Day 1 - Monday March 5, 2007

The first Reading Communities Week kicks off in Caernarfon.

All the preparation has been done and now it's time to get the show on the road.

Reading Communities has been organised in order to promote a new series of books by the Basic Skills Agency and Welsh Books Council called Quick Reads/Stori Sydyn, and over the next three weeks I'm responsible for organising events in Caernarfon, Aberystwyth and Swansea to get the books out there into the community and encourage people to pick up a book.

Even though today marks the start of the Reading Communities Week in Caernarfon, today I was at Altcourse prison in Fazakerley, Liverpool to show them the books in the series. This is the nearest prison to North Wales and Caernarfon, so this is where many offenders from the area would go.

Apparently, 75% of those who enter the prison have the reading age of an eight year old, which is a frightening statistic. So the Quick Reads books, written for new or emergent readers, or people out of the habit of reading, are ideal, and the group we met certainly looked keen to start reading them. We've left them with comments forms, so it'll be interesting to get their opinion on the books.

People who find reading difficult often can't find books they enjoy reading - things like thrillers, romance or autobiographies. The Quick Reads series has all these kinds of books. Fiona Phillips' book, A Day to Remember, is a romantic comedy, whilst Niall Griffiths' book Bring it Back Home is a bit of a thriller. Tanni Grey-Thompson's book leaves you feeling ready for the next challenge, because it's all about how she managed to be so successful in winning medals in the field of wheelchair athletics. The last English book is by Lindsay Ashford, and it's a thriller about murder and prostitution set in Cardiff.

There are also four Welsh language books in the series, all by familiar names or faces. Gary Slaymaker, for example, is a TV presenter and columnist for the Western Mail and everyone knws him as the guy who reviews films. His book is really funny, and touching at the same time. It explains how he developed his love for films and Cardiff City Football Club! Though I'm not really much of a football fan myself, I couldn't put that one down.

Two of the other books are thrillers, written by Caryl Lewis and Gareth F Williams. Caryl Lewis' book, Y Rhwyd, is one of those creepy books where there are so many twists you're scared to turn the page (in a good way!), and Gareth F Williams' book Tacsi i'r Tywyllwch reminds me of one of those gruesome TV two-parters where body parts end up all over the place and scary things go on in dark corners. All great reading material though.

The last book Os Mêts is by Bethan Gwanas, one of Wales' most popular authors. It's about a gang of girls going on a hen night, and as you can imagine, things go wrong and friendships are pushed to breaking point.

All set for tomorrow now, and my visit to hospital.