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Loading... Smith of Wootton Major (1967)by J. R. R. Tolkien
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. A delightful fun JRR Tolkien piece of work. I went to the Hershey Public Library looking for a homebrew book, but they didn't have it, and browsing around I came across this, and having never even heard of it, I decided to give it a read. It's a children's book and done really well, I will probably get it out again to read to my daughters once I'm done with the Narnia series. There's not a 'whole lot' to it, but it is about how to be respectful to others and to keep faith in the Faery kingdom, something I know my oldest will absolutely love. For any JRR Tolkien fan (LTTR, Hobbit, etc.) it's definitely worth a pick up and read. It's all of 74 pages with numerous illustrations and big font, easily something to read for an hour or two in an afternoon. The story itself is only about 57 pages long in the edition I borrowed from the library so is a very quick read. It contains medieval style illustrations by Pauline Baynes. This is the first story by Tolkien that I have managed to read; I have tried to read the Lord of the Rings trilogy many times in the past, and have not been able to get into it, but this style seemed completely different to me. There aren't that many characters in this short story, the main ones being Smith, Nokes and Alf. As the story is extremely short, there isn't a lot of character development but I think due to the fairytale style of the book, and the fact that it is such a quick read, this doesn't deduct from the plot at all. Most of the characters and very caricatured; Nokes is the typical disbelieving grumpy old man, Alf the mysterious outsider and Smith is the typical curious protagonist. I think that this adds to the fairytale style and also makes the story a lot easier to read. This story follows a few of the archetypal features of a traditional fairytale; with the magical object, the ordinary hero, the mysterious stranger and a strange other-world. I think that as this is such a short story, the level of description of Faery wasn't very extensive which left a lot of the details to the reader's imagination. The plot wasn't very complex at all but this is sometimes vital to such a short story as it lets the reader become interested in the story without needing too much introduction or background. I really like how Tolkien established things like the Great Cake as a tradition in this fictional world in such a way that made the whole thing very believable. Overall, like I said at the beginning of this review, I found the writing style in this short story a lot easier to read and understand than the writing in some of Tolkien's other publications. The sentence structures were very varied in the most part but a lot of the time the pacing was quite quick, meaning that although the story was pushed along at a comfortable pace, the plot lacked descriptive language and background to the characters. Overall, I would give this a 4 out of 5 as I found the story interesting and the writing style enjoyable to read, but I found myself wishing that there was just more to it; more descriptive language, more establishment of the traditions and the environment. no reviews | add a review
Is contained inTolkien Collection: The Hobbit, Farmer Giles of Ham, The Adventures of Tom Bombadil, Tree and Leaf. Smith of Wootton Major, The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth, The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King by J. R. R. Tolkien (indirect) Tree and Leaf. Smith of Wootton Major. The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth, Beorhthelm's Son by J. R. R. Tolkien Tales from the Perilous Realm: Farmer Giles of Ham / The Adventures of Tom Bombadil / Leaf by Niggle / Smith of Wootton Major by J. R. R. Tolkien Is expanded inHas as a reference guide/companion
A charming new pocket edition of one of Tolkien's major pieces of short fiction, and his only finished work dating from after publication of The Lord of the Rings. What began as a preface to The Golden Key by George MacDonald eventually grew into this charming short story, so named by Tolkien to suggest an early work by P.G. Wodehouse. Composed almost a decade after The Lord of the Rings, and when his lifelong occupation with the 'Silmarillion' was winding down, Smith of Wootton Major was the product of ripened experience and reflection. It was published in 1967 as a small hardback, complete with charming black and white illustrations by Pauline Baynes, and would be the last work of fiction to be published in Tolkien's own lifetime. Now, almost 50 years on, this enchanting tale of a wanderer who finds his way into the perilous realm of Faery is being published once again as a pocket hardback. Contained here are many intriguing links to the world of Middle-earth, as well as to Tolkien's other tales, and this new edition is enhanced with a facsimile of the illustrated first edition, a manuscript of Tolkien's early draft of the story, notes and an alternate ending, and a lengthy essay on the nature of Faery. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)823.912Literature English English fiction Modern Period 1901-1999 1901-1945LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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Note: I did not read any of the additional material, just the story itself. ( )