PRESENTATION OF CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARDS
 
The prestigious 2005 Tir Na n-Og Awards were presented at a ceremony in Cardiff on 18 October by Alun Pugh, the Minister for Culture, the Welsh language and Sport.
 
The Awards, of £1,000 each, are presented annually by the Welsh Books Council and CILIP Wales to honour the work of children’s authors and book illustrators. The winners this year are:

BEST ENGLISH-LANGUAGE BOOK WITH A WELSH BACKGROUND The Seal Children, Jackie Morris (Francis Lincoln) London   A picture-book with lyrical text and stunning illustrations for 7-9 year olds which captures the grim reality of life on the Welsh coast.  This is the second time that Jackie Morris has won the Tir Na n-Og Award.
BEST WELSH-LANGUAGE FICTION Eco, Emily Huws (Cymdeithas Lyfrau Ceredigion) Aberystwyth   A novel for 9-12 year olds portraying the tension in the life of Blodyn Haf (Summer Flower), a nine year old girl whose mother is a keen eco-warrior.  This is the third time that Emily Huws has won the Tir Na n-Og Awards.
BEST WELSH-LANGUAGE NON-FICTION Byd Llawn Hud (Gomer Press) Llandysul   A volume of twenty new poems exploring the themes of nature, friends and family by contemporary Welsh poets including Mererid Hopwood (current Children’s Poet Laureate), Tudur Dylan and Ceri Wyn Jones.  The volume is beautifully illustrated by Chris Glynn.

Alun Pugh, the Culture Minister, said: ‘High quality and attractive books are essential to encourage children and young people to take up the reading habit.  I'm pleased to be here this evening to honour the cream of the crop of this year's writing for children from Wales.’
 
For further information please contact: Elwyn Jones, Head of Administration and Public Relations, Welsh Books Council, Castell Brychan, Aberystwyth, Ceredigion  SY23 2JB
T (01970) 624151 F (01970) 625385 E elwyn.jones@wbc.org.uk