Immediately it positions a humble farmer, more fond of drink and hearth than of quests, as the hero. The title is the first suggestion that this is not the fantasy you might have been expecting from the author of Middle-earth. It is a playfully anachronistic tale offered to readers in a spirit of fun and not above seemingly laughing a bit at the author (and his fancies) a bit as well. Rather than celebrate the glories and heroics of a bygone era, it subjects knights, battles, monsters, and even Tolkien’s beloved high language to some good-natured ridicule. Reviewįarmer Giles of Ham may come as a bit of surprise to those familiar with Tolkien only as a writer of epic fantasies. When a dragon wanders into the vicinity, Giles puts on his homemade armor and ventures forth to slay the beast, but there may be more than one way to deal with a dragon. Farmer Giles enjoys the attention well enough, but he is less pleased to find the villagers now expect him to deal with all the neighborhood monsters. Then suddenly he’s a local hero for getting rid of the fellow. Farmer Giles of Ham lives a life of happy contentment until the day a giant blunders into his fields.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |