Y Delyn Aur

Here we have Y Delyn Aur (2023) by Malachy Owain Edwards, from the wonderfully named Gwasg y Bwthyn / Bwthyn, ISBN: 9781913996680, in Very Good condition, sold by Crappy Old Books, and yes, it’s in Welsh, which means it will immediately make you feel either proudly competent or charmingly out of your depth. Possibly both at once. That is half the fun.

The title translates as “The Golden Harp”, which is already doing a lot of heavy lifting in the mood department. A golden harp suggests legend, music, poetry, and that particular kind of Celtic shimmer where the past is never quite past, it’s just nearby, waiting politely for someone to start singing. Even if you don’t know the story yet, the title alone feels like it should come with mist, hills, and a dramatic pause.

This is the sort of modern Welsh-language book that radiates “local treasure” energy. Not mass-produced, not trying to be everything to everyone, but very confidently itself. And there’s something delightfully ironic about buying a 2023 Welsh title from Crappy Old Books, a shop whose whole brand implies everything we sell has been rescued from a dusty shelf behind a 1974 book of damp guide maps. Yet here it is: contemporary, crisp, and in Very Good condition, as if it’s barely had time to acquire that classic Crappy Old Books patina. We’re as surprised as you are.

Very Good means it’s clean, solid, and well cared for, the kind of copy you can happily read without treating it like a fragile artefact. Perhaps it was bought with the best of intentions, admired, maybe dipped into, then released back into the wild. Or perhaps it was genuinely enjoyed and then passed on because books do that when they’re raised properly.

Perfect for Welsh readers, learners who want something real and current, collectors of Welsh press titles, or anyone who likes the idea of owning a book that quietly signals: “Yes, I have interests beyond the obvious.” Also ideal if you enjoy the special thrill of reading in Welsh, where even ordinary sentences can look faintly magical, and every other word feels like it could be a place name, a spell, or both.

Sold by Crappy Old Books. Very Good condition. A modern Welsh book with a mythic-sounding title, an ISBN you can actually look up (9781913996680), and enough cultural charm to make your bookshelf feel instantly more interesting. If you’ve been waiting for an excuse to read more Welsh, this is a pretty elegant one.

Keep browsing: See more Welsh books Other books by Malachy Owain Edwards