A warm and fascinating account of the colourful lives of various personalities of the multi-ethnic community of Tiger Bay, including the author's family, celebrating the diverse richness of a community facing extinction owing to modern developments in the bay area of Cardiff. 71 black-and-white photographs.

Hanes cynnes a hynod ddiddorol bywydau lliwgar personoliaethau y gymuned aml-ethnig yn Tiger Bay, yn cynnwys teulu'r awdur, sef dathliad o gyfoeth amrywiol cymuned sy'n wynebu difodiant yn sgil datblygiadau cyfoes yn ardal y Bae yng Nghaerdydd. 71 ffotograff du-a-gwyn.

South of the railway, once memorably described by Rhodri Morgan as Cardiff's Mason-Dixon Line, Butetown is now the preferred label for the once vibrant community of Tiger Bay. It had survived the onslaught of the Luftwaffe in the 1940s only to be attacked anew by Cardiff's own city fathers through a 1960s redevelopment scheme and by the Cardiff Bay Development Corporation in the 1990s. The latter two started from the premise that Tiger Bay was a problem, whereas the author of this passionate tract in defense of his threatened community contends that such a view was entirely misconceived. Rather, he suggests, this unique district of the Welsh capital was ahead of its time as a tolerant multi-racial, multi-lingual, multi-faith community with fierce local pride but also a strong Welsh identity.

The strength of the Welsh identity may come as a surprise. Although the principal languages of what remains of Tiger Bay today are English, Arabic and Somali, the community once boasted four Welsh-language chapels. Mahala Davis was the first black singer to record in Welsh; the more famous Shirley Bassey, of Nigerian ancestry, was born and raised on Bute Street. Such sons of Tiger Bay as Billie Boston, Jim Driscoll and Ryan Giggs represented Wales in the world of sport. Yet the legacy of Empire had produced a climate of racism that led to anti-Chinese riots in 1911 and anti-Black riots in 1919. Tiger Bay was placed off limits to American GIs in the Second World War, ironically since so many of them were black Americans. In the 1950s, young women from Tiger Bay found it hard to gain employment in the smart stores north of that Mason-Dixon Line and derogatory terms such as "nigger" or "darkie" were far from uncommon.

In a place now known as Butetown, a few attractive buildings from the original dockland community survive: the Norwegian Church, re-erected at the waterfront in 1992; the Pierhead Building, built in 1897 as the headquarters of the Cardiff Railway Company; and the once frantic Coal Exchange, designated as the home of the Welsh Assembly that was still-born in 1979. Many of the fine buildings and spaces of Tiger Bay disappeared as the wrecking balls and bulldozers moved in: the Westminster Bank building in West Bute Street, for example, and Loudon Square, the latter obliterated to make room for unloved tower blocks. There are a score of black-and-white photographs (which deserve more space on the page) to evoke fond memories of this unique community now living out its twilight years. Neil Sinclair has produced a passionate community history that is also a tract for the times against racism and for community empowerment.

David Barnes

It is possible to use this review for promotional purposes, but the following acknowledgement should be included: A review from www.gwales.com, with the permission of the Welsh Books Council.

Gellir defnyddio’r adolygiad hwn at bwrpas hybu, ond gofynnir i chi gynnwys y gydnabyddiaeth ganlynol: Adolygiad oddi ar www.gwales.com, trwy ganiatad Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru.