Saturday, July 14, 2012

McGuinness wins Welsh Book of the Year



Patrick McGuinness has won the Wales Book of the Year 2012, receiving a £6,000 cheque for The Last Hundred Days (Seren). It is the third award the title has received, having already been honoured by Costa First Novel Award Short List and The Man Booker Prize Longlist in 2011.
McGuiness was presented with his cheque by minister for skills and education Leighton Andrews and chair of the Arts Council of Wales, Professor Dai Smith, at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff yesterday (12th July).

Chair of the judges Spencer Jordan, said of Patrick McGuinness’ novel: “In a world turned upside by the Arab Spring and economic cataclysm, can there be a more apposite or important book than The Last Hundred Days? I doubt it. Set against the backdrop of Ceaucescu's crumbling regime, the book explores the very human cost when society itself begins to self destruct.”

Richard Gwyn won the prize for creative non-fiction with his memoir, The Vagabond’s Breakfast (Alcemi), and Wales’ former National Poet Gwyneth Lewis won the Roland Mathias Poetry Award with her collection, Sparrow Tree (Bloodaxe Books). Philip Gross was named the public’s favourite and awarded Media Wales’ People’s Choice Award for his poetry collection, Deep Field (Bloodaxe Books), with each category winner receiving a £2,000 cheque.
Jordan added: “Writing is never more compelling or braver than when it comes from the heart, and that's what these three books do. In their own small way, each is a manifesto for the human soul in the twenty first century”.
Welsh language winners included Jon Gower for his novel, Y Storïwr (Gwasg Gomer), about a young man who has an exceptional talent for storytelling, Allan James in the creative non-fiction category for his study of the scholar and poet, John Morris-Jones, (University of Wales Press) and Poet Karen Owen who won in the Welsh Poetry category.

Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)