Book review: Why Did My Brain Make Me Say it?

We continue our reviews of books shortlisted for this year’s Wales Book of the Year award.

‘Why Did My Brain Make Me Say It?’ is one of 12 English language books shortlisted for the 2025 Wales Book of the Year.

You can vote for this year’s People’s Choice Award here.

Onwy Gower

Sarah Ziman’s debut anthology of poetry combines relatable experiences with imaginative descriptions of the world around us. Roughly arranged over the span of a single academic year we see the world from the perspective of a child.

There’s something for everyone to enjoy; from enthralling illustrations of the changing seasons to interactive poems and riddles. Can you solve this one?

“A king, with made-to-measure throne
My face as blank and smooth as stone
A silver shovel breaks my crown,
And soldiers take my gold to town.
WHAT AM I?”

Hiatus

Despite starting her writing journey at the age of eleven, Ziman took a 30 year hiatus which truly allowed her to perfect the craft.

This collection includes haikus (‘Hi-ku’), acrostics (‘resilience’), freeform (‘New Girl/Merch Newydd’) and traditional style poems (‘Felicity’) to create a new reading experience with every page turned.

The first-person perspective for the majority of the poems emphasize how personal some of these poems can feel.

“We’re in our leavers’ hoodies,
our names all on the back,
on stage one last assembly –
who will be the first to crack?”

Relevant

Sarah Ziman also includes imperatives for the readers to keep poetry relevant through comparing it to other art forms such as the infamous banana duct-taped to a wall, originally titled ‘Comedian’, in the poem ‘Performance Piece’.

Through breaking this fourth wall time and time again Ziman creates a lasting impression, especially the poem ‘Psst! Pass it on!’.

“Like love,
a poem is something
that gets bigger the more it’s shared.”

Another noteworthy characteristic for this collection is the casual bilingualism sprinkled across poems. If you’re a native or a new speaker the Welsh is easy to comprehend due to the glossary attached at the bottom of each poem with translations and pronunciations.

“Now yn yr ysgol Gymraeg
I understand tipyn bach more again”

Not only does this book reflect a single school year but it also acts as a circle with the first poem, ‘Hi-ku’, and the last, ‘’Bye-ku’, connecting not only through titles but with the haiku structure as well which make this collection feel complete in a way that demands more – not for closure but because by the end you feel attached to the various stories and experiences.

Although you could find many books about the awkwardness of adolescence, I doubt that you could find one that deals with these situations with such wittiness, creativity and overall charm.

‘Why Did My Brain Make Me Say It?’ by Sarah Ziman is published by Troika Books and is available from all good bookshops.