The Cardiff National Eisteddfod

For all those visiting the National Eisteddfod in Cardiff, please call at the Books Council stand to see the latest selection of Welsh- and English-language books from Wales.

The summer is always a busy period for the book trade in Wales and the Books Council will once again have a stand full of the latest publications.

'There is an excellent selection of titles this year,' said Helgard Krause, Head of Sales and Marketing at the Books Council, 'and the Eisteddfod offers readers of all ages an ideal opportunity to browse the latest publications.'

A number of publishers will also be launching their new books on the stand, so please call by to see us during the week.

This summer, share your pleasure of reading during the National Year of Reading's GIVE A BOOK WEEK.

From 7 July until 12 July, people all over Wales will be giving books to family, friends and colleagues as part of Wales' first national GIVE A BOOK WEEK.

It's up to you how you join in - buy a new book for your children, share a favourite novel with a friend or give a book to your colleagues at work - it's better to give than to receive!

You can find out more at www.yearofreadingwales.org.uk/giveabookweek or by visiting your local bookshop.

Give the gift of reading this July - give a book.

Winners of the Welsh Tir na n-Og Awards 2008

The Welsh Books Council announced the names of the winners of the Welsh Tir na n-Og Awards 2008 in a special ceremony at the Urdd National Eisteddfod, Conwy.

The winner in the primary category was Nicholas Daniels for Y Llyfr Ryseitiau: Gwaed y Tylwyth (Dref Wen). The winner of the secondary category was Gareth F. Williams for his novel Eira Mân, Eira Mawr (Gomer).

Further details.

Books from Wales at the Urdd Eisteddfod

There will be an excellent selection of books on sale at the Conwy Urdd Eisteddfod.

The Welsh Books Council will be sharing a stand with one of the local Welsh bookshops, Bys a Bawd, at the Urdd Eisteddfod this year, with an extensive range of books available for all ages. Bys a Bawd have also organised a full programme of events throughout the week.

2008 English Tir na n-Og Award

The Welsh Books Council has announced the name of the winner of the prestigious Tir na n-Og English Award which recognises the exceptional quality of books with an authentic Welsh background for children and young people.

The 2008 English Award was won by Frances Thomas for her novel for young people, Finding Minerva, published by Pont Books. The award is sponsored by CILIP Wales (the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals). The award was presented to the author at a special reception held at the CILIP Cymru annual conference at Llandrindod, Powys.

Bedwen Lyfrau Book Festival

The Bedwen Lyfrau Festival will be held at Crymych, Pembrokeshire, this year on Friday evening and Saturday, 3/4 May, and once again Cwlwm Cyhoeddwyr (the association of Welsh-language publishers) have arranged a full programme of activities.

Authors attending the festival include Mererid Hopwood, Lyn Ebenezer, Alun Wyn Bevan and rugby celebrity Clive Rowlands.

Support for the Welsh-language Press

Applications for financial support are invited in connection with new, innovative projects (print and on-line) in the field of Welsh-language news and current affairs publications.

Further details are available through contacting: The Director, Welsh Books Council, Castell Brychan, Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, SY23 2JB Tel 01970 624151 e-mail castellbrychan@wbc.org.uk

Closing date for applications: Wednesday, 30 April 2008.

Half Price Book Sale

Hundreds of books are for sale at half price or less in the Welsh Books Council's Annual Book Sale. Click Special Offers on the Gwales Home page to see the full list.

New Funding For Welsh-Language Print Media

Gwerfyl Pierce Jones, Director of the Welsh Books Council, issued the following statement: The Welsh Books Council welcomes the Minister's decision to allocate £200,000 annually for the next three years to develop and strengthen Welsh-language print media.

It's a substantial increase in the funding available at present and, as Tony Bianchi's review demonstrated, there was a real need for additional funding to develop the field. His review specifically refers to the high standard of some of the current publications.

The challenge for the Welsh Books Council now will be to ensure that this funding is used as effectively as possible to develop and strengthen the field. The Council's Publishing Grants Panel will meet in March and full details concerning application procedures will subsequently be made available.

Library of Wales

Rhodri Glyn Thomas, the Minister for Heritage, visited Cardigan Secondary School to present sixth-form students with a set of the Library of Wales series.


The Library of Wales is an ambitious project to bring back to print a list of English-language classics from Wales. The series is published by the Cardigan-based publishers Parthian and is supported by the Welsh Assembly Government and the Welsh Books Council.

Photo: Rhodri Glyn Thomas, the Minister for Heritage presenting a set of the Library of Wales series to Daniel Jay and Catrin Powell at Cardigan Secondary School.