One of the foremost talents on the Welsh literary scene, will soon be discussing his latest novel in a Pembrokeshire seaside town.
Richard Gwyn is one of the writers involved in Literature Sunday when the Ar Ymyl y Tir/On Land’s Edge Festival returns to Fishguard next month.
In his latest novel Ambassador of Nowhere, the one-time alcoholic and homeless drifter charts his journey across South America in search of poems for his landmark anthology, The Other Tiger.
Criss-crossing the continent, he is driven through lunar landscapes in Patagonia, walks in the temperate rainforests of southern Chile, and travels to a town on the Rio Magdalena that may or may not exist.
And all the while the Pontypool-born author, who was raised in Breconshire, struggles to keep his own life on track when confronted by the demons of an earlier existence.
From the betrayal of revolution in Nicaragua to the victims of guerrilla war in Colombia and the threat of narco gang violence in Mexico, Gwyn’s lyrical, life-affirming account pays homage to a deeply conflicted and paradoxical continent.
Once given only a year to live, Richard Gwyn turned his life around to become a respected author and teacher.
This remarkable transformation was chronicled in his 2011 memoir The Vagabond’s Breakfast.
Richard will be reading from Ambassador of Nowhere while in conversation with chair of Span Arts Sue Lewis at Ffwrn on the final day of the festival – Sunday, September 22 at 1pm.
Literature Sunday also includes Emyr Wallace Humphreys, will be reading from his translation into English of the Welsh sci-fi classic Y Dydd Olaf (The Last Day) and in conversation with festival stalwart Jon Gower.
In addition, local author Tim Wickenden will be reading from his latest novel That Girl in the Boxcar and in conversation with Mike Ponsford.
Book your early bird tickets (available until August 31) at for an afternoon of literary riches.
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