Stories of Arda - Lord of the Rings Fan-Fiction Archive


	About Us News Resources Login Become a member Help Search

Eleventy-one Years: Too Short a Time by Dreamflower	6 Review(s)
KathyG	Reviewed Chapter: 45 on 2/24/2015
"He had a lot to do if he was to go off visit his Brandybuck relations at the end of the week. This was Hevensday, and he'd be heading off on Highday. Only four days counting today! He had a couple of eggs he'd put into the embers to roast last night and some toast and bacon, and then did the washing up. He wanted Bag End to be fresh and clean when he returned from his brief journey. If he started today he'd be quite finished by the time it came for him to leave." Hmm. The best laid schemes o' Mice an' Men,/Gang aft agley, LOL! Little does Bilbo know what's about to happen. =)

KathyG	Reviewed Chapter: 45 on 8/4/2014
Now all that remains is to commence writing Part 2 of this great story! (hint, hint! =))

Andrea	Reviewed Chapter: 45 on 5/29/2014
Great ending! The newly painted green door, the long pipe and the famous start of Bilbo's well-known conversation with Gandalf - everything fits. Has Bilbo really forgotten Gandalf? A long time ago he promised Gandalf that such a thing would never happen. And this was Gandalf's reply: “Never is a long time, young hobbit. I think that you will forget for a time--but when the time is right, you will indeed remember!” (Chapter 29) Author Reply: Exactly! Gandalf did indeed muddle Bilbo's memories a bit. I am sure over that time, if someone had directly asked him: "Oh, say, do you remember Gandalf?" he have said something like "Oh yes! He made wonderful fireworks!" and then the memory would have just slid away again. Gandalf knew that for a while Bilbo's family would need him--he wasn't free to be lured away by Adventure with them in poor health. But once he was face to face with the wizard again, that would be a different story, and the minor enchantment would be broken. Author Reply: Exactly! Gandalf did indeed muddle Bilbo's memories a bit. I am sure over that time, if someone had directly asked him: "Oh, say, do you remember Gandalf?" he have said something like "Oh yes! He made wonderful fireworks!" and then the memory would have just slid away again. Gandalf knew that for a while Bilbo's family would need him--he wasn't free to be lured away by Adventure with them in poor health. But once he was face to face with the wizard again, that would be a different story, and the minor enchantment would be broken.

Larner	Reviewed Chapter: 45 on 5/28/2014
Aha! That so infamous "Good Morning!" that was to have so many possible interpretations and such an impact upon Middle Earth! A lovely ending to part one! And Taro and Togo are contemplating painting their rooms, are they? Will their parents bless or curse Bilbo for the idea, I wonder? Heh! Thanks for a most interesting first fifty years. Author Reply: Yes, that "Good morning". I thought of quoting the whole passage, but really every reader pretty much knows that one by heart--it would have just been padding. You are most welcome! I hope that it's helped many readers to realize that Bilbo had a pretty full life even before Gandalf put that mark on his door. Author Reply: Yes, that "Good morning". I thought of quoting the whole passage, but really every reader pretty much knows that one by heart--it would have just been padding. You are most welcome! I hope that it's helped many readers to realize that Bilbo had a pretty full life even before Gandalf put that mark on his door.

KathyG	Reviewed Chapter: 45 on 5/28/2014
LOL! Christopher Tolkien should hire you to work with him on expanding his father's Middle-earth stories, Dreamflower, seeing as you do such a great job of fleshing out the lives of the hobbits and making them seem like real people--uh, hobbits. =) This novel is no exception. There's just one thing I've noticed about your final chapter. In the book, the door was re-painted a week before Gandalf and the Dwarves came to Bag End for tea, but I noticed that in your story, you had that paint job done just 3 days before their fateful visit. So you've given the final chapter of your story a slightly AU slant. Author Reply: You know, that's true. Oh well, it's not quite as bad as making Reggie's age a generation too old!

Lindelea	Reviewed Chapter: 45 on 5/28/2014
You finished! And yes, the freshly painted green door. I remember that detail. And the long pipe, that reached nearly to his neatly brushed toes. Lovely job of tying up the loose ends. I was wondering about his pupils, if they'd arrive the day after he left, to find the smial abandoned. But no, you've managed it very neatly, with him officially off on a month-long visit to Buckland. Reminds me of Frodo's pretense of moving to Buckland, at the beginning of his journey. Only for Bilbo, it wasn't supposed to be a pretense... (A little sad as I think how worried and eventually grieved his friends and loved ones will be. You don't necessarily think of such things while reading The Hobbit -- there's all the adventure, and then the bustle of the auction, rather comical. The joyful reunions aren't even mentioned, just the bother and disappointment of the S-Bs, if I remember right.) Author Reply: You are quite right about it all, though the alarm over his departure is not delayed as long as it might have been, since his departure with the Dwarves in Bywater was observed. I'm actually thinking along those lines for a story--but my other WIPs must come first!

Return to Chapter List