In time for the Saint David's celebrations in Wales, Wendy White brought out her lovely book: "Saint David's Day in Cancelled". Wendy will be reading from her book at the Lit Fest.
Saturday April 29th at 3pm at Eve’s Toy Shop 
“Saint David’s Day is Cancelled” – Reading for children by author Wendy White (suitable for ages 4 – 104)
“Saint David’s Day is Cancelled” – Reading for children by author Wendy White (suitable for ages 4 – 104)
St David’s Day is CancelledChildren’s author Wendy White reads from her latest book and talks about her work. Her fun and light-hearted session is for children with accompanying adults. Suitable for ages 4-10.
Darlleniad ysgafn a hwyliog gan Wendy White, yn addas ar gyfer plant 4-10 oed.
Here is an interview with Wendy. Welcome and please tell us about the books you’ll be bringing to the Lit Fest.
I’ve written three children’s books, Welsh Cakes and Custard, Three Cheers for Wales and St David’s Day is Cancelled. The last
one was published most recently – February this year – so I’m especially
looking forward to bringing that along to Llandeilo Lit Fest. I’ll also be
reading excerpts from my books at Eve’s Toy Shop on Saturday, 29th
April at 3 p.m. It’s a lovely shop with the most gorgeous toys and books, so
I’m very happy to be invited to read there.
What are the
characters and plots like?
My children’s books are fun and
humorous. Betsi Wyn and Emyr Rhys, along with their grandparents, are the
central characters in Welsh Cakes and
Custard and Three Cheers for Wales.
They’re aimed at 4 - 8 year-olds and each have five short stories, which
include Welsh songs and recipes. St
David’s Day is Cancelled is about a group of children who run their school
newspaper. When they suspect that their head teacher, Mrs Right, has no plans
to mark St David’s Day, they set about investigating and organise a celebration
she simply can’t ignore. This book is suitable for 7 – 9 year-olds and has been
called ‘funny’ and ‘inspiring’.
Which of your books
are you’re most proud of, and why?
I’m very proud of my latest book as
it’s my new ‘baby’ – I love the humorous illustrations that Huw Aaron of
Cardiff has done for it and the whole book has a fun, quirky feel. But I guess
I’d have to say that I’m most proud of Welsh
Cakes and Custard as it won the Tir na n’Og Award in 2014. It was for best
English language book with a Welsh dimension, and it was my first, so I was
absolutely delighted.
Why did you decide
to come to the Llandeilo Literature Festival?
Llandeilo is a great town with real
character and fantastic, independent shops, restaurants and cafes. It exudes
culture and creativity and is a wonderful venue for a literature festival. I
thoroughly enjoyed being part of Llandeilo Book Fair at Christmas, so I jumped
at the chance to be part of April’s Lit Fest. I’m really looking forward to
meeting fellow book lovers and local authors too.
What is your
personal background?
I grew up in Llanelli where I loved
the old town library. I’d spend my Saturday afternoons there and always
borrowed the maximum number of books – three at that time (I believe it’s 10
for children now – the lucky things!) then I’d read them as fast as I could. My
love of reading turned into a love of writing, but being a teacher and having
my own children meant I didn’t have much spare time. About fourteen years ago,
when my children were older, I started attending creative writing classes and
really enjoyed them. The classes gave me the confidence to submit my writing to
publishers, and eventually Gomer Press accepted my first book. I now also write
for adults, using the pen name Sara Gethin. Keeping my two identities separate
means I can continue writing humorous books for children, but also write darker
novels for adults.
Who are your
favourite authors?
I have so many. Lots of them are
local, such as Kate Glanville, Sally Spedding and Carol Lovekin, and they’ll be
bringing their books to Llandeilo Lit Fest too. I also love Irish writers like
Emma Donoghue and Roddy Doyle, and my all-time favourite crime writer is Ian
Rankin. I love the fact that my editor at Honno Press, Caroline Oakley, used to
be his editor at Orion – that gem still brings a smile to my face!
Please share your
social media links and buy links to your books.
Website: wendywhite.org.uk
Facebook: @wendywhitewriter
Twitter: @Wendy_J_White
www.amazon.co.uk/Welsh-Cakes-Custard-Wendy-White/dp/1848517122
www.amazon.co.uk/Three-Cheers-Wales-Wendy-White/dp/1848519176
www.amazon.co.uk/Davids-Day-Cancelled-Wendy-White/dp/1785622080
Website & Blog: saragethin.com
Facebook: SaraGethinWriter
Twitter: SGethinWriter
www.amazon.co.uk/Not-Thomas-Sara-Gethin/dp/1909983624
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