Bodkin
· 4 August 2004
· Chapter 42: Casting His Vote
The Fair sounds just the kind of thing I would hate - crowds galore. I like seeing Rosemary and Hally. Nice pulling together of lots of characters - and a fleshing out of Ferdinand.
I like the dogs spitting Ferdi out because he is too much to swallow.
Good voting method - and a typical jobsworth, who won't let Ferdinand vote because he is not using his own hands, when he doesn't have any. Surely it isn't any more independent if someone holds him over a barrel with the coins in his mouth. Oh well, vote Sam, I say.
Tension rising for the race!
Author's reply
I used to like crowds. Don't so much any more. I like quiet. Except when it comes to reviewers. They're welcome to say as much as they like! Thanks.
Author Reply: p.s. Some readers find Ferdi a bit much to swallow, too. Thought I'd toss them a bone.
Connie B.
· 4 August 2004
· Chapter 42: Casting His Vote
Nice chapter. The way Ferinand finaly voted made me giggle. He, and those around him, are resourceful to say the least. Oh, that sentence does not look right to me.
The lithe days fair sounds like a wonderful event. I am really looking forward to whatever happens next.
Connie B.
Author's reply
Will finally get to the race. Whew. It's been awhile coming. Then just a few more chapters to the end of the story... cannot believe this one is nearly done.
This chapter was almost excluded, being mostly background, but I put it in anyhow. Hope "newer" readers aren't irritated by the little details reflecting "A Small and Passing Thing". It just seemed natural to me that Freddy would be there, and Budgie by his side, but I didn't want to do a lot of explaining, either. It would be easier to just rewrite the scene without them. Don't know yet how this chapter will end up: rewritten, or left alone.
Thanks!
Bodkin
· 28 July 2004
· Chapter 41: On to Michel Delving
It's interesting to see Ferdinand leave his room - that seems like a big step forward as far as he is concerned. And the hammock thing seems a good idea.
I love Woodruff - ever thought of doing a story with her as the central character?
I'm glad the Ent draught eventually fixed Pippin - he seemed quite frail at some points in the saga.
Glad to see Ferdi well - and kicking!
Grey Wonderer
· 28 July 2004
· Chapter 40: The Treasure-hoard of the Thain
Pippin is generous indeed if he sells what's his to buy wood for others knowing that there is so little. I have read many fictions where Pip and Merry receive money from there Lords as payment for service. This is the first one that I have read in which the Thain is broke. Interesting. Great chapter.
Hai Took
· 27 July 2004
· Chapter 41: On to Michel Delving
I'm glad they are on their way! Very good of Woodruff to be so prepared even she is not gong to be the one attending the Thain! Of course whe wouldn't be a very good healer if she didn't look a head to some degree! Looking forward to reading the races!
Connie B.
· 27 July 2004
· Chapter 41: On to Michel Delving
Good chapter. The means to transport Ferdi's dad was clever. The scene between Ferdi and Woodruff was good, too. I was wondering there for a minute just who the items she was giving him were for. Nice bit of tension there.
Now for my deep question of the review. Just what is the whole background on Pippin's medical problems? I know from other storiew that he has had several bouts of pneumonia, and I know about what happened to him at the Black Gate, but is that all there is to it? Just a curiousity I've had.
Thanks.
Connie B.
Author's reply
On the lungs: when I was researching pneumonia, back while writing "Jewels", I presented a list of symptoms to Lyllyn who was answering my medical questions. She said thus and such (details not important), helping me make my writing more accurate, but the most telling thing was a response to part of the list of symptoms where she said, "This would indicate serious and permanent damage to the lungs, which would result in a whole range of follow-on problems."
On further discussion, I worked out the further symptoms to be something like chronic bronchitis and asthmatic reaction to anything that would make it harder for a healthy person to breathe... in Pippin's case, his lungs are already straining to sustain him and any difficulty such as dust, mold, or smoke cause the air passages to close off, and any cold he catches is likely to become bronchitis or worse. (I have a similar problem, having to keep a watch out for pneumonia any time one of my colds gets "chesty".)
Did a lot of research into asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia, and herbs and came up with the chest rub and draught for treatment. Poultices out of fried onions or mustard poultices are good, too, but are not quite as portable.
So most of the problems result from the near-fatal bout with pneumonia in "Jewels", complicated by the troll damage.
Does that clear things up?
Lyta Padfoot
· 27 July 2004
· Chapter 41: On to Michel Delving
Ferdinand is certainly enjoying the trip. Woodruff's preparations made me smile; very sensible. Ferdi's responses to the healer made me smile. I'd like to see him try to wrap Pippin in cotton wool!
Hai Took
· 21 July 2004
· Chapter 40: The Treasure-hoard of the Thain
Wow! What a shock to find out that the Thain's fortune is not all it's cracked up to be! It says even more of Pippin that he paid the woodcarvers for the wood that was given to the old Gaffers and Gammers! Looking forward to finding out about the races!
Author's reply
Yep, Pippin has a servant's heart. He kind of takes after Frodo in more than looks, I think. Races coming up soon! (And don't let's forget the election!)
Lyta Padfoot
· 20 July 2004
· Chapter 40: The Treasure-hoard of the Thain
The wealth of the Thain is an illusion. So where does the gold in your later stories come from? Did Pippin prove a finance-wizard? Was the gold simply moved and the location forgotten, or is it truly lost? No wonder Paladin was tight-fisted. I think Pippin showed Ferdi to impress upon him how important the race is and the truth of Tookland's financial situation.
Author's reply
Fun to speculate on the gold in later stories, isn't it?
You're right. It's why Paladin was tight-fisted. I think he chafed at living a lie, honest farmer that he was, but his Steward convinced him that ignorance (on the part of the Tooks) was bliss. I think Lotho might have suspected the truth, shrewd as he was, which is why he tried to court Paladin's favour ("with my money and your influence") -- and got thrown out of Tookland, early in the time of the Troubles.
And right again, the reasons you gave for Pippin showing Ferdi were a big part of his decision.
FantasyFan
· 20 July 2004
· Chapter 40: The Treasure-hoard of the Thain
That's quite a shocker - there's no gold! And there hasn't been any for a long time, so the Ruffians didn't take it during the occupation. Where does the gold come from that Pippin is going to use to pay for the food during the famine - there's waggonloads of it by then, I thought? Sort of gives all those grim jokes about the Thain's gold a whole different twist, and also changes my perception of Paladin not paying the laborers, and maybe even Lalia driving such a hard bargain. It's kind of ironic: Pip doesn't want gold, but everyone thinks he has it, and when he needs it, he can't tell anyone that it isn't there. It also explains why Pip can't just buy the farm outright, but has to win the money in a race. I suppose there is some sense to it - as insular as the Shire is, where would any influx of gold come from?
I don't remember any mention of gold found within the Shire itself, or of mining as a trade by anyone other than Dwarves. Trading a few foodstuffs to the occasional dwarf is more likely to bring in ironwork rather than gold. But what gold had been accumulated over the years should be somewhere - has Buckland slowly eclipsed Tookland in wealth? I haven't thought much about how the economy of the Shire is run: most of the wealth would be in agricultural products (wool, weed, and wine sound like cash crops to me) and associated craftwork such as cloth and leather, I'd guess, since the hobbits don't really go in for industry. Up till recently, there hasn't been much of a market outside the Shire and Bree for pipeweed - I guess some of that could have gone to the Dwarves too, but not much as I remember quite a hue and cry when Lotho began sending significant quantities away. There are stoneworks at Scary, but I can't recall much else. The heads of families should have most of the coin and care for the hobbits of their families and those under their service. It could be an almost cashless society, with barter in foodstuffs for labor and services the actual main currency (though money is mentioned in the Hobbit, and gold of course), and only the odd Baggins really requiring books or other curiosities not produced locally (and fortunately having a store of dragon-gold to pay for them). Maybe the legend of wealth is more important than the gold itself, as far as the Tooks are concerned?
Lindelea, there's always another twist to your stories. I wonder where you're going now.
Author's reply
Actually, the Thain's gold is another story. On my timeline, the delving of the Great Smials started out as a gold-mine. Am going to try to make it work, anyhow. Would explain how the Thain gained such influence in the Shire, perhaps.
Author Reply: p.s. Got interrupted before I got the chance to say it's nice to see you again! Hope this finds you well.
Beruthiel
· 20 July 2004
· Chapter 40: The Treasure-hoard of the Thain
Oh dear. Poor Pippin, inheriting the burden of running the Shire and nothing to do it with except rocks. I can see why Paladin didn't spend much.
This was a good way for Pippin to prove he trusts Ferdi. Hopefully Ferdi will try to trust Pippin in return. Doesn't he say in "Runaway" that he never trusted Pippin after the incident of the ice storm?
Eagerly waiting for more. Update soon!
Author's reply
It's very inconvenient to have someone close to one who holds onto a grudge forever. And even after they say they forgive, they still have trouble trusting... kind of like they're waiting for one to fall on one's face once more, and without intending to do so they shove a stumbling block in one's way. Have seen this play out IRL. Difficult business, and painful.
But enough musing. Thanks for the comment!
Bodkin
· 20 July 2004
· Chapter 40: The Treasure-hoard of the Thain
Brilliant tactics on Pippin's part. Once Ferdi believes he is a worthy hobbit, his loyalty will be absolute - not because he has to be loyal as a Took and Head of Escort, but because he believes in Pippin.
I think we have come to the start of a partnership (except in Runaway).
I just hope they win the All-Shire Races. First and Second would be good.
Author's reply
Well, all I can say is that Pip must plead "temporary insanity" in Runaway. What else could explain it? (Ah. Lack of oxygen to the brain. That's it.)
Connie
· 20 July 2004
· Chapter 40: The Treasure-hoard of the Thain
Oh, what a mess poor Pippin inherited. I knew things weren't great, but I didn't realize they were this bad. Pippin wants to do so much for the people of the Shire, but he has nothing to work with. He is going to have a tough time of it in the near future I would say. I know he deals with this adversity and makes things even better than they were before the whealth was squandered.
Thanks for this chapter. Very ensightful.
Connie.
Author's reply
You're welcome! I imagine Pip can rise to the challenge... though it's been fun to figure the ins and outs of the end of the story. Thanks for reviewing.
Hai Took
· 15 July 2004
· Chapter 39: Slipping the Surly Bonds
Good thing that Ferdi is up and able to race! Now all may go well although things never seem to go as planned! Pippin standing up his mother like that must have been interesting! It sounds like they are having a difference in opinion as to how Ferdi should be treated! She is good to look after him, though. I'm glad that Ferdinand wants to go to Michel Delving to see Ferdi race and vote on the Mayor! It will be good for him, I hope! Looking forward to more!
Connie
· 13 July 2004
· Chapter 39: Slipping the Surly Bonds
Wonderful chapter! It is great that Ferdi's dad is going to actually get out of his room.
Oh, how I love that poem. It is so beautiful in its description and yet so sad. I always think of the Challenger when I see or hear it.
Wow.
Connie.
Lyta Padfoot
· 13 July 2004
· Chapter 39: Slipping the Surly Bonds
Ferdinand is wonderful in this story. He knows how much his son worries and does for him and tries to ease his mind. Twenty or thirty years without leaving the Great Smials? He is long overdue for a vacation!
Bodkin
· 13 July 2004
· Chapter 39: Slipping the Surly Bonds
They all seem to be gettin on mighty well at the moment - I hope that isn't ominous!
Ferdi is an odd mix of confidence and insecurity, obstinacy and humility, isn't he? Still I suppose all the dreadful experiences of his life so far haven't given him much to grow on yet. I hope the rest of the story is happy for him.
That sounds a terrific pony.
Connie
· 8 July 2004
· Chapter 38: By Any Other Name
Oh, so glad I haven't missed anything in this story. I was on a two-day all-girl camping trip with my daughter,and was worried about what I was missing in all the stories I was following.
Pippin's mum certainly is a force to be reaconed with. I wouldn't want to get on her bad side. I'm really pleased to see the changes in both Ferdi and Pippin.
Connie.
Author's reply
A two-day all-girl camping trip! I used to do those! What fun!
I wouldn't want to be on Eglantine's bad side, either. It's one of the reasons I always call her by her full name, in a respectful tone...
Beruthiel
· 8 July 2004
· Chapter 38: By Any Other Name
This chapter seems to have taken a while, but is well worth the wait. I'm impressed by Eglantine's strength (and I must admit I laughed a little at all the hobbits of the escort terrifed of her wrath!).
I'm equally impressed by Pippin. He has indeed grown up. It's such a shame that most of the Tooks (including his mother) don't see that.
Hope to see the next chapter soon! And especially eager for "Thain" updates. I've always been fascinated by Pippin and Paladin's relationship, and how they become so enstranged. Would really love to see it from their points of view, and not just recollections of observers, interesting though these observations are.
Might be fun if Pip and Ferdi entered the pony in the race as The Rohan, just to see other hobbits try to figure out that name.
Author's reply
Thanks, yes, it's taking some time. I wasn't able to write at all for about two weeks, and now I'm feeling my way, trying to figure out the best use of some gold... it's to be in the plot, but where, exactly it fits is still in the works.
I think Pip's mother has an inkling.
The next chapter of Thain is in the works, a Pippin chapter, of course, although the Bucca chapter to follow is much more finished and nearly ready to post. Happens. It'll have to wait.
Y'know, that bit about the Rohan is a plot point, more to be revealed soon I hope.
Bodkin
· 8 July 2004
· Chapter 38: By Any Other Name
I have to say I just LOVED seeing Pippin get into big trouble with his mother -and to have him admit that he has been manipulating his cousins for his own ends (meritorious though they might be) and agree that he was now to grown up to do it any more. (And the reference to Shire.) Go Eglantine!!!
Author's reply
Yes, it's about time, as more than one cousin of his could say. I wonder... they probably won't know what to do about the "new improved" version, no longer manipulating but straightforward, if still a bit devious at times.
It was fun to think about Shire. I had started part 2 but right now the Thain story is taking too much research time to work on it. It's back on the back burner, simmering away.
Ferdi and mountains, now... makes me want to think about "Farry and Ferdi Go to Gondor" (really have to figure out a *real* title for that one, one of these days).
nonniemous
· 6 July 2004
· Chapter 37: From Frying Pan to Fire
(This is in response to Lindelea's reply to my earlier review)
Hello,
I didn't see the Pippin in your later stories as "boring", I saw him as mature and thoughtful. I am well aware of the pitfalls of both trying to do something "as we did it somewhere else" and the dysfunctions inherent in returning to a group that knows you as you were and not as you are. Present as you may see htem in your stories, those factors in your Pippin's behavior are overridden by the sufferings of Ferdi-the-Martyr at Pippin's hands and his negativity towards Pippin. I had hope for this particular story at the beginning, when Ferdi witnessed Pippin's asthma attack in the records room, but then things slid into Ferdi as the flawed-but-noble hobbit who understands all things and Pippin as the arrogant, heedless, feckless son-of-the-Took, who must learn what he can of nobility from Ferdi. This later Pippin doesn't match up with the hobbit you were writing earlier, even seen from a different point of view.
And Ferdi, real or fabrication, no matter his supposed flaws, is an annoyingly self-righteous jerk. He comes off far too well no matter how badly he behaves. In "Runaway" he was the noble, misunderstood hero while Pippin was simply the Insensitive, Egotistical Jerk. There was *nothing* of the hobbits I know from books or movie--or your own interpretations prior to that--in that story. And I could NOT see the reconciliation of Pippin with his escort at that point--the betrayal was as deep as it was uncharacteristic and it did not work at all for me.
Quite honestly, I don't think the Pippin you're writing in these later stories would have been the hobbit that was such good friends with Frodo Baggins or the hobbit who went on the Quest in the book. Maybe so in the movie, but still, that hobbit was innocent and naive about the larger world and out for fun because he has never had a need to do otherwise. He was still the hobbit who later sacrificed himself several times over for the larger good. I've known and do know people who were pranksters at that age. They have grown up, some to be good and some as bad human beings; the bad ones would not have done what Pippin did on the Quest--and the good ones matured rapidly and would have done so even more rapidly had they lived through events such as the War of the Ring.
So in my opinion, Pippin's experience in the school of hard knocks may not have been of as great duration as your Ferdi's has, but I think what it lacked in lenght it more than made up for in intensity. Add to that the history you gave him in the estrangement from his father and the physical difficulties he's had to endure even before returning to Tookland, he would be more mature than most folks his age--and not nearly so crass and thoughtless as he is in this story.
Teens can, in my personal experience, be thoughtless and manipulative, but there is also the matter of heart and personality. It's not that I wish to avoid a negative portrayal of Pippin as such, but I would see what is, to me, an honest portrayal of him, and I do believe you are selling him far short in your current stories. I haven't yet looked at "Thain" because I didn't want to see more of the Pippin-with-no-redeeming-qualities-within-himself.
Perhaps the difference in our point of views on this is simply that you are writing your Pippin as an homage to your friend, and because I did not know your friend (though I have had friends and family like him, even to his untimely death) I don't see the reflections of him in Pippin that you do. There's nothing wrong with basing a fictional character on someone in real life, or taking elements of someone's character and life and translating them into story. But perhaps it would be better to give those things to an original character rather than one less well-defined by canon, be it movie or book.
Thank you for your response; I honestly came back to see if my comment had been deleted--as I've seen happen to other reviewers in other fandoms. You have written some fine stories and I've enjoyed them. My best to you.
P.S. --"Flames" is revisionist history since you are looking at it from a different point of view and with a different agenda. It's not necessarily a bad thing, it's just a different way to see things.
Author's reply
Ah, well, delete your review? One that was obviously carefully composed? Just because we disagree?
Author Reply: Was going to say this in that amazingly brief reply just now, thought the better of it, then said, what the heck. The only thing that really bothered me about the review is that it was anonymous. It nags at me, you see, thinking perhaps you're someone I might know, for I'm robbed of the chance for meaningful dialogue. Such is life.
The Pippin in "Thain" is going to be a rather self-absorbed tween, but I think you might be pleasantly surprised. (Then again, maybe not.) He'll make mistakes, as most of us do, and do things that are stupid or headstrong, but he'll also show real quality. But then, I wish to allow for character growth.
All the best!
Author Reply: Thank you for your email, making you no longer anonymous.
I mis-spoke earlier, in saying Ferdi is a fabrication. In truth he is a synthesis--a mix of characteristics from several very real people. (No wonder my friends don't read my stories... they're probably afraid of recognising themselves! ...though most of my characterisations are drawn from the past, not the present, so they're safe... until about twenty years from now, perhaps.
nonniemous
· 5 July 2004
· Chapter 37: From Frying Pan to Fire
As much as I have enjoyed your stories, I'm really, really getting tired of Ferdi-the-Paragon-of-All-Hobbit-Virtues teaching Pippin-the-Feckless all things about honor and valor and honesty and more. I much preferred the Pippin from your earlier stories, who may have been a bit heedless, but was not the self-centered, knee-jerk egotist that inhabits these later stories. Given your own canon, where Pippin learned much of his Stewardship from the Master of Buckland, I'd be seriously worried about the state of affairs there, since Ferdi seems to have a great deal to teach Pippin about life in general and Stewardship in particular even after Pippin's years under Saradoc's and Merry's tutelage.
I'm sorry for the negative comment; as I said, I have greatly enjoyed your stories in the past. You are one of the few LOTR fanfic authors I read any more, and Jewels and your other, earlier post- and pre-quest tales were lovely reads. The revisionist history concerning Pippin from Ferdi's point of view worked quite well in the first story, ("Flames", I believe) and it was an interesting literary exercise to see those events from such a different point of view character. And I could buy it then that he would see Pippin in a less than favorable light. However, I can't match the Pippin in these further stories with the Pippin I know and love from the books or the movies--or your own earlier stories. He's become a lighter version of your Paladin, not himself. And I miss that Pippin a great deal.
Author's reply
Thanks for being honest. The following is a sort of explanation of the character growth I've set out on an imaginary timeline, from "spoilt and feckless Pippin" to "wise and beloved Thain". It's not meant to sound defensive, and you don't have to read it if you don't want to. I'd be interested to hear your thoughts, though, whether it makes sense to you or sounds like total nonsense in your ears.
Funny, some folk were criticising the Pippin in my later stories for being so boring, settled as he'd become, wise in his judgments, considerate of others. I thought I'd go back earlier on the timeline and explore some of his early character growth. If you were to place this story on the timeline it would be set a year before the end of "Flames", when Pippin has just returned to Tookland and is trying to fit in with the Tooks once more. He cannot act as a Bucklander, for they already suspect him to be an "outsider". (Have you ever noticed that when you come into a group and say, "But this is the way we did it [somewhere else] and it worked really really well there", people shoot you down? Been there, done that.)
There's something else at work here that perhaps you might not acknowledge, but that I've seen from personal experience. You can leave your old place behind, with the old, foolish (dysfunctional) ways of interacting with people, and begin a new life, build yourself into a new (and functional) person, and yet when you go back "home" (years later!) you find yourself falling into the same patterns of interaction unless you consciously work at not doing so.
Thus I've tried to show Pippin in these "early Thain" stories as an odd mixture of wisdom gained through experience (in his charity to gaffers, his handling of Everard, though it doesn't come into this particular story, his willingness to admit to mistakes--a very un-Tookish thing to do) and falling back into old (foolish) patterns (e.g. in his manipulation of Ferdibrand and his attempt to make the end justify the means). Yet there is hope, for he has recognised his faul by this point in the story and has tried to get Ferdi to work with him rather than trying to manipulate him.
Granted, he is a jerk in "Runaway". I don't even like him there, and nearly abandoned the story as unworkable. His only defence would be that he panicked when his son disappeared, as he had been thinking along the lines of ruffians before anything happened. Sometimes when you fear something enough, it happens... or even if it doesn't, you *think* it does... Don't know if that makes sense. Anyhow, I'm not completely happy with that story, though I've left it because Jo did such a marvellous job of salvaging it from the junk-heap.
He's also a jerk in "Thain", but then he's a tween, spoilt by his family and very self-centered. You likely won't want to read that story if you don't like to read a negative portrayal of Pippin. Don't get me wrong, I *like* the guy but I'd get bored with him if he were without flaw from beginning to end. Character growth is challenging to write.
Ferdi's really no paragon, though I admit I'm rather fond of him when he's not being irritating. He's stubborn, proud, reckless, overconfident, prejudiced, all sorts of bad things. He's also brave, loyal, and honest, but then nobody's perfectly bad or perfectly good. What I really hate about him is the way he falls into a trance when he just cannot bear what's happening--seems quite cowardly sometimes and I just want to strangle him (if you catch my drift). But I established it as a facet of his personality and I can use it to further a plot; guess I'm as manipulative as certain of my characters, aren't I? In an earlier story I wanted to set him up as a hobbit who could have been Thain under different circumstances. He's not better than Pippin, by no means! But he's older... he has the benefit of seven years' more life experience, and he's not led all that sheltered a life. Okay... okay... so the Quest is not exactly what you'd call "a sheltered life" (though the way some people write Pippin being smothered by his cousins' care, you wonder sometimes!). But from the age of 19, Ferdi's definitely come by way of the "school of hard knocks" to where he is by this time, and in the early chapters of this story he was still showing the bruises from it.
Anyhow, after "Runaway", when you start getting into later stories (starting from the time of "At the End of His Rope") the two cousins are on a par. There's mutual respect and affection, and both are (for the most part) grown-ups. Pippin, if anything, has the edge over his older cousin, for he's more imaginative and creative and less bound by tradition, either by dint of innate rebelliousness channelled into something more mature, or because he's seen the wider world, or maybe a combination of both.
Pippin as I write him is actually based on a real person, someone I knew and loved and who irritated the heck out of me at times. But I miss him terribly. He grew from that same sort of self-centered, spoilt, irritating younger person I grew up with into a mature person I was proud to know, before his untimely death. He would have been the first to laugh (and shake his head in chagrin) at a portrayal of his earlier immature self.
Ferdi, on the other hand, is a fabrication. Perhaps that's why he doesn't always come across as "real".
Author Reply: Sorry to batter you with that l-o-o-o-o-ong reply. Why, SoA even timed out, guess it got bored. Anyhow, just wanted to say, that's the long and short (okay, not short) of the relationship as I've written it.
FWIW, this may well be the last "early Thain" story to suffer through, though the Muse may not be quite done tormenting Ferdi--there's a story where he goes to Gondor with a young Faramir on the back burner. Teens can be quite self-centered, did you know? (At least in my experience they are. Can't seem to help themselves, or else don't have enough life experience yet to give them perspective.) For that matter, "Thain" shows Pippin in his tweens, which seems to correspond to the teen years in our culture. So as I said, you might want to avoid that one, or just read the "Bucca" chapters and forget the Paladin-Pippin chapters.
OTOH, it's quite the challenge, to show Paladin's transformation from a basically decent hobbit (as written in "Pearl of Great Price" and "Cousins and Other Nuisances") to the unpleasant fellow I made him out to be in earlier writings...
Author Reply: p.s. Just noticed that you didn't give an address and so likely won't see these replies. Ah, well, then I'm writing this for my own use (as is often the case), thinking through the characters. If anyone cares to read it, to catch a glimpse of "background", then welcome.
Actually, I had trouble reconciling Pippin of the movies to Pippin of the books; in the first movie he was a jerk, stealing Maggot's crops on a regular basis, and for the better part of the trilogy was portrayed as a clown (guess that was the "fool of a Took"), only coming into his own partway through the last movie (and poor Merry came off worse, IMO, and he wasn't even a "fool of a Brandybuck" in the book...). It was only after a reviewer pointed me to some hints that hobbit tweens were mischievous and hobbits were fond of jokes that I became reconciled to the tricksters portrayed in the movie version.
The Pippin in "Thain" at least is going to follow the book rather than the movie: he will become "good friends" with Farmer Maggot in that story. As a farmer's son, he would be less likely to steal another farmer's crops, I think. (Cookies, now, from his own aunt's seemingly inexhaustible supply... well, that's another matter).
"Flames" is revisionist history? Really? How so?
Bodkin
· 5 July 2004
· Chapter 37: From Frying Pan to Fire
Glad Ferdi is recovering - and that he seems to be learning to manipulate Pippin.
Love Woodruff. What a hobbit.
Author's reply
Ah, those manipulative Tooks...
Thanks!
Connie
· 5 July 2004
· Chapter 37: From Frying Pan to Fire
Glad to see you working on this one again. Sorry to hear about your loss, though. I meant to write you earlier and say so, but life is really busy right now.
I'm really getting curious to see who does win the All Shire Race. I think it will be Ferdi on the stalion, but any story can have an unexpected twist.
Thanks.
Connie.
Author's reply
KWYM about busy life. I appreciate your taking the time to comment! As for plot developments, well, hopefully there are a few surprises yet to be seen.
Lyta Padfoot
· 5 July 2004
· Chapter 37: From Frying Pan to Fire
So Ferdi had a visit from the 'While You were Out' crew? Or was it 'Surprise by Design'? The Woodruff/Ferdi interction was priceless.
Author's reply
While You Were Out? Sounds intriguing. How nice it would be to go out and come back and find everything beautified. Thanks for commenting!