Farmer Giles of Ham
 

or was it from Ham.. Nevermind.

I wan to know people's opinnions of this children's book, made by JRRT naturally.

If here is already one discussion of this, then I'm just being too lazy to search for it so I create a new one. That's me. i also know that this is an Middle-Earth-forum, but still.. [img]smilies/rolleyes.gif[/img]

But I think that the book was much like The Hobbit, hilarious though. The Dragon was just like Smaug.. [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

I love it. It is such a fun story. Chrysophylax was my favorite character, with Farmer Giles as a close second.

I have the 50th Anniversary Edition, which has the story, and all of the background information which made it a really interesting read.

I truly enjoyed Farmer Gyles of Ham! It was very funny. I loved how Tolkien could come up with a fairy tale that sounds like it could have been written ages ago, and passed down through the generations, and yet still make it sound fresh and new. His perspective in tales is always fascinating.

Farmer Giles and his blunderbuss! [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img] I've really enjoyed it in my childhood. And it was my first experience and impression of Tolkien's world. Time to read it again! [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

(Title is 'A sonkádi Egyed gazda' in Hungarian. Sonka = Ham; Egyed = Giles; gazda = farmer. Not bad but translated too drastically. [img]smilies/rolleyes.gif[/img] )

hee, Gabo: you're really into this Translating stuff, right? *laugh*

Me too, me too. Unfortunately in the finnish version of FGFH all the names and stuff are the same. The name is Maamies ja Lohikäärme, which is 'The Farmer and The Dragon'. Suxxx!!! [img]smilies/mad.gif[/img]

AND..

My signature is from FGFH, it is when The Dod of the Farmer saw the giant and yelled his head off, when he tried to wake up Giles. The dog tells to giles that the giant stepped on his cow. Eh. Not that nobody cares.. =^_^=

I wanted to ask you twice but I've always forgotten... But I recognized Galathea. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img] What's the exact meaning of your quote?

I just read Farmer Giles of Ham for the first time and LOVED it!!! I have to contend with your opinion there, though Kalessin. Giles is a great guy, and I think Garm his dog is a great cowardly and humorous sidekick. The grey mare is very personable, too. Oh, man, there's so many great characters in such a small book!
Whaaat?! What makes it a children's book? Mills and Boon stories are supposedly for adults, right? The language and story in FGOH is infinitely superior. I think that a lot of adults could enjoy it, and get a great deal of enjoyment out of the skillful storytelling, probably more than most children would.

I was stunned at how many similarities there were to The Hobbit and LOTR. A surly, hated miller, a great Dragon (though reasonable, unlike Smaug the Magnificent), a king trying to reclaim the treasure at the end, and the fortunate addition of rope to Giles' gear. Interesting...

Oh, such a good story! I loved Chrysophylax, he was great!

Which stories are inclduing in the Harper-Collins publication-"Tales of the perilous realms"?

I agree that this is a story that adults can enjoy, and I like it very much. So much sly humour and wisdom in there!

Tales from the Perilous Realm includes:
Farmer Giles of Ham
The Adventures of Tom Bombadil
Leaf by Niggle
Smith of Wootton Major

Well worth buying, and if you've read those stories, you might want to look into the "minor works" quotes thread on the Quotes forum...

First, hi, I just joined, this is my first post.

I think one of my fav things about FGOH was its setting and the use of English place names. Its one of the best examples of Tolkien's desire to create a mythology for England and works really well.

Bit OT but I also loved Leaf by Niggle. One of the most truely beautiful short stories I've ever read.

Doug

You've lost me there, I don't remember stating an opinion. But my personal favourite of those 'Tales from the Perilous Realm' is Leaf by Niggle, which, while in some ways a more formal story, is a very moving and poignant evocation of grace and humility.

I would consider them tales for children in the same way that Oscar Wilde's wonderful fairy tales are, or even The Little Prince by Saint Exupery. That the narrative is accessible and appealing, and in the tone of a story read out loud. And yet these authors bring both conscious and intuitive depth to the narrative, and for adult readers there is a reflective, wistful quality - a poignancy - that has much resonance. There are metaphors too - if not downright allegory. And of course, we can all enjoy the ingenuity and wit [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img].

Stories like this are a validation of the fairy tale as a form, an evolution of Perrault, Grimm and Andersen among others, and an echo of a far older tradition of storytelling. Not necessarily the vast, formal epic myth of Homer or the Ramayana, but the intimate evocation and inter-twining of the mystical and homely in oral cultures from around the world.

Peace [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

Kalessin

Go Doug! I love Garm, too. All of his yelps and howls are so expressive; they make me chuckle whenever I read the story.

The blacksmith is a close second. I enjoy the description of his character becoming more and more cheerful at the thought of eminent disaster for Giles.

Also, I think this is where I first came across Tolkien's phrase "terrible and wonderful", which really resonates for me in looking at great tragic literature. For me to really like a great tragic book or play, that phrase must apply.