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thewordyhero 's review for:
Smith of Wootton Major & Farmer Giles of Ham
by J.R.R. Tolkien, Pauline Baynes
Probably a great intro for younger readers into the mind of Tolkien and his creativity, and definitely a read for those who love his other works- but keep in mind that there were many sides to him as a person, and that these works are much different than those about Middle-Earth. These are very allegorical and biographical for Tolkien's struggle to balance the creation of his art, Middle-Earth, and his scholarly duties as a philologist and a professor of old English at Oxford. He felt guilty for spending his time on something that gave him pleasure, and he took criticism of himself as a whimsical and childish fantasy writer pretty harshly. Ch 8 of Tom Shippey's "The Road to Middle-Earth" talks about the parallels in these stories and Tolkien's perceptive views about himself and his writing and is a good companion to understanding these stories on the level they were meant to be seen. But they are still fun and super easy to read, which makes them great for children and those exploring Tolkien's more took-ish side :p