Raksha The Demon
· 3 March 2020
· Chapter 38: Sheepdog Trials
Awwww. A lovely dog story. I didn't know that the Hobbits were the first to breed Border Collies (long before the borders for which the breed was named even existed), but it just has to be Border Collies (well, maybe Aussies).
Author's reply
For some reason, from the earliest sheepdog I imagined in the Shire, border collie-type dogs have always been what I envisioned. Seeing them work sheep at the county fair, their fierce concentration, intelligence, what appeared to be almost human emotion (clear anticipation, joy in their work, brief frustration and renewed determination when the sheep were difficult), together with their wolf-like posture when staring down one or more sheep, made a strong impression on me. They seemed like the appropriate breed for the fierce and independent Tooks that JRRT gave such tantalizing glimpses of. So yes, you guessed it. Hobbit sheepdogs (at least, the ones bred by the Tooks, sometimes to be found outside the Tookland as in this story) closely resemble Border Collies.
Thanks so much! Lovely to hear from you.
FantasyFan
· 14 February 2020
· Chapter 37: Deputy Mayor
You know, it's been so long since I left a review here, that I had to look up my password!
A Healer's Tale is one of my most favorite stories that you have written. It is filled with so much love, the kind of love that is born out of hard times that can never be forgotten, yet blossoms in the freedom of the good times. Both good and bad times are in that story, and now you have expanded it to include a bit of Sandy's tale, where we see a loving act rewarded with fierce loyalty. Our hobbits are like that, and so are we, as we love them in a way that is not diminished by time and the changes life brings.
Thank you for such a rich stew that you have made from the Professor's ingredients, and for continuing to season it with gems like this.
Author's reply
Oh, it is so lovely to hear from you! Healer's Tale was an incredible challenge, and Marigold did a wonder of beta work on that one. And there is so much insight in your words; though I've been away from fanfic for some years (I bless Larner for coming by to remind me of Middle-earth periodically), in returning to read and then to take up writing again, it seems as if the stories are as fresh as they were, and the hobbits have an enduring quality. How I love the Shire! What a gift JRRT gave to his readers and all who have delighted to play in his sandbox.
Please give my regards to Raven, and let me know if you have any story requests that might nudge. (And if this was just a flying visit, I certainly understand how busy life can be...) Now that I'm semi-retired, I'm going to keep writing while the writing keeps flowing. So far, so good. The Muse came back suddenly out of a long silence and dictated this one and another related story all the way through, and hopefully she'll remain in a good enough mood to tackle the WIPs as well.
Author Reply: I don't know if you'll see this reply, but I sent you an email separately. Best wishes to you and yours, and I hope you can stay safe during these interesting times.
Barbara Rich
· 7 February 2020
· Chapter 37: Deputy Mayor
OH! How lovely, lovely, lovely to see something new from you! What a sweet reintroduction to your wonderful cast of characters.
((((hugs)))))
Author's reply
Thank you! I've missed this place, and the people who frequent it. The Muse was away for an interminably long time, and I couldn't have written to save my life. But something shifted recently, and the words are flowing. I will write so long as the flow continues, and enjoy the time. I do so love the world JRRT introduced us to. (((hugs))) back at you, and it was so good to hear from you.
shirebound
· 7 February 2020
· Chapter 37: Deputy Mayor
a job in the Smials proper, with proper feeding, and warm clothing, and tasks more suited to his abilities
Such insight and compassion. This is a lovely, heart-warming story from beginning to end.
Author's reply
Thank you! I've been writing much more comfort than angst, recently. Of course, that wreaks havoc with the WIPs...
Good to hear from you. (hug)
Larner
· 6 February 2020
· Chapter 37: Deputy Mayor
Love the addition--so proper for Pippin's personal servant! And good to see Woodruff again.
Author's reply
So glad you liked it. I wanted the ending to come back to the beginning, in a sense. Honoring the Mayor, whether Mayor Samwise or (Deputy) Mayor Frodo, seemed appropriate somehow.
Larner
· 6 February 2020
· Chapter 37: Deputy Mayor
Oh, but I love deputy Mayor Frodo stories! I love how Sandy is following Frodo's intentions so well!
Author's reply
Thank you! I have not yet had time to go and properly review your birthday story, but it will make a delicious treat this evening, I am certain!
(p.s. apologies, but the last bit got left off when I posed this, and I just now added it. Just thought I'd let you know.)
*giggles* Oh really, the poor minstrel! I have written one of mine and Emma's OCs, Luthavar (visiting from Mirkwood) as being responsible for THAT Dorwinion disaster! But I love what you've done here, and his reflections on Bilbo for his Lothlorien friend!
Author's reply
Hahaha! I will have to go looking for that story of yours!
Thanks for stopping by and leaving a good word.
Kaylee Arafinwiel
· 24 October 2018
· Chapter 36: Seagulls scream above the waves
Oh wow! This is really great - I need to read all of these. (I plowed my way through "The Tenth Walker" today, too caught up to pause for breath - or reviewing - but I want more I want MORE! Heh! :)
But this one caught my eye, of course it did because SEAGULLS, and my own Seagull-muse is sitting right here with me *hugs Donut* and anyway I feel so badly for this poor fisherman, but good for him to keep up the good fight! I do hope he'll be rescued; pinned under a troll can't be how it ends for him, can it? (Donut offers him a few fish, to strengthen him for the fighting.)
Back to the beginning of these to read them all! :)
Kaylee Arafinwiel
Author's reply
A belated thank you! I hadn't seen your reviews before now, and I want you to know that I greatly appreciate your taking the time to read and to leave a good word.
I think the fisherman was most likely saved after the battle when Gimli found Pippin's foot sticking out from under that troll. When the troll was rolled away, the makeshift wall of orc-bodies collapsed to reveal the wall-builder. Hopefully that's some encouragement!
Larner
· 17 May 2017
· Chapter 36: Seagulls scream above the waves
Oh, but I do love this, a fisherman caught in a battle for which he may be poorly prepared but still doing his best to kill those of the foe who come within his reach! Well done, and properly done, too!
Author's reply
Thank you!
How are the pups? Just two more weeks left in the school year, and then I hope to have some time to finish a few stories, like that overlarge pup causing trouble in Minas Tirith...
Tari
· 3 May 2017
· Chapter 36: Seagulls scream above the waves
This was great, but I need more. What happened to the person trapped under the Orc?
I was delighted to see something finally posted on SOA.
Author's reply
Thank you! The school year is nearly finished, and I'm hoping to be able to carve out some fanfic time at least during the summer months.
Author Reply: (p.s. he was found when Gimli discovered Pippin's foot under the Troll)
shirebound
· 1 May 2017
· Chapter 36: Seagulls scream above the waves
Oh wow, this is chilling, and beautifully written.
Author's reply
Thank you!
I keep hoping that once the school year ends, I'll be able to find time for fanfic again... Can't wait to catch up on your stories.
Larner
· 21 May 2014
· Chapter 35: The Mathom
Sweet! I love that he wants to give her such a delightful gift! But jumping with the cat wasn't exactly the best thing to do. Heh!
Author's reply
I imagine it's not a mistake he'll make twice.
Thanks!
Tari
· 14 May 2014
· Chapter 35: The Mathom
What a beautiful mathom. Pip's gift was worth more than any tangible gift.
Whenever I see the word "faunt" I immediately think of Narnia.
Author's reply
Oh, now I will think of Narnia whenever I see the word! I never quite put the two together before. I can be so compartmentalised...
A gift from the heart, whether it be a pebble or a wish, can mean so much more somehow.
Thanks!
Everlight18
· 14 May 2014
· Chapter 35: The Mathom
A cat's purr...what a sweet gift, although those scratches are going to sting something awful later on.
I also loved this bit.
Why wash, if one didn’t get dirty? And why not get dirty, if one were to wash anyhow?
Author's reply
Children's logic is eminently logical, I find. I love to imagine that Pippin (and Ferdi, to some extent) kept this quality of whimsy, which is one reason he got on so well with people (especially children), except of course those with little or no imagination (or those who don't want to admit to having such a thing).
My, I'm rambling tonight. Hope that made sense.
Dreamflower
· 13 May 2014
· Chapter 35: The Mathom
Oh, poor little Pip! And poor Eglantine! And poor kitty!
But this was so sweet and beautiful! ((hugs))
Hope you had a wonderful Mother's Day!
Author's reply
I did, thanks! Breakfast in bed (French toast, yum), chocolate cheesecake for tea, watching a movie together as a family, frisbee on the front lawn -- a full day, for certain. (Hope you did, too!)
"Poor kitty" is right! I can only imagine how the unfortunate creature felt: happily snuggled in a secure hold, mostly asleep and enjoying gentle stroking, and then, without warning, the bottom drops out and you have that awful weightless falling feeling... (maybe not "awful" if you're skydiving or dreaming of flying, but certainly "awful" if you're not expecting such a thing!) Yikes!
(And poor little Pip, really too young to imagine the consequences of his actions. He had no fear of jumping, not after Merry and Ferdi's lesson. He didn't stop to think maybe the kitty wouldn't have the same reaction. He probably has heard all his short life about how cats land on their feet, and figures they're not afraid of heights, if he even thinks about it at all!)
Ah, Eglantine. It certainly gave her a story to tell for years afterward.
Thanks for the comments, and for the encouragement to go ahead and finish this one up instead of putting into storage until next year. I'm so good at procrastinating. (I'm procrastinating right now, can you tell? Ought to be in bed. Okay. Going now.)
KathyG
· 13 May 2014
· Chapter 35: The Mathom
Aww, how sweet! LOL! A kitty's purr! Only a little child would think of a present like that. =)
Author's reply
Children can be so imaginative! I remember one small child who didn't want to wash her hand because her grandma had laid a kiss in her palm and she didn't want to wash it off, but wanted to keep it forever.
Thanks!
eiluj
· 2 January 2013
· Chapter 34: April Sunrise (before a certain Wizard came to call)
Ah -- I am just returning from seeing the film (not for the first time), and here is Bilbo to greet me!
In "An Unexpected Party," we're told that Bilbo was "about fifty years old or so," which he would have been in the spring of 1341.
Later in that chapter, Gandalf says, "And Thrain your father went away on the twenty-first of April, a hundred years ago last Thursday." [In the 1937 edition, it was the third of March, but in subsequent editions it was changed to the twenty-first of April.]
According to The Annotated Hobbit ("The Unexpected Party," note 50), that date "provides one of the few firm dates within The Hobbit for the chronology of the story. From what Bilbo should have put down in his Engagement Tablet, Gandalf and the dwarves came to tea on a Wednesday.... [This is rather confusing; it's mentioned in the text that Bilbo did make such a note.] Thus, if the previous Thursday was April 21, Wednesday would be April 27. (However, in "The Quest of Erebor," which was originally written to be part of an appendix to The Lord of the Rings and which tells Gandalf's account of how he came to arrange Bilbo's journey, the date of Thorin and his companions arriving at Bag End is given precisely as Wednesday, April 26, with Gandalf's visit of the previous day specified to be Tuesday, April 25. These dates cannot be reconciled with the text as given in The Hobbit....
[My notes say, "The 26th should be a Wednesday, according to the calendar in Appendix D. Perhaps The Hobbit was written before JRRT added Yule?]
"The other two exact dates given in The Hobbit occur near the end of the book. On page 355, when Bilbo reaches Rivendell again on his journey home, it is May 1 of the following year. And on page 360, Bilbo arrives home in the middle of an auction on June 22."
And in "A Short Rest" we're told that Elrond read the map runes on Midsummer's eve, and the group left Rivendell the following day. They had been in Rivendell for some days, but the exact number is not given.
Author's reply
Oh, my! I didn't answer this (until now)?
Belated thanks for these fascinating notes! I admit, I haven't paid a lot of attention to The Hobbit, but I'm hoping to re-read it this summer, after years of neglect.
Dreamflower
· 2 January 2013
· Chapter 34: April Sunrise (before a certain Wizard came to call)
Oh my dear! Thank you for such a sweet and lovely image! What a nice surprise to find this morning!
((((hugs)))))
Author's reply
You're welcome. I've been taking something of an Internet fast the past three months, very little time online (and you wouldn't believe how far behind I am in my email reading), but when we saw The Hobbit movie I kept thinking of your delight with Bilbo, and snuck on for a bit yesterday to post this.
***hugs***
(Was it really April that they departed? All of our Hobbit copies are missing, probably under various peoples' beds or some such, and I found "April" mentioned somewhere online as the time of their departure. ...and does that mean they returned in April as well? I'm thinking Bilbo was gone almost exactly a year, but since I'm depending on a sometimes unreliable memory, I'm not confident in the knowledge.)
Larner
· 2 January 2013
· Chapter 34: April Sunrise (before a certain Wizard came to call)
He did have some problems with pocket handkerchiefs in thos days! Heh!
Author's reply
He certainly did! And after his mother kept reminding him, too, all those growing-up years. "Do you have a clean pocket-handkerchief?"
Dreamflower
· 14 July 2011
· Chapter 33: Needle in a Haystack
Oh, this is just adorable! *grin* I love the whole thing from top to bottom!
And "susurrus" is one of my favorite words.
Author's reply
Thank you! That word has fascinated me since I first stumbled across it.
I love the idea of Goldi as Farry's "faithful Sam"...
Larner
· 14 July 2011
· Chapter 33: Needle in a Haystack
What a delight to read this morning! Ah, yes, children intent on reliving the adventures they've heard of! And I can SO see this! Lovely! Excellent!
Author's reply
Thank you!
FantasyFan
· 14 July 2011
· Chapter 33: Needle in a Haystack
Oh, this is just a lovely portrait of young ones of age 6 and 7, with urges to bounce and instant let's pretend! But not any lass and lad ages 6 and 7 - each of these hobbits has lived this particular story from their births, and so falling into their proper roles needs very little prompting. I'm wondering if this is one of the first times they would have played alone together, without the distracting presence of Merry and Pip (a powerful distraction they could be, I'm sure)? The start of shared experience, and we know where it leads eventually. You definitely see the outlines of the hobbits they will become when grown in Farry's solemnity and Goldi's defiant strength. By the way, I'm proud of Farry for being perfectly willing to enter into playing the story with a GIRL, as not all lads his age would. And the thought of the minders as Orcs brings a chuckle. Nice to see a new bit of story!
Author's reply
Thank you! I love to see little ones pretending -- it is fun to see how they incorporate a story and make it their own. Such enthusiasm, and you know that they are seeing so clearly what they're imagining.
Sorry for the belated reply, I haven't had much computer time to speak of over the past months.
Grey Wonderer
· 14 July 2011
· Chapter 32: Forfeits
hehehehe
Very sweet, very loving, and very Tookish.
In the version I read, it was more than G. I have a very good imagination and you skillfully led me in the right direction. Thank you!
Author's reply
Oh, my! I just now saw this. So sorry for the *very* belated reply!
Thank *you*!
(and hoping you are well, and your hobbits, too)
Grey Wonderer
· 14 July 2011
· Chapter 33: Needle in a Haystack
I adored this! I love the way the two parrot the lines that were once said but Frodo and Sam and I think Goldie is just darling! She's off for adventure and nothing is going to stop her. It was very good to find something new by you here on SOA. I was just over here looking and expecting to find very little posted but there you were! Thank you for making my morning with this little story.
Author's reply
Goldi has always been one to fling herself headlong into adventure, at least in my imagination.
I'm very glad to hear that you enjoyed this. You're very welcome.
Antane
· 11 June 2010
· Chapter 5: The Dancing Lesson
Don't know if I reviewed this before but just came across it again looking for something completely different and what a delightful little story, making my kinship with Frodo all the stronger because I hate parties too and would much rather stay at home reading too! Love also Bilbo using the feather duster as a substitute for Sting and how he was able to get his heartson to dance properly at last. If he dances anything like he does in Larner's stories, then the lasses will go wild!
I have yet to finish Small and Passing Thing, but one day, one day!!
Namarie, God bless, Antane :)
Author's reply
Much belated thanks for your stopping by and taking time to leave a good word!