Samsara

by Sonia Edwards

A book for Welsh Learners, Foundation Level. Sam feels confined in the wrong body and wishes to change sex. The book deals with a sensitive subject as we follow the main character's frustration and the response of those closest to him.

66 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2018

Reviews

[Robyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is either badly written or well above Sylfaen level, and it's full of awful people and transphobia | I was so pleased, when I was a Sylfaen level student, to see this book was coming up, because I was excited about the inclusivity in the series. Then I tried to read it and got nowhere. Every fifth word had to be defined, most sentences were structured so oddly that I had to read and reread them, even then sometimes giving up and moving on without understanding what was intended, and it's super Gog, not just vaguely drifting into a northern dialect, so it all came together into a very frustrating incomprehensible mass. I set it aside and came back to it as a late Canolradd learner. Guess what! Still an absolute mess. The grammar is not what's being taught to learners, and it's crammed with new vocab, so it's just not really readable even at late Canolradd level. I'm not getting into the terrible people doing terrible things to others or the negative view of trans people throughout, just to say if you are or know someone who's trans, stay well clear.

[Vcmc · Rating 4 out of 5]

Am lyfr clyfar. Thema cymhleth a sensitif ond mae'r awdur wedi llwyddo i ddweud y stori mewn ffordd syml er mwyn i ddysgwyr eI ddarllen e. Dw i'n credu bod Sonia Edwards wedi creu rhywbeth arbennig yma.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

*Book content warning: physical and emotional queerphobic/transphobic abuse*

I wish I could just post this review without rating the book, because even now I'm not sure what to give it. I've settled for a 2.

Full disclosure that I am not transgender, but I'm not heterosexual either (with both positive and negative experiences of coming out), and can't quite completely detach myself. I found this a hard read.

I've spent a considerable amount of time googling reviews, information, interviews, anything for Samsara, and while there's not much to go off I do agree with the Amazon reviews that this was a bit too ambitious for Sylfaen. Language-wise, it leans Gogledd, but I've read Canolradd-grade pieces (and possibly higher) that were easier reads. I struggled with the sentence structure, and the footnotes and glossary are particularly meaty, which interrupted flow and understanding. I wouldn't usually mind but with a subject as emotive as this, it's very easy to misread or get the wrong message.

Sam starts off quite unpleasant: their entire first chapter talks about their penchant for shagging married women while simultaneously eyeing up a coffee-shop waitress's arse (not a spoiler, it's 8 pages in). The first impression that you get of Tania is how much she hates her coworker, who then becomes the subject of quite a cruel prank played by Sam during Rag Week - I get that this particular scene was to show the inherent queerphobia of 'haha, man dressed as woman!' but why did this particular staff member deserve such vitriol? She's apparently old and grumpy, sure, but she doesn't even have any dialogue!)

I felt like DNFing the book at this point. I persevered.

Margret Ann - Sam's younger sister, in her late twenties - idolises her brother to the point of it being almost incestuous (being jealous of imaginary girlfriends, going on about how strong and protective her brother is, dotes on him like a housewife, goes through his personal items). While it is extremely obvious she's in need of therapy after everything she's been through in 25-odd years, Margret Ann having a 'come to Jesus' moment at the very end does not take much away from the fact that she too was guilty of transphobia. It is hinted she's working on her prejudices by trying to comfort Sam about the possibility of 'being Sara' again in the future, but still, her sheer hatred towards her own sibling seems to have been brushed under the carpet. I am for sure missing nuances because of the language complexities, but again - I think perhaps this should've been written for a higher level of learner, or not as a learners' book at all.

Kim was interesting at first, but I'm not sure about her exit from the story. Did she really get cold feet after the transphobic attack, and leave without saying goodbye or contacting Sam ever again? Or, did Margret Ann shoehorn her out while Sam was recovering, so Margret could slot right back in? Sam reckons Kim was in love with the 'experiment', while they themself were in love with Kim's support. I completely understand that there are allies who talk the talk but are too nervous to walk the walk, or who are naive about the physical threat that openly LGBTQ+ folks can face, but Kim didn't seem like either of those people, especially in her own chapter. It was a terrible shame that throughout the story, Sam didn't have a single person willing to accept them fully, therefore they had to go back in the closet for their own safety, at least 'for now'. Sadly, that is still a reality for many.

All in all ... argh, I don't know. From a language aspect, at least, it is very useful. I would be interested to know the opinions of other LGBTQ+ people, particularly trans folks. Even on Goodreads, where the reviews are thin on the ground, the ratings seem to be quite divisive. I don't know if Sonia Edwards is transgender herself, knows or has connections with trans people, or consulted with trans people while forming the plot - again, I spent a considerable amount of time googling, and found nothing. No interviews, no articles, not even a personal site (admittedly, the latter isn't unheard of for Welsh-language authors). I would also be interested to hear more on the writing process, but the novel is quite old now (published 2018) so that might remain a mystery.

2/5

[J.C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is for students of Welsh at Sylfaen (Foundation Level).
Welsh readers, please forgive mistakes! An English version follows.

Yn gyntaf, mae enw llyfr yn addas iawn, ac yn glyfar. Ro’n i’n wedi arfer darllen oedd “Samsara” gair o’r grefydd Bwda - olwyn bywyd - ond do’n i ddim gwybod oedd e o Sanskrit, “byd”, “bywyd”, ac “trawsffurfiad”, hefyd. Yn y llyfr hwn, mae Sam yn mynd yn “Sara” achos yw Sara eisoes mewn fe - ond beth am yn ei fywyd dyddiol e?
Pennod Un: “Sam”. Gwelais i ar unwaith fod y llyfr wedi i ei ysgrifennu’n dda, ond do’n i ddim sylweddoli oedd y llyfr am newid cenedl. Ymddangosodd y dechreuad yn eithaf arwynebol, anniddorol, gyda chymeriadau hunangar.
Pennod Dau: “Tania”. Ro’n i’n synnu taswn i’n hoffi llyfr oedd yn defnyddio geiriau fel “shit” a “bitsh” i ddisgrifio hen athrawes, ac oedd yn sylwi Superman, Spiderman, Batman, am parti ffrog fansi. Pam ro’n i’n darllen hwn? Dim ond am ddysgu'r iaith.
Pennod Pump : “Tania”. Ocê. Mae’r craidd llyfr yn digwydd gyda jôc greulon pan wisgodd Sam ffrog fel yr hen athrawes.
Ond y wedyn, roedd y berthynas rhwng Sam a'i chwaer, Margret Ann, yn dechrau i ddiddori fi. Maen nhw wedi cael stori drist, ac mae angen iddyn nhw i fod gyda’i gilydd. Mae’r llyfr yn mynd yn sensitif, a dechreuais i’n deall sut mae e’n bosib cael profiadau seicolegol ac emosiynol sydd yn allu rhoi i’r dolur calon “Samsara”.
A ro’n i’n hoffi’r crybwylliad Beiblaidd (Spoiler alert!). Mae rhywun yn gwneud jôc yn y dechrau sydd y nerth Sam yn ei wallt hir fe, fel Samson. Mae rhywun arall yn dweud yr un peth, ond yn ddifrifol, yn y diwedd.
Llyfr hyfryd a meddylgar, ond aflonydd.

Firstly, the title of this book was very appropriate, and clever. I had read that “Samsara” is used in the Buddhist faith – the wheel of life – but I didn’t know that it was from the Sanskrit word for the world, life or “transformation”. In this book, Sam becomes Sara, because Sara is already in him – but how does that go down in his daily life?
Chapter One: “Sam”. I saw at once that the book is well written, but I didn’t realise that it was about gender change. The beginning seemed superficial, uninteresting, with characters who were self-obsessed.
Chapter Two: “Tania”. I wondered whether I would like a book that used words like “shit and “bitch” to describe an elderly female teacher, and mentioning Superman, Spiderman and Batman for a fancy dress party. Why was I reading this? For the language, that was all.
Chapter Five: “Tania”. Okay. The crux of the book happens with a cruel joke played upon the elderly teacher when Sam dresses up as her for the fancy dress party.
After that, the relationship between Sam and his sister, Margaret Ann, began to interest me. They have a sad story, which means that they need to be together. The book now becomes sensitive, and I began to understand how psychological or emotional experiences can contribute to the heart-ache of “Samsara”.
I enjoyed the Biblical reference (spoiler alert). Sam grows his hair long; a joking comment is made about his strength being in his hair, like Samson. It’s repeated, seriously, at the end.
A lovely, thoughtful, disturbing, book.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Samsara yw fy hoff lyfr Cyfres Amdani erbyn hyn.

Mae Sonia Edwards yn defnyddio patrymau a geiriau sydd yn gyfarwydd i ddysgwyr lefel Sylfaen, ac yn gadael iddyn nhw symud i ffwrdd o’u cydberthyniadau union yn Saesneg. Mae hyn yn creu her i’r darllenwr sydd yn gwneud darllen y llyfr hwn yn brofiad llawn boddhad.

Doeddwn i ddim yn gallu rhoi Samsara i lawr! Mae’r terfyniad yn eithaf sydyn ond dw i ddim yn meddwl bod hyn yn ddamwain.