First published in 1996 this new version reflects the changes to the communities and landscape of the area over the last ten years. The collection includes twenty new authors who have been inspired by Swansea and Gower.

Fersiwn newydd o gyfrol a gyhoeddwyd yn wreiddiol ym 1996. Adlewyrcha'r fersiwn newydd y newidiadau i'r cymunedau a'r tirlun dros y degawd. Ceir cyfraniadau gan ugain awdur ychwanegol, y cyfan wedi eu hysbrydoli gan Abertawe a Gŵyr.

If any Welsh town or city qualifies as a literary capital, it must surely be Swansea. It is the birthplace of a major poet (no need for me to mention his name) and in 1995 hosted the prestigious UK Year of Literature Festival. This anthology first appeared in 1996 and in this revised reprint James Davies has had the opportunity to draw upon the work of a number of additional writers who are not represented in the original edition.

The editor has produced a most eclectic selection of work and includes the Gower within his regional orbit. The work of both indigenous writers and visitors will be found here and the time span covered is wide-ranging. Defoe, Walters Savage Landor and George Borrow sit side by side with much more recent writers.

The selection opens with David Jones’s ‘The Sleeping Lord’ in which he writes of the human skeleton dating from the Stone Age, discovered in Paviland Caves. Dylan Thomas, Vernon Watkins and Kingsley Amis figure prominently, as indeed does Martin Amis. I particularly enjoyed John Arlott’s poem ‘Cricket in Swansea’, Moira Dearnley’s account of a college ball and Barbara Hardy’s evocation of a Swansea upbringing. A bleaker impression of childhood is contained in Denis F. Ratcliffe’s account of working class life during the blitz. Stephen Knight, Stevie Davies and Kathryn Gray are among the writers who have become established since the original edition was published.

A Swansea Anthology is one of a number of fine anthologies published by Seren in recent years and Dr
Davies has certainly done his subject justice.

Dewi Roberts

It is possible to use this review for promotional purposes, but the following acknowledgment 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 ganiatâd Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru.