DUBBED “Cornwall's Booker Prize”, the annual awards for the

best Cornish books published during the past 12 months were

presented at a packed ceremony in Truro.

Held in Waterstones book shop, the event was organised by

Gorsedh Kernow, which runs the annual Holyer an Gof competition

which covers a range of categories, from Cornish language and

children's stories to novels, poetry and non-fiction. With the

standard of writing and production values higher than ever, the

Holyer an Gof awards attracted a record entry of 78 titles.

There were 20 readers and judges, most of them bards of Gorsedh

Kernow, plus 10 schoolchildren who helped with the children's

award.

For the past five years the event has been sponsored by the

Eden Project, with each of the winners being given a cheque for

£50 to pass on to a Cornish charity of his or her choice.

The star of the awards evening was Catherine Lorigan, whose

book Delabole: The Story Of The Slate Quarry And The Making Of

Its Village Community not only won the award for adult

non-fiction, but also scooped the Holyer an Gof major

award.

Results

Class 1 (Cornish language): by Bewnans Ke, edited by Graham

Thomas and Nicholas Williams, published by the University of

Exeter Press.

Class 2 (children's books): The Bower Bird by Ann Kelley,

published by Luath Press. Also awarded the Cornish Literary

Guild's Literary Salver, presented to the author by the guild's

president, novelist E V Thompson.

Class 3 (predominantly illustrations, paintings): A Visitor

To Cornwall by Jo Mattingly and Stephen Tyrell, published by

Pasticcio.

Class 4 (adult fiction, novels and short stories): True

Colours by Mike Sagar Fenton, published by Truran.

Class 5 (adult poetry and drama): Violets Unfold In My

Throat by John Gordon, published by Hypatia Trust.

Class 6 (adult non-fiction – study of locality, village,

town or parish): Delabole: The Story Of The Slate Quarry And

The Making Of Its Village Community by Catherine Lorigan,

published by Pengelly Press.

Class 7 (all other non-fiction): The Making Of Moonta by

Philip Payton.

Publications that received commendations in their various

classes were Pan Dheuth An Glaw by Tony Snell, published by

Kesva an Taves Kernewek; A Slice Of Treneere, compiled by a

number of young writers and published by Trelya; Penwith Moods

and Wild About Cornwall, both by David Chapman, and both

published by Alison Hodge; Jane Tozer's Knights Of Love

published by Fal; Susan Hoyle's The Church Of St Levan,

published by the Hypatia Trust; Chris Vick's Storm Of The Magi,

published by Truran; The Islanders by John Trelawny, published

by Beavers Press; Electric Pastyland by Alan Kent, published by

Halsgrove; Cornwall Cree Nation by Alan Davis, published by

Johnston Hope; Brian French's Wreck And Rescue Round Padstow's

Doom Bar, published by Lodenek Press; Once Aboard A Cornish

Lugger by Paul Greenwood, published by Polperro Heritage Press;

The Isles Of Scilly by Rosemary Parslow, published by Collins;

The Banners Of The Old Cornwall Societies by David Stark,

published by the FOCS; Nicholas Orme's Cornwall And The Cross,

published by Phillimore; and A Strange Unquenchable Race,

Cornwall And The Cornish In Quotations, compiled by Derek

Williams and published by Truran.

The Holyer an Gof award ceremony is staged and also

sponsored by Waterstones in Truro, whose staff select a special

Cornish bestseller for its award. This year's winner was

Shadows In The Sky by Pete Cross, published by Studio

Cactus.

A special commendation was also given to Setting Cornwall On

Its Feet: Robert Morton Nance 1873-1959, edited by Peter Thomas

and Derek Williams, and published by Francis Boutle.

Submission details for the 2008 Holyer an Gof will be

announced in September.