This is a short book of short stories by the author of The Hobbit. I listened to the audio version, read by actor Derek Jacobi.

The first story, Farmer Giles was by far the best one--a delightful fairy tale with giants and dragons and an unlikely hero. Jacobi's reading was perfection in entertainment: interesting voices for each character but also the inflection of every word exactly right, with no dropped endings or rushed phrases as many narrators do while reading.

The other two stories weren't quite well-written as the first, but the reading was just as engaging. I highly recommend the audio version of this collection.

This was a sweet little tale involving Giles the farmer, Chrysophylax the dragon, and Garm the dog (who was the star of the show for me).

When a giant entered the village of Ham, Farmer Giles somewhat accidentally was responsible for his leaving. He returned from the lands he came from and spoke fondly of the abundant foods and lack of knights he had witnessed there, prompting the dragons to become interested in this human realm. As Giles was heralded as Ham's saviour once before he is tasked with doing so again, but this new foe is far deadlier and far more intelligent.

This was full of the wry humour I have grown to love from Tolkien. This often had me smirking and giggling and I enjoyed my time with this story immensely. It was also one full of bravery and heart, again like the best of Tolkien's stories also are, and proved a joy to read on many levels.

The only unlikable aspect for me was how Giles and the other village inhabitants treated poor Garm the dog. He was often beaten or abused for speaking his truths, warning the village of impending danger, and for grieving over the loss of those he loved. He only ever showed loyalty in return for his harsh treatment and I thought a small moment of appreciation for his character would have appeared at the story's close. It did not. I feel this would have benefitted greatly from including an apology to Garm and realisation of past wrongs from at least Giles. This inclusion would be especially beneficial to the young readers this is targeted towards.

Drekar, tröll, töfrasverð - fantasía fyrir unga lesendur! Krúttleg barnabók sem er eins og "light" útgáfa af Hobbitanum og The Lord of the Rings. Mæli með að foreldrar lesi þessa með börnunum sínum. :)

Giganti maldestri, un drago sputafuoco, una spada magica, un astuto fattore, un re sprovveduto, un cane parlante, una simpatica giumenta grigia e un inestimabile tesoro: ecco gli ingredienti mescolati magistralmente da Tolkien in questa bella fiaba per bambini. Il tutto condito da quel pizzico di humor che fa sorridere ma non eccede mai. Posso solo immaginarmi i figli di Tolkien seduti accanto a lui, mentre racconta loro le imprese del Fattore Giles! Io lo leggerò ai i miei, perché è un racconto che ben si presta ad essere letto ad alta voce, le sere d'autunno davanti al camino.
Interessante anche l'introduzione a questa edizione che spiega la genesi dell'opera, la cui stesura definitiva richiese all'autore quasi vent'anni! Molto simpatiche anche le illustrazioni, vere e proprie miniature in stile medievale, che Tolkien stesso definì il completamento perfetto alla sua storia. Voto: ★★★★

A lesser known Tolkien work for those who mostly know his works through the modern movies and shows, Farmer Giles of Ham is about (you guessed it) a farmer who lives in a small village set in a medieval/fantasy setting closer to an Arthurian tale than high fantasy like Lord of the Rings. In this tale, Farmer Giles becomes an unlikely hero when he defends his farm and village from a giant. This leads to a ripple effect where Farmer Giles must live up to expectations through cleverness and a bit of luck.

This edition includes a fascinating introduction by Christina Scull and Wayne G. Hammond that shares the history and process of Tolkien creating this text. While they cannot narrow down a specific date of when Tolkien first created this story but can deduce that it was probably created in late 1927 as it is closer in style to Tolkien’s Roverandom than The Hobbit. They also share a story from Tolkien’s oldest son, John, when he first heard his father tell it while caught in rainstorm. This is my favorite part of this book because it shares the struggles that Tolkien endured to get this published even after the success of The Hobbit, including how he found his illustrator, Pauline Baynes. Her illustrations are included throughout the text and a gallery of illustrations of events that take place in the story are also added at the end.

This edition also includes the unfinished sequel that is basically an introduction, then a revised introduction followed by an outline of events that Tolkien plans to flesh out. Not great as a story is concerned but fascinating as it shows an insight into his writing process.

The story itself is not too long, more of a novella and much shorter than either The Hobbit or Lord of the Rings, and doesn’t include much of Tolkien’s world building such as invented languages or songs. While the story is also pretty predictable, I enjoyed the pacing and the characters were excellent. Tolkien fans and younger readers will enjoy this one.

One of Tolkien's lesser-known works, what with having to compete with some of the brightest stars in the history of fantasy literature, Farmer Giles of Ham is nonetheless worth checking out and has little to be ashamed of in the company of the Hobbit and the others.

It's its hero that truly carries the story. Farmer Giles is neither a bold and fearless warrior such as Aragorn or Fëanor, nor a weak and meek little guy filled more with doubts than raw skill such as the hobbits, nor even an unsympathetic coward always trying to get rid of his responsibilities like Rincewind: instead, he's just a grumpy farmer that doesn't even seem to realize the how fantastic his quest is supposed to be, treating it all as nothing more than a chore to be only taken care of when he runs out of excuses to push it to another day. That sort of a thing is rare, and Tolkien if anyone knows how to draw out every bit of its potential.

Defending his home from a giant sends Giles on a thoroughly unwanted and (only in his mind) unpleasant fairytale adventure, to get rid of a dragon that's been menacing the countryside and that none of the local knights would like to try out. Sure, he gets a magic sword to help him out, but he's taking the whole thing with such nonchalant, grudging acceptance that you'd almost believe he could take care of the quest with nothing more than a garden hoe: the only thing the sword does is to take all the genuine but believable challenges he could have faced, and reduces them into a comedic farce of utter humiliation to the dragon, Chrysophylax, who until today thought knights were just a fairy tale. It could've been tense and gripping, had Tolkien chosen to write it in a different (more Hobbit-like) way, but he went down a different path and the end result is downright hilarious instead.

In the end, Farmer Giles of Ham is much like The Hobbit, only slightly lesser in every way except maybe comedy. If you read one of the two and enjoyed it (and how couldn't you?), then you'll like the other one fine as well.

Twas an adventurous little read

Non nascondo di essere rimasto un po’ deluso dal Professore questa volta. Anzitutto mi ha spiazzato il fatto che si trattasse di una fiaba per bambini, e non c’è nemmeno alcun legame con la Terra di Mezzo, quindi già di base le premesse non erano le migliori. La storia è quella di, un fortunato più che coraggioso, Ægidius Ahenobarbus Julius Agricola de Hammo che fa una gran carriera grazie alla buona sorte e al cane Garm (non troppo benvoluto ^^’) che lo sprona all’abbisogna. Inizia affrontando e “sconfiggendo” un gigante con un sol colpo di trombone, da lì partirà una serie di equivoci che lo porteranno faccia a faccia col drago Chrysophylax Dives, armato della leggendaria spada Mordicoda. Un continuo, ripetitivo, spesso scontato, temporeggiare che a lungo andare ha incoronato l’agricoltore (alla faccia del mugnaio invidioso ed il fabbro pessimista) quale eroe, e non solo, del racconto.

“‘So knights are mythical!’ said the younger and less experienced dragons. ‘We always thought so.’
     ‘At least they may be getting rare,’ thought the older and wiser worms; ‘far and few and no longer to be feared.’”

This charming little fable is such a beautiful example of Tolkien’s light-hearted, whimsical, & indescribably clever way with words. Combining influences from medieval fables, children’s stories, fairy tales, heroic legends, charter myths, & place folklore, Tolkien weaves a story that is equal parts humor, adventure, & moral to such subtle & well-crafted effect that you will wish he’d spent ten times as much ink on the antics of Giles, his mare, & his little dog.

Click here to read my full review of FARMER GILES OF HAM complete with my full thoughts, further reading suggestions, & more of my favorite quotes!

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

CW // some stressful situations involving the dog

Un bel racconto breve di Tolkien, in questa edizione annessa con la prima versione del manoscritto, che diverte insegna facendoci entrare nel magico mondo dell' autore.Imperdibile per gli amanti del genere.

Farmer Giles of Ham has been in my house for a very long time, but for most of that time it was shelved among children's books, under the misapprehension that that was where it belonged.  But as the dust-jacket attests, Tolkien did not write it for children in particular, though many will enjoy it all the more for that. It is best read aloud, when it will live with all the force of "a tale that holdeth children from play and old men from the chimney corner."

Wikipedia quotes Tolkien himself about the story's origin:

[Farmer Giles of Ham] was, in fact, written to order, to be read to the Lovelace Society at Worcester College [Oxford]; and was read to them at a sitting. For that reason I should like to put an inscription to C. H. Wilkinson on a fly-leaf, since it was Col. Wilkinson of that College who egged me to it...

[caption id="attachment_108507" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Dedication to Colonel Wilkinson, in Farmer Giles of Ham, illustrated by Pauline Diana Baynes[/caption]

Further hunting reveals that this first outing of this story is one of the Treasures of Worcester College, and in this blog post you can see the minutes of the Lovelace Society when it recorded the proceedings on 14 February 1938. The author of the article, Emma Gudrum points out that

During his lifetime J. R. R. Tolkien published only a few of the stories originally written for his children (though several have appeared posthumously). That he considered Farmer Giles of Ham worthy of publication must be partly down to the laughter and appreciation of the Lovelace Club and the support of their patron Colonel Wilkinson.

Farmer Giles of Ham is a story that resonates with the era of reading as an entertainment for adults rather than as a private solitary activity.  Accordingly, I read it in company with Amber, and read out the bits that involved Farmer Giles' dog Garm...

Farmer Giles had a dog.  The dog's name was Garm.  Dogs had to be content with short names in the vernacular: the Book-latin was reserved for their betters.  Garm could not talk even dog-latin; but he could use the vulgar tongue (as could most dogs of his day) either to bully or to brag or to wheedle in.  Bullying was for beggars and trespassers, bragging for other dogs, and wheedling for his master.  Garm was both proud and afraid of Giles, who could bully and brag better than he could. (p.10)

The mock-serious tone of this fable is established from the first paragraph where we learn that our hero rejoices in the name Ægidus Ahenobarbus Julius Agricola de Hammo:

To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2021/11/22/f...

A tale of great humor and heroism(?)... Well maybe not quite