For Whom the Bell Tolls
Peter Goodall
From its original location in Swansea Castle to its present home on a patch of land still known as Cox's Farm, Swansea Prison has had a long and colourful history. In this accessible and fully illustrated book, author Peter Goodall charts the most dramatic moments in the history of the prison, retelling the stories behind the fourteen executions which took place there between 1858 and 1958.

Drawing upon material from local newspapers and eyewitness accounts, this volume offers a highly readable account of this aspect of the prison's history. Beginning with the execution of two Greek sailors for a drunken murder committed while their ship was in port, and concluding with such pitiful tales as that of a local man who threw his small daughter off Swansea Pier, For Whom the Bell Tolls is a gripping read. The text is punctuated by illustrations and text boxes that include especially interesting snippets of extra information. It will appeal to an extremely wide readership among both the tourist and local market, as well as to those interested generally in popular as well as criminal history.

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Tower of Strength
Tyrone O'Sullivan, John Eve, Ann Edworthy
Tyrone O'Sullivan is the chairman of Tower Colliery, Hirwaun, South Wales. He led the team of miners that fought to buy the pit from British Coal in 1995. He and 238 other miners each paid £8,000 from their redundancy settlement to become shareholders. The additional funds needed were borrowed from various banks.
No other mine, in the history of British Coal, has been bought by the workforce. Tyrone was effectively fighting British Coal for wages and conditions all his working life but it was in the latter years that the fight became about the very survival of the pit. Tower is now the last surviving deep mine in Wales and is a profitable going concern.

British Coal, towards the end of its regime, earmarked Tower as a pit with no future and were determined to close it down. This would have resulted in devastation of the local community.

The Tower miners refused to lie down and they fought like no other group of miners in the land. The miners had faith in Tyrone and his buy-out team which has paid dividends as the workers are now being rewarded as joint owners of a successful business, sharing equally in its profits.

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Dr Davies modestly titled his book 'A History of Wales".
A wise decision as history can be difficult to define when so much is based on subjective information and story telling passed down over many centuries. Yet this is a masterful book, probably the best book on Welsh history to date.

It is clear, factual but never tedious. Above all, it places Welsh history where it belongs; alongside English and Scottish history, the latter two dominating British text books for many years.
It is very tempting to become overly romantic about Wales, in a way that distorts historical facts. The relationship between Wales and England is a good exmaple. John Davies deals with these conflicts of interest in an honest and illuminating way, remaining objective whilst never failing to under-portray Wales.

A highly recommended book for those genuinely interested in the first nation of Britain.
hafoty@hotmail.com. Oxford

A COMPANY OF FORTS
A compelling insight into medieval Welsh castle history.
Paul Davis' revised edition of Castles of Dyfed, "A Company of Forts" makes for compelling reading for those interested in medieval history. He displays a rare talent of being able to provide a wealth of historical information and detail in a readable form, which appeals both to experts and non-experts alike. The quality of illustration, both photographic and line-drawing is superb and adds immensely to the overall enjoyment. The book is an engaging insight and a rewarding read for both the casual browser and those from a more academic standpoint.