Recently Rated:
Stats
Category: New Titles
Marking The Centenary Of The Battle Of Mametz Wood 1916 With Previously Unpublished Material
By AmeriCymru, 2016-07-08
THE WELSH AT MAMETZ WOOD, THE SOMME 1916
‘The Welsh at Mametz Wood, The Somme 1916’ by Jonathan Hicks is a brand new interpretation of the First World War battle for Mametz Wood, telling the story of those terrible days from the viewpoint of soldiers who were actually there.
Using material from his extensive research, as well as sources translated from the original Welsh and the memories left behind by German survivors - many unpublished in English before – Jonathan Hicks gives a fresh insight into the battle.
Drawing extensively on survivors’ accounts and original photographs, the author allows the soldiers to speak for themselves to tell the full story of those dark days. In the words of one soldier: ‘Hell cannot be much worse.’
The 38th (Welsh) Division began the attack on Mametz Wood on the 7 th of July 1916 – the second week of the Battle of the Somme. The division was a citizen force composed of miners from the Rhondda, farmers from Caernarfon and Anglesey, coal trimmers from the docks at Barry and Cardiff, bank workers from Swansea and men from a whole host of other backgrounds and occupations from the counties of Wales.
‘All hell broke loose as machine guns opened up on us from the front and from the flank. We stood no chance and the boys were everywhere falling, but we kept moving forward,’ wrote Private Albert Evans, 16th (Cardiff City) Battalion of The Welsh Regiment.
When it was over, Field Marshal Haig did not consider the performance of the 38th (Welsh) Division at Mametz Wood to be a success, but the fact remains that after days of ferocious hand-to-hand fighting with an enemy from the most effective army in Europe at that time, and terrible loss of life, the division finally succeeded in capturing the largest wood on the Somme.
There were some 4,000 British casualties during the battle.
The book’s publication follows the opening of the new ‘War’s Hell’ exhibition at the National Museum in Cardiff which is an exhibition of paintings, poetry and artefacts associated with the Welsh soldiers at Mametz Wood.
Dr Jonathan Hicks is an award-winning military historian and novelist, and his meticulous research provides new insight into this famous battle. He has previously won the Victorian Military Society’s top award for his work on the Anglo-Zulu War and in 2010 he was awarded the Western Front Association Shield for his work on Barry and the Great War.
Jonathan is also a member of the First World War Programme Board which advises the Welsh Government on the centenary commemorations.
He has previously written novels on the battle at Mametz Wood, including ‘The Dead of Mametz’ and ‘Demons Walk Among Us’.
He has dedicated his book to the fallen and writes:
‘I dedicate this book to the men who fought there in the second week of July 1916, those who died and who were buried in France, and those who are still missing with no known grave.’
A striking new book giving a taste of fifty exceptional cafes in Wales has been published.
Caffis Cymru by Lowri Haf Cooke will be launched on 9 July at Gŵyl Arall / Another Festival, Caernarfon and 16 July at Sesiwn Fawr, Dolgellau.
Across Wales there’s a wealth of cosy, cool and quirky cafes to suit everyone’s tastes. Behind every teapot and cafetière there’s a treasury of personal stories, anecdotes and snippets of local history.
Lowri Haf Cooke says “Welsh cafes in their various guises have been meeting points and great social hotspots for many years. From the 18th and 19th century coffee houses to the Victorian tea rooms,from the Bracchi cafes to the Milk bars (established in Colwyn Bay in 1933), they’ve all played an important part in Wales’s social history….”
“By the turn of the millenium, a number of local cafes were usurped by the high street giants. But there has been a new trend in recent years as we turn back to independent cafes, tearooms and artisan coffee. And as I discovered on my travels, there’s a new cross-pollination too – the caférestaurant-deli-bakery-bar.”
Lowri says, “Whichever café you enjoy visiting at the moment, you’re sure to discover a new favourite in this book, Caffis Cymru . This is a book for everyone, and at the end of the day you don’t need to spend a fortune to enjoy yourself in one of these cafes. So, reach for a cuppa, sit back, relax and arrange your own whistle-stop tour of cafes in Wales!”
Caffis Cymru will be available at your local bookshop for £6.99 or directly from the publisher Gomer Press on www.gomer.co.uk
Lowri Haf Cooke will be launching her new book at:
Gŵyl Arall / Another Festival, Caernarfon
Saturday, 9 July at 11.30am. Tickets: £4. For more information go to www.gwylarall.com
Sesiwn Fawr, Dolgellau
Saturday, 16 July at 4pm at T.H.Roberts Café. For more information go to www.sesiwnfawr.cymru
Bibliographical details
Caffis Cymru by Lowri Haf Cooke
Photographs: Emyr Young
ISBN 9781785620690 Publisher: Gomer Press
paperback 152 pages £6.99
The influence of popular Anglo-American culture is what drives author Jon Gower’s latest newly-published volume of short stories.
Rebel Rebel by Jon Gower is a collection of 21 short stories taking place all around the world, whilst introducing the reader to fictional and historical characters in believable and fantastic scenarios.
‘The literature of the United States, particularly novels, have had a big influence on me since I was a child – especially my hero John Updike and other giants such as Saul Bellow and Cormac McCarthy.’ says Jon Gower.
‘Later on I came to know the works of great authors such as Annie Proulx and Lorrie Moore and the love affair continues to this day.’ he continued.
His inspiration of combining popular Anglo-American culture with the Welsh short story came from various American authors – including Ernest Hemingway.
‘Some of these short stories I owe to Ernest Hemingway. One in particular tries to emulate his feat of writing a short story in only a handful of words,’ says Jon. ‘I was inspired by other authors too, especially contemporary American authors who write short stories – such as Wells Tower and Christopher Coake.’
But it was not just from authors that Jon was inspired and he is indebted to one artist in particular for his influence on him.
‘I had not realised just how great David Bowie’s influence was on me until he died, and the emptiness and the loss proved just how much that man was present in my life before then,’ Jon explained.
‘One of the most wonderful things about him was his latest and last work – his art blossoming even as he slipped deeper into illness. I had to include a new story to try and convey the greatness of his last album – a masterpiece he created despite the cancer, and in doing so succeded in creating an original and powerful piece to the every end.’
‘Jon takes us all over the world, to share the lustful secrets of David Bowie and Mick Jagger, to searching for a submarine from North Korea, to seeing the leader of the only extremist organisation left in Wales painting his toenails red in the colour ‘Coral Explosion,’ says Catrin Beard.
‘He wields the talent of Ellis Wynne as he provokes and satirises, and uses his vast knowledge of the films, literature, popular music and geography of America,’ added Manon Rhys.
Jon Gower writes in Welsh and in English, and has since written a vast array of books including Y Storïwr (Book of the Year 2012), Norte and The Story of Wales . Rebel Rebel is his fourth volume of short stories.
Rebel Rebel by Jon Gower (£7.99, Y Lolfa) is available now.
In the normally sedate rural constituency of Ceredigion, the general election of 2015 exploded into sensationalist headlines and the dirtiest campaign in living memory. At the centre of the fray was Plaid Cymru’s English-born, first-time candidate, author and broadcaster Mike Parker.
The Greasy Poll is Mike’s witheringly honest diary of the campaign, in which he chronicles the exhilaration and exhaustion of this knife-edge fight, from the many moments of great hope to the controversies that saw him vilified in sensationalist newspaper headlines, and his ultimate defeat by three thousand votes to the incumbent Liberal Democrat MP.
‘As an incomer to Wales and an outsider in politics,’ says Mike Parker, ‘I wanted to find out for myself if our electoral system really was as broken as I feared.’
‘When I heard that Mike had been chosen as Plaid’s candidate in Ceredigion, I knew he would face some problems,’ says former Plaid Cymru President and musician, Dafydd Iwan, ‘He was not only from outside the county, but was from Kidderminster, had outspoken left-field radical views, was gay and – wait for it – sported an ear-ring. At the same time, I was elated at the news because I knew he would bring something different to Plaid’s cause.’
‘The fact that Mike is English born, and has learnt Welsh as a second language gives him a refreshingly different perspective on Wales and its people,’ added Dafydd.
The book throws a searching light on many aspects of contemporary Welsh and British politics, as well as the means by which the press and media deal with it.
‘He paid a harsh and high price as an individual and a writer for choosing to take a stand instead of grumbling from the sidelines,’ says author Dr Jasmine Donahaye, ‘But he returns as a writer with this damning, unflinching exposé of the foul practices of politicians, political parties and the press when an outsider threatens entrenched, corrupt power.’
From the perils of social media to the drumbeat rise of neo-fascism, The Greasy Poll details the splits, sags and soggy compromises of modern Welsh politics, and how badly it is failing us.
‘The rise of UKIP is based almost entirely on the increasing acceptability of racism in public life,’ says Mike Parker. ‘We see it happening all over the world, from Trump to Le Pen, and we need to call it out for what it is. But it’s not just UKIP. Our media and other political parties are playing their disreputable part in its rise.’
‘We need to discuss it far more, and with greater understanding of its historical context.’ he added.
Mike also touches upon the homophobia he experienced as a candidate, especially during the controversy, and the effect it had on his mental health.
‘Only after the election did I come to realise just how mentally battered I was by the whole experience,’ he says. ‘It’s one of the reasons that I wanted to try and understand what happened by unpicking and writing about it. Politics is a rough game, we all know that, but this shouldn’t be the norm. Small wonder that it tends to attract some odd and rather lost people.’
Based near Machynlleth in mid Wales but originally from Worcestershire, Mike Parker has written numerous critically acclaimed books inspired by his sense of place. In 25 years of self-employment, he's also been a columnist, TV and radio presenter and stand-up comedian.
The Greasy Poll – Diary of a Controversial Election will be launched at Wiff Waff Bar in Aberystwyth on the 19 th of May at 7pm.
On the 9th of June at 5.30pm Mike Parker will be in discussion with Adrian Masters at the Gallery at y Senedd building in Cardiff Bay.
Events will also be held on th e 7th of June at 7.30 pm at the Black Lion Hotel in Llanbed and on the 14th of June at 7.30pm at the Grosvenor in Cardigan.
The Greasy Poll – Diary of a Controversial Election by Mike Parker (£9.99, Y Lolfa) is available now.
Back to Welsh Literature page >
Where the Stream Ran Red is the story of one place, one family (yet, in many ways hauntingly true of families throughout the south Wales coalfield) whose narrative takes us as far as the West Indies in the time of slavery, the high seas off Singapore and the pogroms of Tsarist Ukraine.
This is the story of the entry of Gilfach Goch into history as a mining valley, separate from the anthill of the forked valleys of Rhondda, with its own curious tripartite administration and its own special part to play in the turbulence of the south Wales coalfield. The red-tinted bed of a slim stream rising in the moorland overlooking a small, isolated unpopulated valley, a cil fach , gave its name to the writer’s birthplace.
Out of the years of productivity and optimism, and the grinding misery of long, bitter strikes and economic depression, rises a compendium of stories, in which stark and sobering facts jostle with speculative reconstruction of events in past centuries and memories of boyhood in the Valleys.
‘I was prompted to write by a sense of my own failure to ask my parents, sisters and others, who were witnesses of events before I was born and during forgotten childhood years, about their experiences in two wars and the years of strikes and depression between them.’ explained author Sam Adams.
‘In the boyhood times I recall the pits were busy day and night, all able-bodied men and increasing numbers of women were employed - and we all had ration books. Families had to bear the pain of the loss of loved ones in the war, sickness had to be borne, but people simply got on with it, in the valleys as elsewhere.’
‘Stoicism and understatement were ingrained in the code of the mining valleys; I do not think my family differed from others in telling me very little about their own histories. In my case, by the time I was thoughtful enough to want to find out, it was already too late. There was nothing I could do about all the lost personal testimony, except try to ensure that our children and grandchildren would not regret, as I have done, missed chances to ask how we came to be where we are.’
‘I decided I would write for them what I remembered, and what I could find out, about the family and the times in which they lived.’ he added.
In common with many in south Wales, the author’s family has roots spread wide – from Derbyshire and Somerset to Cardiganshire, Carmarthenshire and Breconshire, and tales of origins (lost glories even) carefully preserved and passed down from generation to generation.
Writer and editor Sam Adams was born and brought up in Gilfach Goch, Glamorgan, when it was still a busy mining valley, his elementary school days there coinciding with the Second World War. Having studied English at the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, he combined a career in education with work as writer and editor.
His poems and critical writing have appeared in all the magazines of Welsh writing in English and he has made more than a hundred contributions to the Carcanet Press magazine PN Review . His editorial work includes the Collected Poems and Collected Stories of Roland Mathias and among his other publications are three monographs in the Writers of Wales series, three collections of poems and the novel Prichard’s Nose (Y Lolfa, 2010).
Where the Stream Ran Red – Memories and Histories of a Welsh Mining Valley by Sam Adams (£9.99, Y Lolfa) is available now.
Talented photographer Iestyn Hughes will present his new book at the Drwm in the National Library of Wales at 7pm.
His striking pictures take us on a personal journey around Ceredigion looking at past and present images of the county. We travel from coast to uplands, through towns and villages in good times and bad, through the eyes of an adopted ‘Cardi’ whose love for his county is visible in every frame ...
Iestyn Hughes, who lives in Bow Street, says that “Our formative years (mine were spent inAnglesey) are incredibly important in forging a sense of belonging and community, and I lacked such an emotional bond with Ceredigion. So the idea of a photographic project based on Ceredigion formed in my mind. At the very least, it would get me out of the house and at best, it might help me feel less of a stranger to the place. I upgraded my camera gear, put on my boots, and began a long process of wandering here, there and everywhere, getting acquainted with parts of the landscape and some of the people around me ...”
According to Iestyn, capturing the county is “like trying to paint a portrait of a bored teenager who won’t sit still. The best I can do is to offer a glimpse of a ‘then and now’, with or without the blemishes, some of it real, some of it imagined and idealized, some of it lost forever, in the hope of leaving an impression. After all, as details, words and images fade away, all that remains is an impression. I just hope it’s an interesting and lasting one.
“It is a visual journey – a combination of past impressions, formed from pictures I saw and was sometimes captivated by as a curator over many years, and a contemporary pictorial record, a moment in time that anyone can experience for themselves now, if they travel thoughtfully around the county.
“Many of the places I’ve photographed are easy to reach by car. As you turn the pages, you’re taken, more or less, on a journey eastwards to the remote uplands, then clockwise around the county, popping inland now and again, up the coast from the Teifi right up to the Dyfi, sometimes setting foot in neighbouring counties, then home sweet home again, back to Aberystwyth.
”Iestyn adds that Ceredigion is “like a flower waiting for sun, it bursts open with life in the glow of any social event! Those I met at carnivals, races, theatrical performances, food festivals, farmers’marts, livestock sales, village shows, young farmers’ rallies, eisteddfodau, elections, Welsh-language classes, choral evenings, society meetings, protests, seaside cleanups, lectures, and myriad gatherings, proved to me that Ceredigion is alive and brimming with people who care for its heritage and who are passionate about securing its future. It’s the Cardis, more than any particular spot on the landscape, that have left the most abiding impression.
”Ceredigion: At my Feet / Wrth fy Nhraed by Iestyn Hughes will be launched at the National Library of Wales on 3 March at 7pm. Spaces for the launch are limited, so please contact GomerPress in advance if you wish to attend (elen@gomer.co.uk / 01559 363090).Iestyn Hughes will also be signing copies of the book in Aberystwyth on Saturday, 5 March, at Siop y Pethe at 11am and Siop Inc at 2.30pm.Ceredigion:
At My Feet / Wrth fy Nhraed is now available from your local bookshop or directly from the publisher, Gomer Press, Llandysul on www.gomer.co.uk. It’s an ideal gift for all Cardis and a wonderful souvenir for visitors to the county. Bibliographic details
Ceredigion: At my Feet / Wrth fy NhraedIestyn HughesPublished by Gomer Press
ISBN 9781848517516, £14.99, paperback, 216 pages
His comments appear in a new comprehensive history of the iconic Welsh flag published by Y Lolfa– the publishers who recently launched little Red Dragon flag stickers for motorists to place over the Union Jack flag on the newly designed driving license.
‘Flying the Union Jack means always, in the final analysis, deferring to Westminster and airbrushing Wales from the picture.’ says Sion Jobbins ‘Where we have the Union Flag – such as the Olympic Games in a few months’ time, we’ll see that Wales is invisible and doesn’t exist. To fly the Union Jack is to agree ultimately that our Welshness can only by in the image allowed within Westminster rule and sensibilities.’
The book details the story behind one of the world’s most distinctive flags and Wales’s greatest symbol. Jobbins also makes some very interesting discoveries. Readers may be surprised to know that the popular flag was only made the official flag of Wales in 1959. Jobbins recalls campaigns to have the Welsh flag recognised had included local nationalist activists and Bangor students climbing up the flag pole on Caernarfon Castle’s Eagle Tower on St David’s Day in 1932 to tear down the Union Jack.
The vast majority of Welsh people may also be unaware that the official flag of Wales in the 1950s was not the one they now know and love. Rather, it was the ‘Welsh Office’ design which was the official flag. It was only following a mass campaign lead by the Eisteddfod Gorsedd in 1958 that the Cabinet decided in 1959 in that the familiar and popular flag would, at last, be the official flag.
Jobbins also suggests 28th of May be the ‘Flag Day’ of the Red Dragon as it was on this day in 1865 that the first recorded flying of the flag in its modern incarnation was made. The flag was flown aboard the Mimosa ship as it sailed from Liverpool with the first settlers for the Welsh colony in Patagonia.
Sion Jobbins was born in Zambia and raised in Cardiff and is also the author of the popular book ‘The Welsh National Anthem: its story, its meaning’ also published by Y Lolfa.
The Red Dragon – The Story of the Welsh Flag is full of photographs, cuttings and illustrations and sure to appeal to both visitors to Wales and locals alike and is keenly priced for the impulsive buyer.
The Red Dragon - The Story of the Welsh Flag by Siôn Jobbins (£3.99, Y Lolfa) is available now from all good bookshops.
In Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, The Life and Death of a Warrior Prince , Llywelyn narrates his own life story and the attempt to free Wales from English hegemony.
His life and death has always confronted us with a puzzling contradiction - he was the only Welsh leader to be officially recognised by the English as Prince of Wales, yet, within a year of his death, Wales lay crushed beneath the iron heel of the rapacious English.
The author Peter Gordon Williams was born in Merthyr Tydfil. A mathmatics graduate, he served for two years in the RAF before pursuing a career as a teacher in further and higher education. The author has already published four novels, including very well-received novel on the life of Owain Glyndŵr in 2011.
Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, The Life and Death of a Warrior Prince by Peter Gordon Williams (£6.95, Y Lolfa) is available now.
A friend of the unemployed and Socialist intelligentsia alike - he was visited during his time in Detroit by Welsh statesman Jim Griffiths and in Machen by black singer and human rights activist Paul Robeson - he was a fearless champion of the underdog, though, perhaps, got carried away sometimes by the power of his own oratory. A polyglot and a cultured man of many interests, he succeeded in disturbing the waters almost everywhere he went..
About the author
A native of Treherbert in the Rhondda Valley and a miner's son, the Revd Ivor Thomas Rees served Congregational and United Reformed Church pastorates in Port Talbot, Clapham, Manselton and Rochdale before retiring to Swansea in 1996.
Author’s debut novel chosen as first English-language Children’s Book of the Month
By AmeriCymru, 2015-06-25
Both the Welsh Books Council and the National Museum have chosen the debut novel by author Sheila Harries as their July Children’s Book of the Month and Book of the Month respectively.
Over 50 shops have signed up to the Welsh Books Council’s scheme and Cathryn Gwynn, editor at Pont Books says
“We are delighted that The Picture that Made Time Fly has been chosen as the first English-language title since the scheme was launched in March.
“Pont publish English-language books that have a strong Welsh identity and our aim is to build a connection between the young people of the different cultures of Wales and their country through great stories and lovely books”.
Originally from Northampton and a former school librarian in Oxfordshire, Sheila Harries has had many years’ experience of talking to young people about what makes a good book, and has welcomed great authors and illustrators such as Philip Pullman, Malorie Blackman, Caroline Lawrence and Nick Sharratt into her library to inspire and entertain.
Now living in Penarth, the author is a frequent visitor to the National Museum of Wales which is where the novel opens, with a group of children on a school trip.
It was just another picture in the art gallery – or so Megan and Rhys thought, as they stared at it long and hard. But it wasn’t…
All of a sudden, a normal school trip day at the museum turns into a spinning vortex through time, dragging them both into a strange place where they have to survive on their wits.
Embroiled in dangers and facing challenges far away from the present, the question is always there… can they ever get back? How?
The Picture that Made Time Fly is available from all good bookshops and online retailers and is suitable for readers aged 8 – 11 years
For more information, visit www.gomer.co.uk
About the author
It’s fair to say that Sheila Harries loves books. In her career as a school librarian in Oxfordshire, she has had many years’ experience of talking to young people about what makes a good book, and has welcomed great authors and illustrators such as Philip Pullman, Malorie Blackman, Caroline Lawrence and Nick Sharratt into her library to inspire and entertain. Now she has written an entertaining and inspiring book herself. The book, like Sheila, is based around Cardiff and reflects her love of history, languages, and art – and a good adventure. Living in Penarth, she is a frequent visitor to the National Museum of Wales which is where the novel opens, with a group of children on a school trip. It’s a familiar scenario to her as someone who enjoys taking her grandchildren to see interesting places. She is also a keen traveller herself – but loves coming back to her garden and the cats!qwdqwedq
