The Adventures of Tom Bombadil
The Adventures of Tom Bombadil and Other Verses from the Red Book | |
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File:The Adventures of Tom Bombadil cover.jpg | |
Author | J.R.R. Tolkien |
Publisher | George Allen and Unwin (UK) Houghton Mifflin (US) |
Released | 22 November 1962 (UK) 1963 |
Format | Hardback in dustwrapper |
Pages | 63 |
ISBN | None |
The Adventures of Tom Bombadil and Other Verses from the Red Book is a collection of poetry by J.R.R. Tolkien, published in 1962. The book contains 16 poems, only two of which deal with Tom Bombadil, a character who is most famous for his encounter with Frodo Baggins in The Fellowship of the Ring, the first volume in Tolkien's best-selling The Lord of the Rings. The rest of the poems are an assortment of bestiary verse and fairy tale rhyme.
The book was originally illustrated by Pauline Baynes and later by Roger Garland.
The book, like the first edition of The Fellowship of the Ring, is presented as if it is an actual translation from the Red Book of Westmarch, and contains some background information on the world of Middle-earth which is not found elsewhere. Examples are the name of the tower at Dol Amroth and the names of the Seven Rivers of Gondor. There is some dispute about its canonical status since the information presented about the secondary world is considered only as folklore among the Hobbits.
It is also notable because it uses the letter "K" instead of "C" for the /k/ sound in Sindarin, a spelling variant Tolkien alternated many times in his writings.
Contents
- The Adventures of Tom Bombadil
- Bombadil Goes Boating
- Errantry
- Little Princess Mee
- The Man in the Moon Stayed Up Too Late
- The Man in the Moon Came Down Too Soon
- The Stone Troll
- Perry-the-Winkle
- The Mewlips
- Oliphaunt
- Fastitocalon
- Cat
- Shadow-Bride
- The Hoard
- The Sea-Bell
- The Last Ship
Expanded edition
In 2014 was published an expanded edition of The Adventures of Tom Bombadil and Other Verses from the Red Book, edited by Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull. The new edition includes earlier versions of several poems and the related poem Once upon a Time. It also contains the formerly unpublished "predecessor of Perry-the-Winkle, called The Bumpus, and the complete, tantalizingly brief fragment of a prose story featuring Tom Bombadil, in the days of 'King Bonhedig'". In addition, the editors provide a new introduction and a commentary on the text.[1]
External links
- The Adventures of Tom Bombadil review at thetablet.co.uk
- Review at Tolkienlibrary.com
- Addenda and Corrigenda to The Adventures of Tom Bombadil and Other Verses from the Red Book (2014)
References
- ↑ Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull, "New Tolkien Projects, Part One" dated 15 January 2014, Wayneandchristina.wordpress.com (accessed 19 January 2014)
Tales from the Perilous Realm | |
Farmer Giles of Ham · The Adventures of Tom Bombadil · Leaf by Niggle · Smith of Wootton Major Roverandom (since 2008) · On Fairy-Stories (since 2008) |