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The Life of a Bard by Dreamflower	7 Review(s)
PIppinfan1988	Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 1/5/2006
By lunchtime, even he was tired of it. But it was worth it. When Pimpernel brought his lunch tray, she said, “Mother wants me to tell you to either choose another tune or stop playing. Father says if it keeps up, he will come in here and pitch your pipes out the window. And I say that I’m going to strangle you if you play one more note!!” Ha!! He's making them all suffer, isnt' he? Oh, I can feel for Pippin's family. My sister used to do that with LPs (lol, remember them?) when we were teenagers. My heart does go out to Paladin at times; having such a precocious son with a stubborn disposition to boot. :-) Pippinfan Author Reply: Yes indeed! Adolescence is a time of life when the person firmly believes in the adage "misery loves company". (I not only remember LPs, I played them on my plain old record player--it wasn't even a hi-fi, much less a stereo, and I nearly wore the tracks out on certain songs, LOL!) Precocious and stubborn. Yep. That's our Pip.

Gryffinjack	Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 10/22/2005
"You will not slip out the window and go haring off to Buckland. Your cousin Merry has responsibilities now, and he does not need to be distracted by you hanging about and getting in his way when he has a real job to do, nor does he need to be burdened with having to be your nurse-maid." I don't think Paladin could have said anything that would have hurt Pippin more. To say that Pippin would be a distraction and would only get in Merry's way? And Pippin has all day to think about how his Merry doesn't really want himm around and has more important things to do. Not a good thought to put in Pippin's sensitive and impulsive head. “I. Do. Not. Want. To. Be. Thain!” And Pippin knows how to sting Paladin to the quick as well, however unintentional. Like father, like son. “What you want hardly matters. What is, is." From "Moving Day": “You will do this, Paladin Took, or find yourself and your family homeless. This farm still belongs to the Took family, and not to you personally.” If only Hyacinth knew that neither Paladin nor Peregrin really wanted to be the Thain and the Took! lol! No, really - what a horrible thing that is - to wait in the wings your whole life knowing that you will only get the important job when your father is dead. What a horrible burden to put on Pippin or Merry! No wonder Pippin wants to escape it. The bit with the funeral march dirge on the Tookland pipes was inspired! Was this another section where your son came in handy as a model? Or perhaps your own experiences? Whatever it was, this bit is brilliant. Pure Pippin, too, expressing himself the only way he knows how and in the only manner that he can express himself to his family under the circumstances. Pretty intelligent thinking, actually. "Whatever you did, I hope it was worth it, because I think you will be in trouble for some good long time to come." I love that line of Vinca's. I can see Pippin weighing things in his mind sometimes - "Is it going to be worth all the trouble I'm going to get into to do this?" So like an adolescent. Pimmie and Vinca were both wonderful in this chapter, their love and fondness for their little brother shines through. It's always great when siblings stick up for each other when they are in trouble. It's such a pity that Paladin and Pippin do not get along at this stage of their lives. They are more alike than either of them cares to admit. We tend to think of Pippin as being so sweet, cheerful, mischievous, impulsive, and charming. It's easy to lose sight of the fact that he had to go through the difficult tweenager years, learn to accept responsibility, and learn who he is and where his place on this Middle Earth really lies. Even when he leaves on the Quest, he still has to struggle with this and is forced to grow up earlier than he otherwise would have. Those awkward years are not easy for anyone, especially someone who has been spoilt as the charming baby of the family who craves the love and attention of others. Pippin will have to learn how to somehow balance it all out. Author Reply: My email was bouncing yesterday, so I am only just now finding these reviews. Paladin, unfortunately, even after all these years, does not quite understand the true dynamics of Merry's and Pippin's friendship. He sees that Pippin needs Merry, but it has not quite penetrated that Merry needs Pippin. He knows they love one another deeply, true, but not that they need one another equally so. He truly does think that Merry shouldn't have to entertain his young cousin when he has other duties to fulfill. Of course, story-externally, it's essential to the plot that he plant these seeds of doubt in adolescent Pippin's mind, because as we have already seen, normally the thought of Merry would keep Pippin anchored to the Shire. Once those doubts are planted, he then gives the lad all day to think them over. As you said, not good. And you have penetrated the secret behind these clashes: in a good many ways, father and son are alike. I think that in general most hobbits would find the idea of such a position unappealing (with clear exceptions, such as Lotho or Hyacinth) for one thing we are often told is that hobbits are not seekers after power, which of course is why they are so resistant to the Ring. That such hobbits as the Thain or the Master have such positions, they take them on as a necessary duty. For Pippin this normal hobbity reluctance is also overlaid with the other fears, as well as his lack of confidence which is often found in youngest children. And of course it's dreadful to think that one's destiny in life is dependant on the death of a beloved parent. Well, the part with the music was rather inspired by my own teen angst, when I would find myself playing the same sad song over and over until my mother was ready to scream; my son used to do the same, except his wasn't slow and dreary, but loud and angry. Of course in a day before recordings were possible, one made one's own mood music, which really must have been even more satisfying, LOL! Pippin and his sisters get along well enough for most of the time. And he does know how to play on their sympathies, LOL! I think adolescence is very difficult most of the time for fathers and sons; when a child has the kind of volatile personality as does Pippin, and as seems to be a Tookish trait, it can be even more difficult.

GamgeeFest	Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 9/27/2004
Oh dear, Pippin's really going to do it isn't he? Or, he's going to try. It's nearly impossible to dissuade that Took from anything once he's made up his mind. Funny bit about the bagpipes and the funeral song. That's something any kid would do, well except they have CD players now. :) Author Reply: Well, he'd just about decided to give it up, before Paladin lit into him. And then his father made the mistake of making him think that Merry would be better off without him around. Top it off with threatening him (as Pip sees it) with the Thainship... I'm glad you appreciated that bit. Annoying the parental units with your mood music. I did it as a kid, and had it done to me as a parent. But really, bagpipes could make it very annoying indeed.

Elenar	Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 9/27/2004
Poor Pip. If only Paladin and him could communicate better. I really like Menelcar. I am looking forward to more. Author Reply: Poor Pip and poor Paladin. But their communication problem is pretty common for fathers and sons at that age. Besides, then we'd have no story. 8-) I'm glad you like Menelcar. I'm rather fond of him myself.

Bodkin	Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 9/27/2004
Running away to become a wandering minstrel seems a BIT of an extreme reaction - but that's Pippin for you! It's no wonder Merry didn't want to let his cousin out of his sight on the quest - there's no (Palantir), (swearing allegiance to Denethor), (the troll) knowing what that Took might get up to when left alone for a couple of minutes! What is it about fathers and sons of a certain age? They seem able to cope with daughters, but seeing their sons idling and having fun drives them insane. Author Reply: Pip's nothing if not impulsive. And this is very typical of a certain type of male adolescnt. (My own son comes to mind. 8-D) The idea goes to action, without ever seeming to pass through anything like a thought process in between. In this case, he actually has made an attempt to think it through, but all his useful reflections fly out the window in the face of his father's anger. It doesn't take long for Pip to get in trouble if he's bored, does it? It's a frustrating dynamic between parent and child, and balance and timing are everything.

Lindelea	Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 9/27/2004
The dynamics between Pippin and his father ring very true. (Heartbreakingly so.) A British friend once told me that their phrase for "baby-sitting" was "child-minding". So Merry might likely "mind" Pippin, though he might not "baby sit" him. OTOH, I might be mistaken. The foolish child had no idea of what his father had sacrificed in order to make it possible for him to hold the Thainship. I'm dying to read this story, even though I'm in the middle of my own version. (Actually, I might not read it until I was done with my own version. I usually can't read in the same time period where I'm writing, but "Thain" gives me a bit of a buffer with half the chapters about Bucca, and also your minstrel Pippin is just different enough from my shepherd's-apprentice Pippin that I can manage without blurring my vision.) He guessed he was hungry, after all Very tweenish! (and my stomach is rumbling. Guess I'd better stir myself and make breakfast!) Sharp Vinca. (There was something he wasn't telling her.) BTW, I don't know if the thought appeals, but if you'd like to use any of the songs in the "Shire Songbook" you're welcome to them. All the musicians of my acquaintance were always swapping songs and thus "introducing" us to other musicians far and near... what delight! You make me remember long evenings, nursing a cup of tea in a coffeehouse, listening and singing by turn. You may already have all your songs planned out, I realise. I'm really enjoying this story! Ah, Pippin, playing a dirge. Over and over. It's enough to drive any parent mad. Being stuck at the Great Smials for the rest of his natural born days... ah, Pip, I can think of worse things... but you're like a cork, aren't you, and you always bob to the surface, no matter how roiled the waters may be. Author Reply: It's sad, but true that adolescent sons hardly ever seem to be able to get along with their fathers. I will check on the phrase, and if necessary, change it. Thanks for the heads-up. I'm not sure how much detail I will go into with this. I have most of the backstory in my head, but I don't always feel it necessary to put it forth. (I'm planning to check out your story soon. It sounds really interesting.) Tweenish and hobbity. 8-D I think Pip's sisters were pretty sharp. Vinca's paying him a bit more mind than usual, as she has appreciated his attempts to cheer her up. I very much appreciate the offer, and may very well take you up on it, even if it is only in using the title, or a few lines. I had certain songs planned, mainly the Bard song, and the one I wrote, and certaing songs out of Tolkien that could conceivably be attributed to Bilbo. But I may need more. I remember being miserable one afternoon when I was about 15, and playing "Shades of Gray" over and over on my (gasp I'm revealing how ancient I am here) record player until I had nearly worn the track out. My mother was not amused. Of course, Pip has no clue as to what the future holds for him in just a few short years--I'm sure that at some point on the Quest, the idea of being stuck at the Great Smials would have begun to have more appeal.

shirebound	Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 9/27/2004
Uh oh. If only Pip's father would sit down and talk with him, and find out how stifled Pip feels. Ah well, there wouldn't be a story, then, I guess! :) Author Reply: You are right, there wouldn't. But Paladin is as volatile in his own way as Pip is in his; stubborn and proud, to boot.

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