Tuesday, April 3, 2018

"Smith of Wootton Major" and "Farmer Giles of Ham" by J.R.R. Tolkien

Awwwww, these two stories were so cute and fun!  I really wasn't entirely sure what to expect from these two short stories, but they definitely reminded me in some ways of Tolkien's Letters from Father Christmas, just whimsical and funny and with some nice bits of wisdom gently bestowed here and there.

"Smith of Wootton Major" is all about baking cakes and giving secret gifts, and since I love both those activities, I probably liked it the best of the two.  "Farmer Giles of Ham" is about a reluctant, accidental hero who ends up outsmarting a tricksy dragon and becoming very important indeed.

This is totally going to be the next book I read out loud to my kids.  It's sweet and clean and will make them giggle.  It made ME giggle!  Especially those knights in "Farmer Giles" who didn't want to go dragon-hunting at all.


(From my Instagram)

Particularly Good Bits:

In the small hours of the night giants seem less unlikely. (from "Farmer Giles of Ham")

The knights were talking among themselves about the new fashion in hats. (from "Farmer Giles of Ham")

If This was a Movie, I Would Rate It:  G.  Suitable for all audiences; nothing objectionable here at all.




This is my 15th book read and reviewed for the Classics Club, my 6th for the Mount TBR Reading Challenge 2018, and my 3rd for the Old School Kidlit Reading Challenge.

4 comments:

  1. Cool! I just added it to my TBR :)

    Catherine

    ReplyDelete
  2. Both are wonderful and always great reads. As I've gotten older though I resonate more with Smith of Wootton Major. It pretty much encapsulates what Tolkien meant by a faerie story.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. George, that's cool! I can see that Smith in particular would feel more and more applicable as one grows older.

      Delete

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