A Rhondda Miscellany by Glyndwr Edwards.

This is a strange little book of just 109 pages, mostly containing only very old black and white photographs. Glyndwr Edwards has produced a very personal photo-book featuring old family members, their stories and very brief descriptions of the history and locations around Rhondda in South Wales.

This book is very much like a family photo album that has suddenly been thrown into the public domain. Remember how years ago families would have printed photographs and on the back of each photo, notes would be handwritten, name, location and date. This is how this book feels to anyone who has not met Glyndwr or his family.

On Goodreads, Glyndwr has written a wonderful blurb for this book. However, the writing in his book is of a far lower quality. The text reads more like a notebook to jog the author’s memory. The details of the locations and people are very brief. There is no structure to this book and it lacks depth. It is not an entertaining read, the presentation is POOR and I do not feel that Glyndwr could hack it as a tour guide. Forget the likes of Brendan Sheerin, the exceptional presenter of Coach Trip on Channel 4 television, Glyndwr is more like the boring old bloke sat on a park bench who tries to catch the attention of passers-by. Glyndwr claims that the explosion at Glynfach Colliery in 1856 with 114 dead, was the worst mining disaster in Britain. However, a quick buzz on the internet shows that the worst mining disaster in Britain was at Senghenydd Colliery in 1913 when 439 miners were killed. For a local man, Glyndwr should be aware of both tragedies as Glynfach is only 13 miles away from Senghenydd across the River Taff.

A Rhondda Miscellany mentions riots in Merthyr Tydfil 1802, Tredegar 1816, Nantyglo 1822 - the Bread and Blood Riots, Merthyr in 1831 and the Tonypandy riots 1910 to 1911 which makes this listing very much like a flyer for Farmfoods, choose any 3 for £5, mix and match for £10 and £2 off if you spend £25.

A Rhondda Miscellany is an example of vanity publishing. It is very light reading and is a coffee table book. This is not a book for readers but for people who want to glance at something. It is a disposable distraction just like the free Aldi shopping magazine. Thankfully I picked up a free copy shortly after it was published and am very glad I did not waste my money on this 1 star novelty.

A Rhondda Miscellany was written in 2015 and is available as an Amazon Kindle eBook.