carringtonshaw 's review for:

Smith of Wootton Major and Farmer Giles of Ham by J.R.R. Tolkien, Pauline Baynes

5.0

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Despite their relative obscurity, these were actually the first works I ever read by Tolkien. My parents had an old copy sitting on their shelf with the Hildebrandt art on the cover, which I adore. I decided to reread because I needed something quick while I'm between books, and I didn't really remember the stories at all.

Smith was the story for me that made me finally realize that "faerie" didn't mean pixies like Tinker Bell, but was simply the name for the denizens of that land, as we are the humans of Earth. It changed my feelings about faeries altogether and made me fascinated by everything about them. So I have to give it full stars for the impact it had on me.

Farmer Giles was an absolutely delightful tale with a wholly satisfying conclusion. It was funny and even heartwarming in the end.

Both stories had me wishing for a Tolkien TV series based on his lesser-known works.