Books

Dictionaries

Welsh Learner's Dictionary by Heini Gruffudd.
This excellent work is much-loved by learners. It has been printed in a number of formats and one is pocket sized.
It gives context to the words where they might have more than one meaning and lists the plurals. It also has a small grammar section and gives help with the mutations. The best recommendation for this book is to look around at a group of learners in a classroom: several are likely to have a copy with them. The author is well-known for his works for learners and his active promotion of the Welsh language. His enthusiasm shows in the quality of his work.

The Pocket Modern Welsh Dictionary: A Guide to the Living Language ~Gareth King (Editor)
A more weighty tome than the above. Not really for a pocket but rather larger. It has some useful boxed sections on complicated verbs and other important words that cam be very useful

The Collins Pocket Dictionary
This is a dictionary that fits in the pocket and contains a larger number of words than most. However, it needs to be used with extreme caution. Like all such small dictionaries it lacks proper context for the words which can lead to problems. It is probably best used going from Welsh into English where the user will understand which English word is correct for the context.

Other books

Harri Potter a Maen yr Athronydd J. K. Rowling Translated by Emily Huws.
This is a translation of the first of the books in the series and sadly the only one currently translated. The title translates the UK version of the title Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. ( Rather than Sorcerer's Stone which was use in the American version.) For the Welsh learner who has already read the book in English this can be a very good choice. Being a children's book that is very popular with adults the language is easier to follow and the quality of J. K Rowling's original writing flows through. The only fault is that the translation is very northern in its style of writing. The characters often sounding as if Hogwarts is somewhere in Snowdonia.

You Don't Speak Welsh by Sandi Thomas.
This is a extraordinary book by a Californian of Welsh descent. Sandi Thomas describes her experiences on an intensive Wlpan course at Aberystwyth University. The highs and lows of learning will be familiar to any language learner and these are conveyed quite humorously. Altogether the book is quite inspiring and a must for those moments when a learner may think of giving up.

Wythnos yng Nghymru Fydd by Islwyn Ffowc Elis.
This is a classic of Welsh literature and is for the advanced learner. It was chosen as one of the set books for the A level standard learners course for 2005/6. This is a science fiction work that looks into possible futures for Wales in the year 2033. It tells the story of how its lead character was persuaded to become a nationalist. It is a well written piece of nationalistic but gentle propaganda that despite its political message is an absorbing read. Written in the 1950's it is quite prescient in some respects. The "Gwelerffon" (videophone) and the idea of newspapers being sent over people's radios are not too different from technologies being used today across the internet.
It also foresees many of the changes in status of the Welsh language, foreseeing a Welsh parliament where the members are free to use either English or Welsh, rather like the modern assembly.
I also foresees a darker future where no one speaks the language,partly through the metaphor of a senile old lady. The treatment of Welsh grammar in the work was seen as rather modern at the time, though it may seem a little formal and old fashioned to the present day learner. Nevertheless the vocabulary of the work is not over complex and is reasonably accessible to the advanced learner.