*Scroll down for English*
Fydd Sniffyn yn gallu dianc o gastell Gyrn Wigau?
Can Sniffyn escape from Gyrn Wigau Castle?
♥Enillydd Gwobr Tir na n-Og 1994♥
♥Tir na n-Og Award Winner 1994♥
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:: ◉◉◉◎◎
Lluniau/illustrations: Marc Vyvyan-Jones
Dyfarniad/Rating: ★★★★★
Oed darllen/reading age: 9+
Oed diddordeb/interest age: 7+ (not too scary)
Sut goblyn es i drwy'r ysgol gynradd heb ddarllen y clasur Sothach a Sglyfath gan un o awduron enwocaf Cymru, Angharad Tomos?(creawdwr Rala Rwdins) Wel, o’r diwedd, tair blynedd ar hugain yn hwyr, mi ges i afael ar gopi o lyfrgell Safle’r Normal, Prifysgol Bangor. [Llyfr oedd heb gael ei fenthyg ers 2008]
Weithiau, wrth ail gydio mewn hen straeon, mae’n amlwg eu bod wedi dyddio braidd o ran cynnwys a diwyg, ond nid yw hyn yn wir o Sothach a Sglyfath. Dwi’n meddwl fod y stori’n dal ei thir cystal yn 2020 ac yr oedd yn 1993, er bod y clawr braidd yn ddi-nod. Dyma oedd enillydd haeddiannol IAWN i’r Wobr Tir na n-Og yn fy marn i. Yr unig beth sy’n dyddio’r llyfr o gwbl yw’r cyfeiriad at y cyfrifiadur anferth mae Sglyfath yn ei ddefnyddio i ddal y plant. Mae’n rhaid rhoi Disc i mewn yn y peiriant er mwyn cael y peth i weithio - rhywbeth fydd yn ddiarth i blant heddiw. Fodd bynnag, tydi hwn yn effeithio fawr ddim ar y stori, felly mi wnâi i adael i hynny fynd!
Waeth i mi fod yn onasd ddim - ron i’n hooked o’r dudalen gyntaf. Dechrau sy’n hynod o effeithiol am fachu darllenwyr gan ei fod yn cyfarch y darllenydd yn uniongyrchol. Rhybuddia’r darllenwr i beidio darllen y llyfr, ac wrth gwrs, drwy wneud hyn, bydd plant yn siŵr o fod ar dan isio cario mlaen... “Os oes rhywfaint o synnwyr cyffredin gennych chi, wnewch chi ddim meiddio agor y llyfr yma..”
Mae ‘na vibes Roald Dahl-aidd mawr yn perthyn i’r llyfr ac fe gaf fy atgoffa’n syth o stori hynod boblogaidd ‘The Twits’ wrth ddarllen am y ddau greadur annifyr, Sothach a Sglyfath. Gwr a gwraig annymunol iawn sy’n dwyn plant bach drwg! Heblaw am garcharu plant bach anffodus yn eu castell, mae’r ddau yn treulio gweddill eu hamser yn ffraeo â’i gilydd ac yn chwarae triciau budur. I feddwl eu bod nhw’n briod – does ‘na fawr o Gymraeg rhyngddynt! Mae Sothach yn casáu ei gwr budur – nid yn unig oes ganddi hoffter mawr o’i waldio gyda phadell ffrio, ond mae hi’n cael boddhad o weini prydau bwyd hollol afiach i'w gŵr anffodus. Pan dyw Sglyfath ddim yn pigo ei drwyn (hynod o fawr), yna mae’n cynllwynio sut i gael one up ar ei wraig ddiog! Doniol iawn oedd eu cecru diddiwedd - byddwch yn siŵr o chwerthin!
Bachgen o’r enw Sniffyn yw’r prif gymeriad. Ar ôl cael ei ddwyn a’i garcharu, mae’n gorfod gweithio fel porthor y castell. Jest fel mae'r bachgen yn dechrau colli gobaith, mae’n darganfod nad fo yw’r unig garcharor yng Nghastell Gyrn Wigau. Gyda’i ffrindiau newydd Stwmp, Hergwd Sgerbwd a rhai o’r plant eraill, cychwynna Sniffyn ar ymgais ddewr i ddianc. Tybed beth fydd ymateb Sglyfath pan sylwa fod ei weision yn trio dianc?
O bosib, roedd hanner cynta’r llyfr yn gryfach na’r ail hanner a’r diweddglo, gyda rhai darnau'n hirach nag oedd angen bod, ond, ar y cyfan dyma lyfr hynod o ddarllenadwy. Dwi ddim yn meddwl fod yr iaith tu hwnt i allu'r mwyafrif o ddarllenwyr 7-11 oed heddiw (bosib agosach at 9+), ond mae tipyn o waith darllen gan ei fod yn llyfr eithaf swmpus. Daw lluniau Marc Vyvyan-Jones a’r hiwmor gwirion yn fyw. Wir i chi, dwi’n siŵr y bydd yn apelio at hogia’ a gennod fel ei gilydd ond tybiwn fod o’n llyfr ardderchog i’w ddefnyddio gyda phlant sydd fel arfer yn troi eu trwynau ar lyfrau Cymraeg, yn bennaf oherwydd yr hiwmor a’r bits ych-a-fi snotlyd!
Rhyw deimlad chwerwfelys sydd gen i ar ôl darllen y llyfr. Dwi’n dal i giglan ar ôl mwynhau'r gwallgofrwydd, ond dwi hefyd yn siomedig fod y llyfr yn cael ei anghofio erbyn hyn. Debyg fod o’n eistedd ar silffoedd llychlyd mewn llawer i ysgol- ac mae’n haeddu gweld golau dydd eto! Os oes ‘na lyfr yn galw am gael ei ailwampio dwtsh, a’i ail-gyhoeddi ar ei newydd wedd - dyma fo!
Hyd yn oed dros ugain mlynedd ar ôl cyhoeddi’r nofel, mae ‘na brinder o’r math yma o lyfr ar gyfer plant CA2 o hyd. Lle mae’r hiwmor wedi mynd o’n straeon gwreiddiol? Lle mae’r storis am snots, pastai llyffantod a ffieidd-dod tebyg? Mi oedd y ffordd oedd Sothach a Sglyfath yn trin ei gilydd yn hyll ac amharchus, (ac er nad yw'n gosod esiampl dda - roedd o'n hilêriys i'w ddarllen!) Tybed a fyddai'r llyfr yn cael ei gyhoeddi heddiw? Gofynnaf y cwestiwn - ydan ni’n tueddu i chware hi’n rhy “saff” y dyddia ‘ma? Ydan, beryg.
Oes ‘na awduron newydd am fentro ‘sgwennu llyfr hollol wirion, a thipyn bach yn ddadleuol ar gyfer plant y 21ain ganrif?! Y math o lyfr dydi eu rhieni ddim am iddyn nhw ddarllen ond mae’r plant yn torri’i bolia’... Dwi’n gosod yr her!
Mae rhai copïau gwreiddiol yn dal i fod ar gael ar wefan Y Lolfa am bris teg o £4.95 – bachwch nhw!
How the heck did I miss this one when I was in primary school? This classic, was written over the course of three months by one of Wales’ best-known authors, Angharad Tomos. (creator of Rala Rwdins) Well, twenty-three years late, I’ve finally got myself a copy from the Normal Site Library, Bangor University. [it hadn’t been loaned since 2008] Sometimes, when you dig out old stories, it’s clear that some haven’t aged well and are dated in terms of appearance and content. I don’t think this is the case with Sothach and Sglyfath. In fact, I think it works as well in 2020 as it did in 1993 when it was released, even if the cover is less than enthralling. What a worthy winner of the Tir na n-Og Award! The only thing that dates this book at all is a reference to the huge computer that Sglyfath uses to catch children. A Disk has to be inserted for the machine to work - something that will be unfamiliar to today’s generation ipad. It doesn’t really affect the story so I think we can let that one go!
Ok, I’ll be honest, I was hooked from the start. The beginning is very effective at grabbing the reader’s attention as the narrator addresses them directly. It warns nosy children not to read the book and of course, in doing so, ensures that they will be desperate to continue: "If you have any common sense, you won't dare open this book..."
There are lots of Roald Dahl-ish vibes about this book and I am immediately reminded of the hugely popular 'TheTwits.’ Sothach and Sglyfath are two very unpleasant creatures – a husband and wife who steal naughty children for a living! Apart from jailing unfortunate children in their castle, the two spend the rest of their time rowing together and playing dirty tricks on one another. To think that they are married – they don’t get along! Sothach hates her dirty, grubby husband – not only does she enjoy bashing him with a frying pan, but she gets great satisfaction from serving him up disgusting meals. When Sglyfath isn’t picking his (large) nose, he’s often conspiring how to get one over on his lazy wife. Listening to their endless bickering is highly amusing.
The main character is a boy called Sniffyn. After being kidnapped and imprisoned, he is forced to work as the castle gate-keeper. Just as he begins to lose hope, he realises that he’s not the only one stuck in the nightmare that is Gyrn Wigau. With his new friends Stwmp, Hergwd Sgerbwd and fellow prisoners, Sniffyn embarks on his daring escape plans. How will the two captors react when they realise their slaves are planning to flee?
Possibly, the first half of the book was stronger than the second, and some bits were longer than needed, but, on the whole, the book is extremely readable. I don't think the language is beyond the ability of most of today’s 7-11-year olds (though I’d say 9+ is more likely for independent reading) There is quite a lot of reading and it’s a bulky book. Marc Vyvyan-Jones's pictures bring the silly humour to life and I'm sure it will appeal to boys and girls alike. I think it would go down very well with those who
normally avoid Welsh books, simply because of the silliness and the snotty yucky bits!
Bittersweet is how I feel upon finishing the book. I’m still giggling about this nutty story, but I'm a bit disappointed that such a great book is largely forgotten. There are probably numerous copies sitting on dusty shelves in schools – and they deserve to see the light of day again! Teachers, dig them out! If there was ever a book that was calling out for a jazzing up and a modern re-issue – this is it!
Even over twenty years after the publication of the novel, there’s still a shortage of books like this for KS2 children. Where has the humour gone from our original stories? Where are the books containing snot, toenails, frog pies and similar disgustingness? Don’t get me wrong, the way Sothach and Sglyfath talk to and treat each other is very disrespectful, but it just works in the novel and is utterly hilarious! I do wonder though, would that even be published in today’s uber-safe and politically correct world?
Are there any new writers out there who want to push a few boundaries and write a new silly, possibly even slightly controversial book for the 21st century? The kind of book parents don’t want their children to read, but children can’t get enough of… Go on, I dare you!
Some original copies of this book are still available to buy on Y Lolfa’s website at a fair price of £4.95 – grab ‘em while you can!