during 2020. Choosing two winners from the excellent volumes received in the Welsh-language primary and secondary categories was not an easy task for the judges, and that clearly shows the wealth of talent that we have across the whole of the book sector in Wales.”

Amy Staniforth from CILIP Cymru said: “We are delighted to sponsor the prestigious Tir na n-Og Awards once more this year, helping children and young people to discover great new reading experiences which reflect life through a Welsh lens. Many congratulations to the winners on their fantastic achievement and to all involved in the process of bringing these wonderful books to our shelves.”  

Chief Executive of the Books Council, Helgard Krause, said: “The Tir na n-Og Awards have been honouring the best books for children and young people in Wales for almost half a century now, offering a platform to celebrate and promote the talents of writers and illustrators. Our heartfelt thanks to everyone who has been involved in this year’s competition and to all those creating outstanding content to inspire, educate and entrance us as readers during an extremely challenging year.”

The winner of the English-language Tir na n-Og Award 2021 will be revealed on the Radio Wales Arts Show at 18:30 on Friday, 21 May 2021. Three titles are shortlisted for the prize – Where the Wilderness Lives by Jess Butterworth (Orion), The Short Knife by Elen Caldecott (Andersen Press), and The Quilt by Valériane Leblond (Y Lolfa). The Tir na n-Og Awards books are available through local bookshops or libraries.

About the winning authors

Rebecca Roberts lives in Prestatyn with her husband and children. A former student at Ysgol Glan Clwyd and Bangor University, she graduated with a degree in English and Creative Writing in 2006. She is a translator for Mudiad Meithrin, and also holds humanist, non-religious ceremonies. Her first adult novel Mudferwi was published by Gwasg Carreg Gwalch in 2019, and was followed in early 2020 by an English novel, Eat. Sleep. Rage. Repeat. (Gomer Press). #helynt is her first novel for young people. In her free time, she likes to walk, read fiction, and like Rachel (#helynt’s main character) she loves listening to rock music.

A poet and a writer, Casia Wiliam has also adapted a number of titles into Welsh. She attended Ysgol Botwnnog before going to Aberystwyth University where she graduated in English & Creative Writing. Casia was Bardd Plant Cymru (Welsh-language Children’s Laureate) 2017–19, and Sw Sara Mai is her second original children’s novel. When not writing, she works for the Disasters Emergency Committee, a charity which raises money to help people when disasters occur in some of the world’s poorest countries. 

About the awards

• The Tir na n-Og Awards were established in 1976 to celebrate the best books for children and young adults, and to promote the sale and reading of quality books. They are organised by the Books Council of Wales.
• Since 1976, some of Wales’ leading writers have won the award including Emily Huws, T Llew Jones, Caryl Lewis, Gareth F Williams, Manon Steffan Ros and Angharad Tomos (the latter two are on the 2021 shortlist).
• Three prizes of £1,000 are presented to the winners of the three categories.
• The awards are sponsored by CILIP Cymru, the Chartered Institute of Librarians and Information Officers Wales.
• Judging panel for the Welsh-language awards: Hywel James (Chair of the panel and former Chief Librarian of Gwynedd Council), Morgan Dafydd (founder of the Sôn am Lyfra website), Alun Horan (television producer, Tinopolis) and Nia Morais (author and teaching assistant).

New Trustees appointed to Books Council of Wales

Mar 24, 2021

The Books Council of Wales has appointed seven new Trustees to lead the national charity in its work of supporting the publishing industry and promoting reading.

Rajvi Glasbrook Griffiths, Alwena Hughes Moakes, Lowri Ifor, Professor Carwyn Jones, Linda Tomos, Professor Gerwyn Wiliams and Dr Caroline Owen Wintersgill will take up their positions on the new Board of Trustees on 1 April 2021.

The Board will be responsible for the governance of the Books Council and will oversee the direction and strategy of the national charity.

Four of the Books Council’s current Trustees will also transfer from the Executive Committee to the new Board, namely Professor M. Wynn Thomas (Chair), Rona Aldrich (Vice-Chair), Professor Jane Aaron (Honorary Secretary) and Chris Macey (Honorary Treasurer).

Professor M. Wynn Thomas, Chair of the Books Council, said: “As we approach the organisation’s sixtieth birthday, we are pleased to announce the formation of a Board of Trustees that includes eminent representatives from the worlds of government, business, cultural management and international publishing. The Board will support the Council’s specialist in-house team of experienced professionals serving the book industries of Wales in both Welsh and English.

“This is another exciting development that will ensure the Books Council of Wales is equipped with a governance and management structure well able to respond to the challenges of an industry that is in a state of perpetual change.”

Helgard Krause, Chief Executive of the Books Council, said: “In the year of the Council’s anniversary, I look forward to working with the new Board as we set a strategy for these challenging times and ensure the success of the publishing industry in Wales for the future. As a charity we appreciate the very important contribution made by our Trustees, who give of their time and expertise voluntarily to support the books sector in Wales.”

New Trustees

Rajvi Glasbrook Griffiths has worked in the teaching profession in Wales since 2009 and is Headteacher of High Cross Primary School in Newport. She has been the Director of Literature Caerleon since 2014 and Director of the Caerleon Gateway Project since 2016, as well as an Advisory Board member for Planet magazine. Mrs Glasbrook Griffiths is also a member of the Welsh Government’s Race Equality Action Plan Committee and its Working Group on Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Communities, Contributions and Cynefin in the New Curriculum.

Alwena Hughes Moakes is the Global Head of Employee Engagement and Communications for an international agriculture company with its headquarters in Basel, Switzerland. Before relocating to Switzerland, Alwena held senior roles at Aberystwyth University, most recently as Director of Communications, Marketing and Public Affairs. Originally from Mold, Flintshire, Alwena is a seasoned communications professional with over 20 years’ experience across the public and private sectors.

Lowri Ifor is a former teacher who has worked for the Welsh Slate Museum since 2018 as an Education and Events Officer and who also teaches a Welsh for Adults class. She was Children’s Books Editor at Gwasg Carreg Gwalch press from 2018–2019 and has been one of the editors of the Codi Pais magazine since 2018, as well as a member of the Noson Pedwar a Chwech committee which organises Welsh-language musical and literary events in the Caernarfon area.

Professor Carwyn Jones is a former First Minister of Wales (2009–2018) and was a Member of the Senedd for Bridgend from 1999–2021. After graduating in law from Aberystwyth University, he went on to train as a barrister in London before working in legal practice at Gower Chambers, Swansea, for 10 years. He was appointed part-time Professor in the Department of Law and Criminology at Aberystwyth University in 2019.

Linda Tomos has been a chartered librarian since 1975 and was the National Librarian for Wales from 2015–2019, leading the strategy of the National Library in Aberystwyth. She worked previously as a senior civil servant with the Welsh Government and was the first Director of CyMAL: Museums, Archives and Libraries Wales within the Department for Culture, Sport and Tourism. A former Chair of the Library and Information Services Council for Wales, she was Chair of the BBC Education Broadcasting Council Wales between 1999 and 2003 and Chair of the National Trust’s Advisory Board in Wales between 2016 and 2020.

Professor Gerwyn Wiliams has been Professor of Welsh at Bangor University since 2005, and has worked at the School of Welsh since 1989. He has been a member of the Advisory Board of O’r Pedwar Gwynt magazine since 2019 and a member of the Board of Directors of Theatr Bara Caws since 2018. A former winner of the National Eisteddfod Crown (1994) and the Wales Book of the Year Award (1997), he has also judged a number of literature competitions including the National Eisteddfod’s Prose Medal in 2017 and the Wales Book of the Year in 2011. He was a board member of the Arts Council of Wales between 2010 and 2016.

Dr Caroline Owen Wintersgill is a Lecturer in Publishing at University College London and Programme Director for the MA in Publishing. She has a PhD on reading, writing and publishing contemporary fiction, which involved work with reading groups across the UK as well as interviews with authors and publishers. Before moving into academia, Caroline worked for more than 25 years for leading publishers including Routledge, Bloomsbury and Manchester University Press. Alongside her teaching, Caroline has been editor-at-large for Biteback Publishing and Senior Consulting Editor for the US-based independent publisher, Lynne Rienner, since 2015.

Meetings

Full meetings of the Board of Trustees will be held four times a year.

On 1 April 2021, the Books Council of Wales will transfer from being an unregistered charity to a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO).

Members of the Council of the Books Council of Wales, which includes representatives from local authorities and other organisations, will transfer as members of the charity and will meet formally once a year at a public Annual General Meeting.

Tir na n-Og Children’s Book Awards 2021 English-language shortlist

Mar 12, 2021

Three stories exploring Wales at different times through history feature in the English-language books shortlisted for the Tir na n-Og Children’s Book Awards 2021 announced today (12 March 2021) on the Radio Wales Arts Show.

The periods of history range from the early Middle Ages when Welsh national identity was gathering strength in The Short Knife by Elen Caldecott, to a family emigrating from Wales to the USA at the turn of the twentieth century in The Quilt by Valériane Leblond, and a contemporary story set in the Celtic rainforest of north Wales in Where the Wilderness Lives by Jess Butterworth.

Organised by the Books Council of Wales and sponsored by CILIP Cymru Wales, the annual awards celebrate the best books for children and young adults published in 2020.

There are three main categories: Welsh-language books for primary school age, Welsh-language books for secondary school age, and English-language books with an authentic Welsh background for children and young people.

This is the first time Jess Butterworth and Elen Caldecott have been shortlisted for the awards and the first time Valériane Leblond has been nominated as both an author and illustrator. The Short Knife has also been longlisted for the CILIP Carnegie Medal 2021.

English-language Shortlist

• Where the Wilderness Lives by Jess Butterworth (Orion, 2020) for ages 9+ centres around the character of Cara who lives on a houseboat with her mum, siblings and a dog called Willow. Her dad used to live with them but now lives in a remote part of Wales. The adventure starts when Cara and her siblings find a locked safe one day when they are helping with a clean-up of the canal where they live. A fire destroys their houseboat one night, and while her mum is in hospital and Cara is looking after her siblings, a thief comes to steal the safe. The children leave the house they are temporarily living in to travel in their houseboat with the safe to go to their dad, and then on foot on a journey of survival across Welsh mountains in the snow.
• The Short Knife by Elen Caldecott (Andersen Press, 2020) for ages 12+ is a story set many centuries ago, in the early Middle Ages, 454, at a time when a new Welsh identity was just starting to emerge, when the Romans had left and the Britons and Saxons were battling to take hold of different territories. It is narrated through the voice of the main character, Mai, a young girl, who up until now, along with her sister Haf, has been kept safe by her father. The story starts with the arrival of Saxon warriors at their farm, forcing the family to flee to the hills where British warlords lie in wait. From here we see Mai surviving in a dangerous world where just speaking her mother tongue could lead to her death, and where she comes to mistrust even the people she loves the most.
• The Quilt by Valériane Leblond (Y Lolfa, 2020) for ages 5+ is a beautiful, lyrical story about a little girl who lives with her parents on a farm near the coast in rural Wales, around the turn of the twentieth century. Life is hard and the family decide to emigrate to America. To pay for the cost of their journey they sell their possessions but keep a black and red quilt hand-made by the mother from pieces of fabric left over from clothes she has made for the family. Leaving everything familiar behind brings homesickness and a longing – hiraeth – for the little girl, and it is the memories and love contained in the quilt that help her overcome these feelings and adapt to her new life.

Jo Bowers, Chair of the English-language judging panel, said: “All three books had their stories set against a rich authentic Welsh background, which is a central criteria for this award, and each one did this in a very different way to the others. Each book stood out for many reasons: the sense of place and time in Wales and Welsh history; the overall design as each book had very attractive front covers and either illustrations or design features in the body of the text, and each surprised and engaged in both the style and content of the story. We felt that each one brought new aspects about Wales in children’s literature.”

Chief Executive of the Books Council of Wales, Helgard Krause, said: “My warmest congratulations to all those involved in bringing these three shortlisted titles to readers. It is so important to ensure that young readers in Wales have a choice of high-quality books which reflect the country and culture in which they live.”

Welsh-language Shortlist

The Welsh-language books shortlisted for the Tir na n-Og Awards 2021 was announced on the Heno programme on S4C on Thursday, 11 March.

The shortlisted titles in the Welsh-language primary age category are Ble Mae Boc – Ar Goll yn y Chwedlau (‘Where is Boc – Lost in the Legends’) by Huw Aaron (Y Lolfa, 2020), Mae’r Cyfan i Ti (’It’s All For You’) by Luned Aaron (Atebol, 2020) and Sw Sara Mai (‘Sara Mai’s Zoo’) by Casia Wiliam (Y Lolfa, 2020).

The books shortlisted in the Welsh-language secondary age category are Y Castell Siwgr (‘The Sugar Castle’) by Angharad Tomos (Gwasg Carreg Gwalch, 2020), Llechi (‘Slates’) by Manon Steffan Ros (Y Lolfa, 2020), and #helynt (‘#trouble’) by Rebecca Roberts (Gwasg Carreg Gwalch, 2020).

The winners of the Welsh-language categories will be announced on S4C’s Heno programme at 19:00 on Thursday, 20 May, while the winning English-language title will be revealed on the Radio Wales Arts Show on 21 May at 18:30.

Further details about the awards and the shortlisted books are available on the Books Council of Wales website.

Tir na n-Og Awards 2021 Welsh-language shortlist revealed

Mar 11, 2021

The Books Council of Wales is delighted to announce the six Welsh-language books shortlisted for the 2021 Tir na n-Og Awards, which celebrate the best books from Wales for children and young people.

The primary age category includes Ble Mae Boc – Ar Goll yn y Chwedlau by Huw Aaron (Y Lolfa), Mae’r Cyfan i Ti by Luned Aaron (Atebol) and Sw Sara Mai by Casia Wiliam (Y Lolfa).

The books reaching the shortlist in the secondary age category are Y Castell Siwgr by Angharad Tomos (Gwasg Carreg Gwalch), Llechi by Manon Steffan Ros (Y Lolfa) and #helynt by Rebecca Roberts (Gwasg Carreg Gwalch).

Hywel James, Chair of the panel of judges for the Welsh-language primary and secondary categories, said: “As judges, we have been able to graze our way through a feast of children’s and young people’s literature. All the books offered a wonderful choice to young readers, and contributed to our literature by filling gaps that feed the imagination and develop their understanding of the past or an awareness of the world around them.

“This year’s titles included some very attractive picture story books by new authors and illustrators, a development that deserves special praise for creating high quality original publications. There were very impressive titles in the young adults’ category too, with some quite shocking content as they strived to convey the challenges of coming of age either in contemporary Wales or at key stages in our history.”

Helgard Krause, Chief Executive of the Books Council of Wales, said: “Our warmest congratulations to the shortlisted authors and our thanks to everyone across the book sector in Wales for ensuring not only that our judges were provided once more with a range of high-quality publications, but also that there is a selection of excellent books available to young readers in Wales. I would also like to thank our judges for their valuable work and feedback which helps to maintain and improve standards year on year.”

The Welsh-language shortlists were revealed on S4C’s Heno programme on Thursday, 11 March, and the programme will announce the names of the winners on Thursday, 20 May 2021.

Primary Age Shortlist

• Ble Mae Boc – Ar Goll yn y Chwedlau by Huw Aaron (Y Lolfa)

Summary: 10 illustrated double pages, with each spread offering a chance to find Boc, the little red dragon, who’s hiding in every picture. A uniquely Welsh twist on the Where’s Wally? books.

A taste of what the judges had to say: “This is a volume that offers a fantastic feast of pictures and hours of amusement for a child as they try to find the little dragon… It’s an ideal gift book for all ages.”

• Mae’r Cyfan i Ti by Luned Aaron (Atebol)

Summary: A tender and sensitive bedtime story for a parent to present the wonders of the natural world to a child. We follow the whole day from dawn to dusk as we read about the wonderful world that awaits the child.

A taste of what the judges had to say: “A very high-quality picture story book. The simplicity of telling the story through poetry is ideal for the nursery age group and brilliantly conveys the element of surprise that young children have about the world around them as well as nostalgia on the part of the adult.”

• Sw Sara Mai by Casia Wiliam (Y Lolfa)

Summary: Welcome to the world of Sara Mai, where cleaning up elephant poo is a lot more appealing than going to school, and where it’s much easier to understand the behaviour of a bear from South Africa than the other girls in Year 5.

A taste of what the judges had to say: “This is a novel that deals with a contemporary subject, tackling the issue of bullying and prejudice against people from a different ethnic background. The story grips the reader from the beginning with plenty of details about the characters without overwhelming us or slowing the flow of the story, which holds our attention to the end.”

Secondary Age Shortlist

• #helynt by Rebecca Roberts (Gwasg Carreg Gwalch)

Summary: Missing the bus to school can change your life… Rather than go home, Rachel decides to go on an adventure in the town of Rhyl (after all, the bailiffs have taken her father’s car), and she finds herself in a seaside nightclub. She feels safe there, a different experience to school where she is bullied because of her disability.

A taste of what the judges had to say: “It is a story that grips the reader from beginning to end, conveying some of the real impact of poverty and domestic violence on a young person in contemporary Wales… This is an excellent, perhaps ‘classic’, example of a teenage ‘genre’ book – and that is not an easy feat to achieve.”

• Llechi by Manon Steffan Ros (Y Lolfa)

Summary: Gwenno is dead – perfect, clever, beautiful Gwenno, who was popular with both swots and cool people. Her body was found in the slate mine, the police are everywhere around Bethesda, and everyone is looking for her.

A taste of what the judges had to say: “The murder mystery story line of this novel is very similar to some contemporary popular television series, and so this story will certainly appeal greatly to a wide range of readers.”

• Y Castell Siwgr by Angharad Tomos (Gwasg Carreg Gwalch)

Summary: Two girls on two continents. One lord with a thirst for profit. A heart-wrenching story about a slave girl, a maid, a ship and a castle, and about suffering beyond imagination.

A taste of what the judges had to say: “This novel takes us to challenging new territory with the story of two young girls, Dorcas and Yamba, and although the novel is in two parts, the links between them strengthen the narrative… This volume is a very important contribution to Welsh literature and will appeal to both young people and adults.”

Organised by the Books Council of Wales and sponsored by CILIP Cymru Wales, the annual awards celebrate the best books for children and young adults published in 2020.

The English-language books shortlisted for the 2021 Tir na n-Og Awards will be announced on the Radio Wales Arts Show at 18:30 on Friday, 12 March 2021.

• More about the Tir na n-Og Awards

Celebrating books on the digital stage

Mar 3, 2021