*Scroll down for English*
Straeon am y ddraig fechan gyda chalon fawr.
Short stories about a little dragon with a big heart.
Gwerth addysgiadol/educational value: ◉◉◉◉◎
Negeseuon positif/positive messages: ◉◉◉◉◎
Themau trist,anodd/upsetting, tough themes: ◉◎◎◎◎
Trais, ofn/violence, scary: ◎◎◎◎◎
Iaith gref/language: ◎◎◎◎◎
Rhyw/sex: ◎◎◎◎◎
Hiwmor/humour: ◉◉◎◎◎
Her darllen/reading difficulty:: ◉◉◉◎◎
Gwaith celf/artwork: Andrea Grealy
Addasiad/adaptation: Aled Islwyn
Oed diddordeb/interest age: 5+
Darllen annibynnol/independent reading age: 7+
Peidiwch â gadael i’r clawr syml eich twyllo - dyma gyfrol sy’n byrlymu â straeon difyr am ddraig fach hapus, drygionus a chlên, sy’n hoffi dim yn fwy na threulio amser gyda phlant a staff Tŷ Hafan yn Ne Cymru.
Mae pob ceiniog o elw o’r llyfr yn mynd i Dŷ Hafan. Nid yn unig y byddwch yn cefnogi elusen werthfawr iawn, ond byddwch chithau’n cael llyfr gwerth chweil o ganlyniad. Best of both worlds!
Cyfrol o straeon byrion yw’r llyfr, wedi ei ysgrifennu yn wreiddiol gan Jilly Bebbington, a’i addasu i’r Gymraeg gan Aled Islwyn. (mae fersiwn Saesneg o’r llyfr hefyd yn bodoli, sef A Dragon Called Môr) Mae’r awdur yn byw yng Nghaerdydd ac mae hi wedi bod yn wirfoddolwr yn Nhŷ Hafan ers blynyddoedd. Ei gwaith gwirfoddol gyda’r plant sy’n mynychu’r hosbis oedd y sbardun ar gyfer y llyfr. Dyweda Jilly: “Rwyf wedi darllen a dyfeisio gymaint o storïau i’r plant yn yr hosbis dros yr 20 mlynedd rwyf wedi bod yn gwirfoddoli yno.” Am ffodus felly, ei bod hi wedi cael y cyfle i roi’r straeon ar bapur er mwyn cael eu rhannu gyda gweddill plant Cymru.
Wna i ddim sôn am bob un o’r straeon yn unigol, ond dyma restr ohonynt o’r dudalen gynnwys:
1. Draig o'r enw Môr
2. Môr a'r Clwb Coginio
3. Môr a'r Olchfa
4. Môr a'r Cysur Cyffwrdd
5. Diwrnod prysur Môr
6. Môr yn achub y dydd
Hosbis plant yw Tŷ Hafan, agorodd ei ddrysau yn 1999 i ddarparu gofal lliniarol pediatrig i Gymru gyfan. Mae’r gwasanaeth, sy’n rhad ac am ddim i’r rhai sydd ei angen, yn golygu fod rhaid i’r elusen godi £4.5 miliwn y flwyddyn i’w gynnal. Tipyn o gamp a dweud y lleiaf!
Dyma i chi linell a ddyfynnir oddi ar eu gwefan. I mi, mae’n dweud cyfrolau am sut fath o le yw Tŷ Hafan. “If you think we simply provide a place where children can come to die, you couldn’t be further from the truth.” Os ydych chi fel fi, erioed wedi bod mewn hosbis o’r fath, mae’n hawdd iawn datblygu camsyniadau am beth sy’n digwydd yno. Mae’n dueddiad gan rai i feddwl amdanynt fel llefydd depressing a diobaith - ac wedi darllen Draig o’r enw Môr, dwi yn sylwi pa mor anghywir yw’r gred yma. Alla i ddim gor-bwysleisio pwysigrwydd ‘sgwennu a chyhoeddi llyfr o’r fath. Mawr yw ein diolch i bawb a fu’n gysylltiedig â hyn. Dysgais lawer am staff yr hosbis, eu gwaith, yr offer arbenigol a phopeth sy’n gwneud Tŷ Hafan yn le arbennig iawn.
Gallaf weld nawr fod Tŷ Hafan (a sefydliadau tebyg) yn gymunedau cyfeillgar a chlos, llefydd hapus a saff, llawn cariad a hwyl. Wrth gwrs fod y plant sy’n mynychu Tŷ Hafan yn wael, ond dydi hynny ddim yn golygu na allent fwynhau pob eiliad o’u hamser yn y byd a gwerthfawrogi profiadau bywyd (nifer ohonynt yn bethau bychain rydym yn cymryd yn ganiataol) Diolch i ymroddiad staff Tŷ Hafan, gall y plant, pobl ifanc a’u teuluoedd greu atgofion bythgofiadwy, fel y cawn glywed wrth ddarllen.
I nifer, mae hosbis yn lle dirgel a dieithr iawn ac mae’r llyfr yn helpu i daro goleuni ar rhai o weithgareddau’r hosbis. Yn glyfar iawn, mae’r awdur yn plethu llawer o ffeithiau am Dŷ Hafan i mewn i’r naratif yn naturiol, ac rydym yn dysgu am y lle heb feddwl, drwy glywed am Môr a’i anturiaethau.
Reit ar gychwyn y llyfr, daw môr ar draws merch ifanc. Gan fod Môr yn ifanc, mae o braidd yn ddryslyd ac nid yw’n deall pam fod Lisa angen cadair gydag olwynion. Ond, wir i chi, nid yw Môr yn pitïo’r ferch, a tydi hithau ddim yn chwilio am sympathy chwaith! Cyn pen dim, mae’r ddau yn chwyrlïo o amgylch yr ystafell, gan droelli a gwibio, wrth i Lisa ddangos i Môr sut i weithio’r gadair!! Dim ond un enghraifft yw hyn o sut mae’r awdur yn normaleiddio’r syniad o salwch neu anabledd, ac yn dangos fod pawb yn mwynhau dipyn o hwyl, hyd yn oed yn yr hosbis.
Mae’r llyfr yn syml, ac mae’r ysgrifen yn fawr ac yn weledol. Gwna hyn y llyfr yn berffaith ar gyfer darllenwyr annibynnol gymharol newydd ym mlynyddoedd 3 a 4. Llyfr annwyl, sydd hefyd yn hynod o effeithiol fel arf dysgu i athrawon. Byddai’n addas iawn ar gyfer gwasanaethau ysgol ag ati. Yn sicr, byddai’n gyfle gwych i ddysgu mwy am waith yr hosbis, ac efallai gellir trefnu gweithgaredd codi arian yn sgil darllen y llyfr. Mae’r posibiliadau’n ddiddiwedd.
Menter ar y cyd rhwng gwasg Y Lolfa a Thŷ Hafan yw’r llyfr ac mae pob ceiniog o elw’r gwerthiant yn mynd i’r elusen. Mae tîm Sôn am Lyfra wedi mwynhau’r cyfle i ddysgu am waith amhrisiadwy’r hosbis, ac felly am wneud cyfraniad tuag at yr achos.
Don't let this plain and simple front cover fool you - this is a volume bursting with entertaining stories about a happy, mischievous little sea dragon, who likes nothing more than spending time with the children and staff of Tŷ Hafan in South Wales.
Every penny of profit from the book goes to Tŷ Hafan. Not only will you be supporting a very good cause, but you will also gain a worthwhile book in return. The Best of both worlds!
The book is a volume of short stories, originally written by Jilly Bebbington, and adapted to Welsh by Aled Islwyn. (an English version of the book also exists, A Dragon Called Môr) The author lives in Cardiff and has volunteered at Tŷ Hafan for years. Her voluntary work with the children attending the hospice was the inspiration for the book it seems. Jilly says: "I have read and invented so many stories for the children in the hospice over the 20 years I have been volunteering there." Fortunately, then, she had the opportunity to put the stories to paper and they can now be shared with the children of Wales.
I won't mention each of the stories individually, but here is a list of them from the contents page:
1. Draig o'r enw Môr
2. Môr a'r Clwb Coginio
3. Môr a'r Olchfa
4. Môr a'r Cysur Cyffwrdd
5. Diwrnod prysur Môr
6. Môr yn achub y dydd
Tŷ Hafan is a children's hospice which opened its doors in 1999 to provide paediatric palliative care for the whole of Wales. The service, which is free for those who need it, means that the charity has to raise £4.5 million a year to maintain it. No small feat!
This is a line quoted from their website. For me, it speaks volumes about what Tŷ Hafan is all about and how they see the world. "If you think we simply provide a place where children can come to die, you couldn’t be further from the truth." If you, like me, have never been to such a hospice, it’s very easy to pick up misconceptions about what goes on there. There’s a tendency by some to think of them as depressing places full of sadness and despair - and having read Draig o’r enw Môr - I notice how wrong this is. I can't overstate the importance of publishing such a book. Our thanks go out to all those involved. I learned a lot about the hospice staff, their work, the specialist equipment and everything that makes Tŷ Hafan a very special place.
I can now see that Tŷ Hafan (and similar organisations) are friendly and close-knit communities, happy and safe, loving and fun places. Of course the children who attend Tŷ Hafan aren’t necessarily well, but that doesn’t mean that they can’t enjoy every moment of their time in the world and appreciate life’s little experiences (many of which we take for granted) Thanks to the dedication of the Tŷ Hafan staff, the children, young people and their families can create memories together as we hear in the book.
For many, a hospice is a very mysterious and unknown place and the book helps to shed some light on some of the hospice's activities. Very cleverly, the author has naturally weaved many facts about Tŷ Hafan into the narrative, and we learn about the place without thinking, through Môr and his adventures.
Right at the beginning of the book, Môr comes across a young girl. As he’s a young dragon, he’s a little confused and doesn’t understand why Lisa needs a wheelchair But, Môr doesn’t pity the girl, and she’s not looking for sympathy either! In no time at all, the new friends are spinning around the room, as Lisa shows Môr how to work the chair!!! This is just one example of how the author normalises the idea of illness or disability, and shows that everyone enjoys a bit of fun, even in the hospice.
The book is simple, and the writing is large. This makes the book perfect for relatively new independent readers in years 3 and 4. A sweet book, which is also extremely effective as a learning tool for teachers. It would be well suited to school assemblies etc. It would certainly be a great opportunity to learn more about the work of the hospice, and perhaps a fundraising activity could be organised after reading the book. The possibilities are endless.
The book is a joint initiative between Y Lolfa press and Tŷ Hafan and every penny of the proceeds of the sale goes to the charity. The Sôn am Lyfra team has enjoyed the opportunity to learn about the invaluable work of the hospice, and will be making a contribution to the cause.
Gwasg/publisher: Y Lolfa
Cyhoeddwyd/released: 2020
Pris: £4.99 - elw i gyd yn mynd i Tŷ Hafan. All proceeds go to Tŷ Hafan.
