Alys Conran and Peter Lord won their respective categories at the 2017 Wales Book of the Year. Alys's Pigeon won three awards, including the People's Choice Award, the Rhys Davies Trust Fiction Award, and the English-language Wales Book of the Year award. Her husband was carrying the trophies around afterward and I imagine his hands were getting tired.
Peter Lord meanwhile won the Creative Non-fiction Award for The Tradition, a work he was quick to point out was made possible by many including the talented book designer Olwen Fowler. Talking to Peter afterward, his passion for the art, and art specifically that deals with the human experience is what motivates him. Listen to a recording from our live-stream below:
The consensus of opinion about Alys as a person and an author was palpable in the room. As she made each of her three speeches it became evident that she and her book are an ambassador for the Welsh language. Her speeches wove both languages in seamlessly, as if the speech wouldn't be whole without both present. Listen to Alys and Peter discuss the impact of Pigeon:
It was a beautiful event, because it was a community of people dedicated to the art, culture, and literature of a country that has much to take pride in. It was a night for Wales, by Wales. It's one of those rare communities, where you can be cognisant of being an insider, but not excluded from it, but rather embraced. Pigeon and The Tradition do the same. The table where books were being sold was frequented by many. A sign of things to come. Here are some more photos from the celebration:
