Welsh children’s book characters head to Taiwan and Hong Kong

Runaway literary success from Wales, The Bwci Bos, a gang of bilingual, mischievous and colourful little monsters, will soon become familiar faces in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao.

The bilingual (Welsh and English) Bwci Bos picture books, published by Aberystwyth based Atebol press, have been snapped up by China Times Publishing, based in Taiwan. All three books in the series will be released in Traditional Chinese from June 2025.

Already popular in Wales, the Bwci Bo books have been commended for their bilingual, humorous rhymes and striking illustrations, which encourage reading and learning.

Firsts

The first book ‘Sawl Bwci Bo?/How Many Bwci Bos?’ was selected as BookTrust Cymru’s ‘Bookstart’ book in 2022.

This was the first original Welsh book to be selected for the scheme since its inception in the nineties. 40,000 copies were distributed to families across Wales as part of this scheme.

The Bwci Bos were also selected for the BookTrust’s Big Welsh Rhyme Time event in 2023. The third book in the series, ‘Ble wyt ti, Bwci Bo?/Where are you, Bwci Bo?’, was part of the Reading Agency’s Summer Reading Challenge in 2024. The fourth book in the series will be available soon.

From Wales to the world

The books are the work of Llantwit Major based husband and wife team, author, Joanna Davies, and illustrator, Steven Goldstone.

Joanna said: “We wrote the first ‘Bwci Bos’ book as a self-published venture and never imagined that they’d be so successful. We are thrilled with this news and hope that children in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao will love the books as much as we enjoy creating them.”

Owain Saunders-Jones, Managing Director for Atebol added: “Welsh children’s books like the Bwci Bos series have no boundaries and can be enjoyed by youngsters everywhere. We hope this is the beginning of the journey as the Bwci Bos take over the world!”

Discover more about Bwci Bos or purchase at Atebol and all good children’s book stockists.