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Alan LeeMythology · Historical Fiction
Tales from the Perilous Realm
Synopsis
A collection gathering four of Tolkien's shorter prose works under one cover: Roverandom, Farmer Giles of Ham, The Adventures of Tom Bombadil (a collection of verse), and Smith of Wootton Major. The volume also includes the essay On Fairy-Stories in some editions.
Together these works show a different Tolkien than the mythologist of The Silmarillion or the epic storyteller of The Lord of the Rings -- here the mode is playful, comic, and fairy-tale-like, drawing on the English tradition of whimsy and the folklore of an imagined rural England.
Roverandom in particular began as a story improvised for a child, and retains the voice and energy of oral storytelling.
How it reads
Prose complexity 4/10
Genres
Characters
RoverandomProtagonist
A toy dog brought to life who travels to the moon and under the sea in search of himself -- the hero of the title story.
Tom BombadilSupporting
The mysterious nature spirit, known from The Lord of the Rings, who appears here in the verse collection that predates the novel.
Farmer GilesSupporting
The reluctant dragon-fighter of the Middle English pastiche -- a comic hero who stumbles into legend.
Mr. SmithSupporting
The protagonist of Smith of Wootton Major, a man chosen by Faery to receive a star that grants him access to the perilous realm.
Smith SmithsonSupporting
Subjects
Places
Authors
Frequently asked questions
What is Tales from the Perilous Realm?
A collected edition of four of Tolkien's shorter works: Roverandom, Farmer Giles of Ham, The Adventures of Tom Bombadil (verse), and Smith of Wootton Major. Some editions also include the essay On Fairy-Stories.
Is this suitable for children?
The individual stories vary -- Roverandom was originally told to a young child and is appropriate for children; Farmer Giles and Smith of Wootton Major have a wider audience of all ages; the verse in Tom Bombadil ranges from playful to mysterious.
Are these stories connected to Lord of the Rings?
Loosely. Tom Bombadil appears in The Lord of the Rings, and the world of these stories shares a folkloric English sensibility with the Shire and its surrounding regions. They are not narratively connected but share a tonal kinship.
Are these stories available separately?
Yes -- Farmer Giles of Ham, Smith of Wootton Major, and Roverandom have all been published as standalone volumes. Tales from the Perilous Realm collects them conveniently.