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E-Ffrindiau
Dwy fenyw, dwy ffrind. Mae Ceri'n byw yn Awstralia, mae Sara'n byw yng Nghaerdydd. Ond trwy e-bostio mae'r ddwy yn dod yn ffrindiau da.
Mewn e-bost rydych yn gallu mwynhau jôc.
Mewn e-bost rydych yn gallu dweud cyfrinach (secret).
Mewn e-bost rydych yn gallu cwyno (complain) am y teulu.
Does neb arall yn gallu gweld y camgymeriadau (mistakes), felly mae e-ffrindiau'n gallu ymlacio (relax) wrth ddefnyddio'r Gymraeg.
Dyma lyfr delfrydol (ideal) i ddysgwyr Cymraeg ar lefel Mynediad.
Mewn e-bost rydych yn gallu mwynhau jôc.
Mewn e-bost rydych yn gallu dweud cyfrinach (secret).
Mewn e-bost rydych yn gallu cwyno (complain) am y teulu.
Does neb arall yn gallu gweld y camgymeriadau (mistakes), felly mae e-ffrindiau'n gallu ymlacio (relax) wrth ddefnyddio'r Gymraeg.
Dyma lyfr delfrydol (ideal) i ddysgwyr Cymraeg ar lefel Mynediad.
192 pages, Paperback
First published July 10, 2009
9 people are currently reading
29 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
August 8, 2024
4 stars
short review for busy readers: Fantastic novel for A2 level learners of Welsh re usefulness of language and patterns. Better than ANY of the series for learners and honestly can help more with advancing a reader's Welsh than most other readers. Too bad it's overly long and the story is, at least for me, incredibly repetitive and boring as it's mostly just two women talking about life's minutia for 200 pages.
in detail:
Lois Arnold is one of the Welsh learner's greatest friends.
She's written several helpful books of short stories in normal, colloquial language on the Beginner levels that give students real confidence in learning. I've always gotten a lot out of them language-wise.
E-ffrindiau is no different. The level is great for those who have been learning for about a year or so with sentences you'd actually want to say yourself. The writing is direct and clear. No clause pile-ups that can happen in translated books for learners nor the complexity of those written by native speakers. The difficulty increases slowly as the book progresses, never so much that it's impossible, though.
But the story...what a snooze fest! Yes, okay, at this level you mostly can only talk about your personal life and immediate surroundings, but that doesn't make it interesting.
I couldn't remember who was in Wales and who in Australia. The characters blended together into a mush because they're just too similar with too similar of lives (= kids, work, husband, work, husband, kids, work, husband, kids). Around page 100 I started skimming, and only slowed down around page 180 to read carefully again.
Guess what? Didn't miss anything.
Some things I found strange or inconsistent. Like the characters being able to form some good, solid sentences but still not having learned "eisiau"? That's one of the first sentences you learn to say. First "Dw i'n hoffi coffi" then "Dw i eisiau paned o goffi".
There are other slip ups like this in the book, with the characters using forms they claim they haven't tackled in class yet. And of course, their mutations are perfect although they haven't fully grasped them. 😂
All that is unfortunate, because this really is a fantastic material for practice reading in Welsh without constantly reaching for the dictionary.
short review for busy readers: Fantastic novel for A2 level learners of Welsh re usefulness of language and patterns. Better than ANY of the series for learners and honestly can help more with advancing a reader's Welsh than most other readers. Too bad it's overly long and the story is, at least for me, incredibly repetitive and boring as it's mostly just two women talking about life's minutia for 200 pages.
in detail:
Lois Arnold is one of the Welsh learner's greatest friends.
She's written several helpful books of short stories in normal, colloquial language on the Beginner levels that give students real confidence in learning. I've always gotten a lot out of them language-wise.
E-ffrindiau is no different. The level is great for those who have been learning for about a year or so with sentences you'd actually want to say yourself. The writing is direct and clear. No clause pile-ups that can happen in translated books for learners nor the complexity of those written by native speakers. The difficulty increases slowly as the book progresses, never so much that it's impossible, though.
But the story...what a snooze fest! Yes, okay, at this level you mostly can only talk about your personal life and immediate surroundings, but that doesn't make it interesting.
I couldn't remember who was in Wales and who in Australia. The characters blended together into a mush because they're just too similar with too similar of lives (= kids, work, husband, work, husband, kids, work, husband, kids). Around page 100 I started skimming, and only slowed down around page 180 to read carefully again.
Guess what? Didn't miss anything.
Some things I found strange or inconsistent. Like the characters being able to form some good, solid sentences but still not having learned "eisiau"? That's one of the first sentences you learn to say. First "Dw i'n hoffi coffi" then "Dw i eisiau paned o goffi".
There are other slip ups like this in the book, with the characters using forms they claim they haven't tackled in class yet. And of course, their mutations are perfect although they haven't fully grasped them. 😂
All that is unfortunate, because this really is a fantastic material for practice reading in Welsh without constantly reaching for the dictionary.
February 9, 2025
I’m just about graduating the Mynediad course and starting Sylfaen so figured I’d dive into this book which was a mix between a perfect challenge and well suited to my learning.
I have been super grateful for these sort of books as a learning resource as I love reading and being able to develop a second language reading skill (as well as speaking and understanding) has been a great thing to learn.
Pen pals (or email buddies) communicating to each other throughout their developing lives, I really enjoyed reading the exchanges between the two and could easily decode the words I wasn’t familiar with with the handy dictionary of key words at the bottom of each page. I was amazed that over time, I barely found myself looking at the hints below and I flew through the book!
Another great addition to a learners bookshelf!
I have been super grateful for these sort of books as a learning resource as I love reading and being able to develop a second language reading skill (as well as speaking and understanding) has been a great thing to learn.
Pen pals (or email buddies) communicating to each other throughout their developing lives, I really enjoyed reading the exchanges between the two and could easily decode the words I wasn’t familiar with with the handy dictionary of key words at the bottom of each page. I was amazed that over time, I barely found myself looking at the hints below and I flew through the book!
Another great addition to a learners bookshelf!
August 17, 2015
A great resource for second-language Welsh learners. The vocabulary and grammar structure is really useful for conversational Welsh, especially in regard to mutations and pronouns. I liked the email format as expressed concepts that you're likely to talk about in everyday life, rather than many learners' resources which focus on complex concepts that you're more likely to only write about and thus develop passive rather than active language use. Overall, highly recommended!
August 21, 2022
This is the kind of book I wouldn't read in English, honestly, but the format of it (and the price, I got it £2.50 second-hand) won me over. Slice-of-life isn't much my thing, but when it's in Welsh, I'll read almost anything in the name of ymarfer-fy-Nghymraeg. The previous learner who owned the copy I bought had scribbled translations and concepts in the margins of it for the first 30 pages but stopped abruptly; I hope they did end up finishing it. Perhaps they're fluent now, who knows.
Back to the book: it's very clever in that having the story develop in a collection of e-mails (about a page, for each one) makes it easy to pick up and put down if you get fatigued particularly given when it increases in difficulty, but the plot's snappy and fast-moving enough for you to want to continue. I'd really like to have more learners' books like this; the other collection of short stories I've read thus far (Ceffylau, gan Fiona Collins) stayed at the same level throughout but I think I prefer this format.
Plotwise, Ceri's story was genuinely moving and I enjoyed it a bit more than Sara's, although Sara's part had a far happier ending than I expected . Both plots are satisfying and bittersweet in their own ways; there's a lot of emphasis on roots and family for both women, which many Welsh learners will be able to identify with. The book does end on a cliffhanger of sorts, but you leave it having read about this simple 'ymarfer ein Cymraeg' correspondence developing into a genuine across-the-miles friendship.
I've nearly finished Mynediad now and I had no difficulty finishing the novel - if there was a word I wasn't sure of, I could easily get the meaning through context and repeated future use. There's also a detailed glossary at the back in Cymraeg-English, if you forget or miss anything, to save you from riffling back through the novel. So, I'd recommend for fellow late-Mynediad learners or if you're beginning Sylfaen. The difficulty does increase quite early, but given this was written in 2009 the course was likely structured differently (and of course, it depends what you've come across with your tutors/experience of using Cymraeg).
All in all - a really nice read, longer than your average Amdani book, so a great progression. Grab a copy and make friends with these two, you won't regret it.
Back to the book: it's very clever in that having the story develop in a collection of e-mails (about a page, for each one) makes it easy to pick up and put down if you get fatigued particularly given when it increases in difficulty, but the plot's snappy and fast-moving enough for you to want to continue. I'd really like to have more learners' books like this; the other collection of short stories I've read thus far (Ceffylau, gan Fiona Collins) stayed at the same level throughout but I think I prefer this format.
Plotwise, Ceri's story was genuinely moving and I enjoyed it a bit more than Sara's, although Sara's part had a far happier ending than I expected . Both plots are satisfying and bittersweet in their own ways; there's a lot of emphasis on roots and family for both women, which many Welsh learners will be able to identify with. The book does end on a cliffhanger of sorts, but you leave it having read about this simple 'ymarfer ein Cymraeg' correspondence developing into a genuine across-the-miles friendship.
I've nearly finished Mynediad now and I had no difficulty finishing the novel - if there was a word I wasn't sure of, I could easily get the meaning through context and repeated future use. There's also a detailed glossary at the back in Cymraeg-English, if you forget or miss anything, to save you from riffling back through the novel. So, I'd recommend for fellow late-Mynediad learners or if you're beginning Sylfaen. The difficulty does increase quite early, but given this was written in 2009 the course was likely structured differently (and of course, it depends what you've come across with your tutors/experience of using Cymraeg).
All in all - a really nice read, longer than your average Amdani book, so a great progression. Grab a copy and make friends with these two, you won't regret it.
March 24, 2013
This is a fantastic book for Welsh language learners. I first read it while I was doing Mynediad (beginners); I took it steadily and it was a tremendous help. There is key vocabulary on the bottom of each page, so you are not constantly needing a dictionary.The author builds the language up slowly, both vocabulary and structures.
The plot is simple but fun and heart-warming. The two main characters get to know each other, support each other through various difficulties and become real friends.
I read it again in Sylfaen; and have just finished it for the 3rd time. It's such a pleasure now to be able to read a Welsh book fluently!
The plot is simple but fun and heart-warming. The two main characters get to know each other, support each other through various difficulties and become real friends.
I read it again in Sylfaen; and have just finished it for the 3rd time. It's such a pleasure now to be able to read a Welsh book fluently!
May 23, 2013
Hwre, dw i wedi gorffen fy llyfr cyntaf Cymraeg!
This book is perfect for anyone doing entry level Welsh, alongside classes. The story is simply made up of emails being sent by 2two penpals, one in Wales and one in Australia, both learning to speak Welsh. It covers their everyday lives, hobbies, families etc. It is entertaining enough to keep the reader interested but the important thing is that it is set at a level that is achievable but tests you as you go along.
I enjoyed it and am very pleased to have managed to read it.
This book is perfect for anyone doing entry level Welsh, alongside classes. The story is simply made up of emails being sent by 2two penpals, one in Wales and one in Australia, both learning to speak Welsh. It covers their everyday lives, hobbies, families etc. It is entertaining enough to keep the reader interested but the important thing is that it is set at a level that is achievable but tests you as you go along.
I enjoyed it and am very pleased to have managed to read it.
May 20, 2018
This is a great book for learners of the Welsh language. I am in a beginners class and this book has helped me a lot with vocabulary, structure, and also pronunciation (I read aloud). It isn’t something that I would normally read but it’s engaging enough to keep you reading - starting off gently and providing more of a challenge as you delve deeper into the friendship. I’ve been learning Welsh for about 8 months and have just finished reading my first Welsh novel - thanks very much, Lois Arnold, for writing an entertaining novel for Welsh beginners!
April 16, 2020
This is a brilliant book for Welsh Learners, I paced myself through it as I only started my Mynediad 1 Course in September and found this book fun to dip in and out of as I learned. It got be especially up to speed with learning Past Tense which is something I continuously struggled with in class. It has given me the confidence to go on to read other Welsh books and so I have no choice but to give it Pump Serenau. Diolch yn fawr.
August 16, 2020
Great book for those learning the Welsh language, starts off with fairly simple vocab and constantly introduces new words and phrases. The developing relationship between the two women and their respective life stories are interesting to follow.
October 28, 2024
This book consists of a series of emails between Welsh-language learning penfriends, one in Wales and one in Australia. The first emails are very short and simple, but as the characters learn more, the length and complexity of their messages increases. My tutor lent me this book and did warn me that I wouldn't be able to finish it at this stage of language-learning and she was right! I've got about half-way through, but am now finding that I need to look up too many words and phrases for it to be an enjoyable read, so I'm shelving this as a DNF for now, and will return to it once I've completed Mynediad.
The DNF shouldn't be taken as a criticism though - the book is well written and brilliantly constructed and it has definitely helped me improve my Welsh. I'm looking forward to finishing it later this year.
The DNF shouldn't be taken as a criticism though - the book is well written and brilliantly constructed and it has definitely helped me improve my Welsh. I'm looking forward to finishing it later this year.
February 28, 2023
This book is aimed at Mynediad but it took me so long to get around to reading it now doing Canolradd and finding it easy to follow. When I started Sylfaen (I started at lefel Sylfaen) I couldn't get into the format. But I should've stuck with it.
I enjoyed this book, Lois Arnold's books are always enjoyable reads. In fact I'd love to read more about Ceri and Sara. It's a sweet and sometimes sad story told in the form of emails. There's no definite plot but you do follow a few things going on in their lives.
Perfect book for learners. The writing starts of simple and progresses as the characters own knowledge of Cymraeg progresses, probably a good read if you're doing Mynediad 2?
Ffenestri is also a good read by the same author
I enjoyed this book, Lois Arnold's books are always enjoyable reads. In fact I'd love to read more about Ceri and Sara. It's a sweet and sometimes sad story told in the form of emails. There's no definite plot but you do follow a few things going on in their lives.
Perfect book for learners. The writing starts of simple and progresses as the characters own knowledge of Cymraeg progresses, probably a good read if you're doing Mynediad 2?
Ffenestri is also a good read by the same author
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews