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61st out of 637 books
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1,048 voters
Farmer Giles of Ham
The editors of the best-selling rediscovered Tolkien novel Roverandom present an expanded fiftieth anniversary edition of Tolkien's beloved classic Farmer Giles of Ham, complete with a map, the original story outline, the original first-edition illustrations by Pauline Baynes, and the author's notes for an unpublished sequel. Farmer Giles of Ham is a light-hearted satire f...more
Hardcover, (50th Anniversary Edition), 128 pages
Published
November 15th 1999
by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
(first published 1949)
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Farmer Giles of Ham pretty much epitomizes everything I love about Tolkien. We get a winking narrator, similar to the narrator of The Hobbit; there's a hand-drawn map; it's full of humour and little philological jokes and asides; best of all, it does what he set out to do with The Silmarillion, in creating a new mythology for England.
Farmer Giles of Ham is not an entirely new story. If you've read The Valiant/Brave Little Tailor (or, heck, even seen the 1938 cartoon featur...more
Farmer Giles of Ham pretty much epitomizes everything I love about Tolkien. We get a winking narrator, similar to the narrator of The Hobbit; there's a hand-drawn map; it's full of humour and little philological jokes and asides; best of all, it does what he set out to do with The Silmarillion, in creating a new mythology for England.
Farmer Giles of Ham is not an entirely new story. If you've read The Valiant/Brave Little Tailor (or, heck, even seen the 1938 cartoon featur...more
No-- this is not exactly your epic "dragon vs. knight-in-shining-armor" story-- but it was just as wonderful, in a different way. It's fascinating how Tolkien blends all of his stories into England; and I'm sure Giles and the other villagers of Ham will bring to mind the Hobbits of the Shire. Enter the world of the Middle Kingdom, where animals talk and dragons and giants roam.
Farmer Giles is your average farmer: beer-loving, honest, and wants nothing but your predictable, unexciting life. Aft...more
Farmer Giles is your average farmer: beer-loving, honest, and wants nothing but your predictable, unexciting life. Aft...more
J.R.R. fails to disappoint, once again. He proves his genius in the comedic short story about an ornery farmer and his dog, Garm.
In the time of the Anglo-Saxon kings, giants and dragons plague the British countryside. Unfortunately for the high-born dragon called Chrysophylax Dives, an especially stupid giant stumbles into Ham, the residence of Giles and some other country folk. Giles effortlessly scares off the giant, who returns to the land of giants and falsely reports that there are no warri...more
In the time of the Anglo-Saxon kings, giants and dragons plague the British countryside. Unfortunately for the high-born dragon called Chrysophylax Dives, an especially stupid giant stumbles into Ham, the residence of Giles and some other country folk. Giles effortlessly scares off the giant, who returns to the land of giants and falsely reports that there are no warri...more
It is the less known novel of J.R.R. Tolkien, where the magical world and early Middle Ages British world are mixed. It is an adventurous and entertaining at the same time it is also instructive story about supernatural creatures ( giants, dragons, speaking dog) and common people. The main character is Farmer Giles, who accomplishes the attention of the other villagers and the inhabitants of the country.In the novel, he fights with giant and tames a dragon with his talent and intelligence. Giles...more
Farmer Giles of Ham is an uproariously comic story. J.R.R. Tolkien had a remarkable wit, and this story is a riot from cover to cover. I love his grasp of every character's colorful viewpoint, from Giles (sturdy but reluctant) to Crysophilax the dragon (greedy but not above reason) to the gray mare (a remarkably observant creature). I recommend this story first and foremost to any body beginning their search for Tolkien literature outside of The Lord of the Rings.
Oct 22, 2011
Taralen
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
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This has got to be one of the funniest books I have ever read in a long time. Tolkien’s writing in this is wonderful and it kept me hooked. The concept is simple but well executed. It’s funny how he uses satirical themes, especially on the whole Latin and “vulgar tongue” thing. It’s because of that humor that makes such a simple story very interesting.
Giles totally reminds me of Shrek, they both have a similar attitude. In fact I very much related the humor in this book to Shrek’s, although Tol...more
Giles totally reminds me of Shrek, they both have a similar attitude. In fact I very much related the humor in this book to Shrek’s, although Tol...more
Lihtsalt vapustavalt lõbus ja tore lugu Tolkienilt. Võhikule autentselt kõlav arhailine keel lõi silmad särama ja tõi naeru näole. Lisaks inimloomuse kõige halenaljakamad omadused ja piinlikumad tõsiasjad, mis joonistusid meie ees lohede, rüütlite, ehtinimlike koerte ja hiiglastena. Tolkien seob inimese olemuse, elu poolt pakutavad pöörased keerdkäigud ja tohutu lõbususe üheks kohati historitsistliku paroodiana näivaks muinasjutuks. Kõige nauditavam ingliskeelne teos, ja kõige parem teos üldse,...more
The edition of this minor Tolkien work that I read was the 60th Anniversary version. It contains the final text, as well as the original basic manuscript and Tolkien's notes for a sequel (which was never written). There is also a detailed appendix and a lengthy, scholarly introduction which discusses the book in some detail.
The main story itself is an entertaining romp about a farmer who becomes an inadvertent hero when he gets rid of a rampaging giant. Although he never meant to be a hero, he s...more
The main story itself is an entertaining romp about a farmer who becomes an inadvertent hero when he gets rid of a rampaging giant. Although he never meant to be a hero, he s...more
Dec 31, 2010
Lynnette
added it
Farmer Giles of Ham (as he was called in the vulgar language) makes a great reputation for himself by chance. After scaring away a giant, he must defend the town from a dragon. Later his total taming of the dragon sets him in his new station in life.
This book appeals to the reader by the familiarity the author has with the reader. It is as if he is telling the story to you, rather than writing a book. Appeals to both boys and girls by using fantasy.
This book appeals to the reader by the familiarity the author has with the reader. It is as if he is telling the story to you, rather than writing a book. Appeals to both boys and girls by using fantasy.
Where 'The Hobbit' was supposed to be a "Childrens Book", this one clearly is. Written after 'The Hobbit' and before 'Lord Of The Rings', it contains a lot of the same winning formula that went into Tolkien's first masterpiece, as well as an added dose of quirky humour to make it more appealing to kids. Highly amusing and entertaining. And it IS Tolkien, after all!
This story is really cute. I love Farmer Giles and his dog! An unknowing courage and almost foolish audacity guide them to the dragon Chrysophylax. Tolkien had an amazing gift in story telling, I'm consistently blown away by it. This tale is told like Medieval legend, and holds a certain charm that made me smile the whole time I read it.
This humorous short story was fun to read, and especially fun to hear read aloud; there are several laugh out loud moments in it. I loved coming across some of the same phraseology that I read in The Lord of the Rings; yup, this is the genuine Tolkien article!
Just like Smith of Wootton Major I didn't enjoy this quite as much as I remember liking it (it was still a fun little read). I think it may suffer from not having the illustrations that the book I read as a child did.
Absolutely fun! I love Garm. :) This, very much, had the feeling of the Hobbit to it...without the 'epicness' is that a word? But, still fun..and I loved the comedy along the way. I liked this one enough to give it a second read for a "read aloud" with the kids! I think, they too..will like Garm! :) Silly dog:)
Dan and I are reading this aloud. It reminds me more of The Hobbit than Lord of the Rings and you could read it to a child with minimal explanations. Very amusing so far, but it's a slow read because someone (who shall remain nameless) keeps falling asleep two paragraphs into it!
My dad picked this up for me in a bookshop in Argentina!
(Egidio? Turns out to be the proper Spanish version of Giles. After the saint. Their story checks out.)
(Egidio? Turns out to be the proper Spanish version of Giles. After the saint. Their story checks out.)
1 like · like · see review
A Farmer suddenly defeats a goblin and a dragon and saves his village in the process. A short, fun read for all ages. Especially liked the dog x)
How great is this! Same great writing as The Hobbit but unconnected to the other tales and a little different...like Tolkien was just warming up.
The tale of a reluctant hero who grows in self-confidence and courage with the aid of a little luck. Wonderful, thoroughly enjoyable read.
A wonderful children's book , was a real quick read , would be an awesome book to read at bed time for your grandchildren .
Apesar de ser uma história bobinha e infantil é possível extrair passagens maravilhosas para a vida.
Very simplistic in writing style. Fast paced and interesting still though. A good quick hour read.
A fun, imaginative story. A good read aloud for young kids. I can see elements in it that are developed further in Tolkien's greater works. Farmer Giles is a man but he could easily have been a hobbit.
Great little story by Tolkien. I'd recommend it to anyone that wants a nice light fairy tale like fantasy.
A great read, the kids were enthralled. Giles is the classic reluctant hero, a bit of a foreshadowing of Bilbo and Frodo perhaps?
Hugely enjoyable mini-tale from Tolkien, with a wry wit. Not a Hobbit Epic, but a sort of goofy gem.
Lots of fun, and an excellent book. Interestingly it suffers only from comparison to Tolkien's other works.
Call Peter Jackson in for this one too - ideal for a children's made-for-TV movies or series.
Loved it! Really interesting to see a different story other than Lord of the Rings from Tolkien.
Muy gracioso y de fácil lectura. Obra de uno de los más grandes genios de la historia, por lo tanto, una genialidad!
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John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE, was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the high fantasy classic works
The Hobbit
and
The Lord of the Rings
.
Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford from 1925 to 1945, and Merton Professor of English language and literature from 1945 to 1959. He was a close friend of C.S. Lewis.
Ch...more
More about J.R.R. Tolkien...
Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford from 1925 to 1945, and Merton Professor of English language and literature from 1945 to 1959. He was a close friend of C.S. Lewis.
Ch...more
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“Farmer Giles went home feeling very uncomfortable. He was finding that a local reputation may require keeping up, and that may prove awkward.”
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Oct 09, 2010 12:11pm