Poet Ailbhe Darcy is the People’s Choice Winner
In a ceremony at Aberystwyth Arts Centre on 20th June, the Cardiff-based poet Ailbhe Darcy was declared overall winner of the Wales Book of the Year Award 2019 with her impressive collection, Insistence (published by Bloodaxe Books).
She received a total prize pot of £4,000 plus a specially commissioned trophy (designed and created by the artist Angharad Pearce Jones), which was presented to her by Professor Elizabeth Treasure, Vice-Chancellor of Aberystwyth University.
The judges described Darcy’s collection, which is set during a six-year period the poet and her family spent living in a post-industrial city in the Midwestern United States, as a “thoroughly human project” and as opening up a natural world “where love erupts with explosive force onto the necessity of living.”
Literature Wales chief executive Lleucu Siencyn commented to journalists: “Wales has an age-old poetic tradition, and Ailbhe Darcy’s win shows us that poetry’s power to help us make sense of the world, ourselves, and others around us is as relevant today as it always has been.”
Recognizing books across three categories in both English and Welsh – in poetry, fiction and creative non-fiction – ten winners took to the stage during the ceremony and between them shared a prize fund of £12,000.
The category winners were:
THE ROLAND MATHIAS POETRY AWARD
Insistence, Ailbhe Darcy (Bloodaxe Books Ltd.)
ABERYSTWYTH UNIVERSITY FICTION AWARD
West, Carys Davies (Granta Publications)
THE CREATIVE NON-FICTION AWARD
Moneyland, Oliver Bullough (Profile Books)
THE WALES ARTS REVIEW PEOPLE’S CHOICE PRIZE
Insistence, Ailbhe Darcy (Bloodaxe Books Ltd.)
THE WELSH-LANGUAGE POETRY AWARD
GWOBR FARDDONIAETH
Cyrraedd a cherddi eraill, Alan Llwyd (Cyhoeddiadau Barddas)
THE WELSH-LANGUAGE FICTION AWARD
GWOBR FFUGLEN PRIFYSGOL ABERYSTWYTH
Llyfr Glas Nebo, Manon Steffan Ros (Y Lolfa)
THE WELSH-LANGUAGE CREATIVE NON-FICTION AWARD
GWOBR FFEITHIOL- GREADIGOL
Cymru mewn 100 Gwrthrych, Andrew Green (Gwasg Gomer)
Categories: Literary Awards
I read Carys Davies’ short story collection and was impressed – bought a copy of West recently and am looking forward to this
Did you read Annabel Gaskell’s smashing review of West? It went straight on my TBR list after reading her comments. http://annabookbel.net/perfectly-formed-novella-west-carys-davies-granta
Thanks for the plug again, Paula. Wonderful novella.
I hadn’t seen that Paula, thanks for pointing me in the direction.
Last year I knew all the finalists in the fiction category (two of them were once students of mine). Am intrigued to see who is in it this year.
Wow, you may have tutored a winner, Maria! 😃
Last year Crystal Jeans won the fiction category with ‘Light Switches are my Kryptonite’. It’s some years since she was my student though so I take no credit!
Congratulations to all! And I just love the cover of Ailbhe Darcy’s Insistence.
I was quite taken with the cover, too. 😊
Some contenders for a future #dewithon then!
Definitely!