As her debut short story collection A City Burning, is published, we interview Angela Graham to find out more about the book and what inspires her.
In the twenty-six stories in A City Burning, set in Wales, Northern Ireland and Italy, children and adults face, in the flames of personal tragedy, moments of potential transformation. On the threshold of their futures each must make a choice: how to live in this new ‘now’. With a virtuoso control of tone, by turns elegiac, comic, lyrical, philosophical, A City Burning examines power of all types. The result is a deeply human book full of hauntingly memorable characters and narratives.
What is the meaning behind the title A City Burning?
In the opening story, ‘The Road’, a young girl witnesses her city blazing. She understands that this is a sign of the collapse of the status quo, of all the usual certainties. She is confronted with the need to react to this new situation. What values should guide her in this choice? I realised that this story encapsulates the theme of many stories in the collection – witnessing major change and having to work out a response. It seemed a fitting title for the book.
26 short stories set in Wales, Northern Ireland and Italy, from the end of the econd World War to the Covid pandemic.
With a virtuoso control of tone, by turns elegiac, comic, lyrical, philosophical, A City Burning examines power of all types, exploring conflicts between political allegiances; between autonomy and intimacy; emotional display and concealment; resistance versus acceptance. The result is a deeply human book full of hauntingly memorable characters and narratives.
Matthew M.C. Smith is an adventurous, and apparently indefatigable, poet and poetry impresario. It may be his gift for collaboration which enables him to be so productive.
This beautiful-to-handle, easy-on-the-eye, large-format book from Black Bough Poetry has been produced by a team and assembling a coherent team is a skill in itself. The members are:
” Welsh writer, Laura Wainwright, Louisiana’s former Laureate, Jack Bedell, and Aotearoa’s, Ankh Spice. The amazing illustrations are by Rebecca Wainwright, a Newport-born artist from Newport in Wales, now living in London. Music for this project is composed and curated by Brisbane-based Stuart Rawlinson.”
Artwork by Rebecca Wainwright
Deep Time volume 2, is Black Bough poetry’s second print anthology. It is dedicated to the writer Robert Macfarlane, who wrote award-winning non-fiction work, Underland (2019).
A city burns in a crisis − because the status quo has collapsed and change must come. Every value, relationship and belief is shaken and the future is uncertain.
“This is an exemplary collection illustrating the creative possibilities of the short fiction form” – Jane Fraser
“Angela Graham is a brilliant new voice. This is literature that deserves to last.” – Kate Hamer
“Angela Graham’s debut collection A City Burning announced a confident, stylish new voice in short fiction.” Jon Gower (Nation Cymru)
“In this powerful collection, Angela Graham shows herself master of the angle of vision: her tales capture the mercurial moment when a person’s world is changed forever, in a road or room, against a landscape, seascape or starscape, at the graveside or (as in the towering story, ‘Life-Task’) at a forsaken railway station in the aftermath of war.” – Stevie Davies
Poetry Pause is run by Emma Baines, Philippa Davies and Jean Riley near Narberth, west Wales. In Episode 7 the focus is on Carol Ann Duffy and has a powerful sonnet from Mab Jones and one from me.
Hear an extract from the opening story ‘The Road’ from my collection of 26 short stories, ‘A City Burning’ (Seren Books ). Launch on Tuesday 27th October 7pm.
At the launch I’ll be reading and I will be joined by 3 wonderful readers who will give a voice to extracts from 3 stories.
Geraint Lewis from Tregaron, Ceredigion, west Wales, actor, playwright, novelist and short story writer.
Viviana Fiorentino from Italy, poet, novelist, translator and activist on migration policy.
Mewn argyfwng y mae dinas yn llosgi – am fod yr hen drefn wedi methu ac mae’n rhaid i newid ddod. Mae pob gwerth, perthynas a chred yn cael ei siglo ac mae’r dyfodol yn anelwig.
Yn y chwe stori ar hugain yn A City Burning, mae plant ac oedolion yn llygadu eiliadau o drawsnewid posib yn fflamau trasiedi bersonol. Ar drothwy eu dyfodol, rhaid i bob un ddewis: sut i fyw yn y ‘nawr’ newydd hwn.
Wedi’u lleoli yng Nghymru, Gogledd Iwerddon a’r Eidal, mae’r straeon cwmpasu cyfnod yr Ail Ryfel Byd ac oes Covid-19.
Wrth aros am garcharorion digalon ddod adre o’r Rhyfel, mae Eidalwr yn gweld ffordd ysgytwol i ailadeiladu ei fyd; ar arfordir Antrim, mae Gwyddel yn cael ei wthio i’r dibyn gan gythreuliaid ei deulu niwrotig; yng Nghymoedd de Cymru, helpu’r henoed yn eu cartrefi yn ystod y pandemig yw ffrwnt newydd brwydr y gweithwyr, ym mhrofiad un o’u gofalwyr. Merch yn ei harddegau yn digalonni wrth wynebu dyfodol ym myd Covid; terfysgwr mewn cariad; gweinidog dialgar; actores yn ceisio goleuni yn ei rôl i oresgyn rhwystrau ei bywyd go iawn: dyma bobol gyffredin mewn argyfwng – pob un wedi’i bortreadu â dealltwriaeth ffyrnig o anghyfiawnder a chreulondeb eu bywydau.
Ond mae’r sgwennu’n delynegol hefyd, llawn hiwmor ar brydiau ac yn craffu ar iaith ac ieithoedd – Eidaleg, Ulster Scots, Cymraeg. Yn ogystal â chymeriadau yn eu gwledydd eu hunain, rydyn ni’n cwrdd â Gwyddelod yn yr Eidal, Eidalwyr yng Nghymru, Cymry yng Ngogledd Iwerddon.
Angela Graham ar arfordir Antrim
Mae gweledigaeth sinematig o ffocws a lleoliad yn sail i bopeth sy’n digwydd: siop lyfrau diflas wedi troi’n gyrchfan rhamantus gan ysbrydion y meirw; dau offeiriad ifanc mewn cegin yn y Fatican yn gwrthdaro’n serchus; nemesis yn taro – o’r awyr – mewn coridor ysbyty.
Mae gan Angela Graham greddf am fanylion arwyddocaol a chlust am ddistawrwydd llwythog; fe fydd ei straeon yn gafael yn eu darllenwyr ac yn aros yn y cof ymhell ar ôl iddynt ddod i ddiweddglo.
Gwyddeles Gymraeg sy’n wreiddiol o Belffast yw Angela Graham. Cyn ysgrifennu A City Burning roedd hi’n gynhyrchydd a chyfarwyddwr teledu ac yn awdur sgriptïau ffilm yng Nghymru. Mae hi wedi cynhyrchu mwy na 100 o raglenni dogfen a ffeithiol i S4C, BBC, ITV a Channel 4. Bu’n Gynhyrchydd Datblygu ar ‘The Story of Wales’, gyfres hanes Cymru nodedig y BBC a ennillodd gwobrwyon BAFTA Cymru. Cynhyrchodd a chyd-ysgrifennodd y ffilm sinema Gymraeg / Wyddelig ‘Branwen’ (ymgeisydd i’r Oscars yn y categori Iaith Dramor ac enillydd gwobrau rhyngwladol) ac mae hi wedi ysgrifennu sgriptiau ffilm wedi’u lleoli yn yr Eidal a Rwmania.
Mae straeon Angela Graham wedi cael eu cyhoeddi’n eang mewn sawl gwlad a’u canmol yn frwd am eu meistrolaeth o dôn a llais. Mae hi’n rhugl ei Chymraegac yn fardd arobryn.
Labelau: Canolfan Ysgrifennu Genedlaethol Cymru, Ty Newydd
Beirniadaeth ar A City Burning:
‘Angela Graham is a brilliant new voice. This is literature that will last.’ Kate Hamer
“In this powerful collection, Angela Graham shows herself master of the angle of vision: her tales capture the mercurial moment when a person’s world is changed forever, in a road or room, against a landscape, seascape or starscape, at the graveside or (as in the towering story, ‘Life-Task’) at a forsaken railway station in the aftermath of war.” – Stevie Davies
“These stories show us what the genre does best: the ‘snapshot’ of a moment which reveals a life or a culture in a moment of transition or realisation, what James Joyce called an ‘epiphany’. … This vivid, humane and beautifully-controlled collection suggests Angela Graham is another name to watch.” – Prof Diana Wallace
“Good writing is compelling. Each of these twenty-six stories takes you out of your own skin and into the lived experience of another… The writing is sparse. Every word is telling… But there’s also lyricism, a feel for the rhythm of speech and an ability to capture natural beauty… These stories are not comfortable… but they are honest, searing, insightful and very, very good.” – Inez Lynn
‘The stories entice and intrigue…highly recommended’ – Graham Reid
‘Short, sharp and sometimes shocking, these wonderful stories truly pack a punch.’ Sue Leonard
‘an impressive kaleidoscope of landscape and language’ – Angeline King
‘A debut collection of tales remarkable for its verve, depth and range. Elegantly arranged, pellucidly told and persistently perceptive: twenty-six stories, one singular voice.’ – Jon Gower
I’m so delighted to have 3 wonderful readers to deliver extracts from my short story collection A City Burning at its launch on 27th October at 7pm: 26 stories set in Wales, Italy and Northern Ireland:
Geraint Lewis from Tregaron, west Wales, actor, playwright, novelist and short story writer.
Viviana Fiorentino from Italy, poet, novelist, translator and activist on migration policy.
“onesto, bruciante, perspicace e molto, molto buono”.
– La rivista New City su ‘A City Burning” pubblicato da Seren Books
Ambientate in Irlanda del Nord, Galles e Italia, le storie di A City Burning si muovono dalla fine della Seconda Guerra Mondiale all’era del Covid-19.
Una città brucia in una crisi – perché lo status quo è ormai al collasso e il cambiamento deve ancora arrivare. Ogni valore, relazione e credo è scosso e il futuro è messo in gioco.
Nelle ventisei storie di Una Città Brucia, bambini e adulti affrontano, tra le scottanti tragedie personali, momenti di potenziale trasformazione, seppur costosa. Sulla soglia del proprio futuro ognuno deve fare una scelta: come vivere in questo nuovo “adesso”.
This landmark BBC history series won a BAFTA Cymru Award for Huw Edwards as Best Presenter.
pic Copyright @huwjohn.com
and a BAFTA Cymru Award – the Gwyn A. WIlliams Award – for Outstanding Countribution to History on Television.
I was the Development Producer on the series.
Welsh Government subsequently commissioned additional material and a re-versioning for use in schools (7 – 16 years) with an interactive timeline of Welsh history and Teachers’ Notes. I was Producer on this.
