About the Book

A charming new pocket edition of one of Tolkien’s major pieces of short fiction, and his only finished work dating from after publication of The Lord of the Rings.

What began as a preface to The Golden Key by George MacDonald eventually grew into this charming short story, so named by Tolkien to suggest an early work by P.G. Wodehouse. Composed almost a decade after The Lord of the Rings, and when his lifelong occupation with the ‘Silmarillion’ was winding down, Smith of Wootton Major was the product of ripened experience and reflection. It was published in 1967 as a small hardback, complete with charming black and white illustrations by Pauline Baynes, and would be the last work of fiction to be published in Tolkien’s own lifetime.

Now, almost 50 years on, this enchanting tale of a wanderer who finds his way into the perilous realm of Faery is being published once again as a pocket hardback. Contained here are many intriguing links to the world of Middle-earth, as well as to Tolkien’s other tales, and this new edition is enhanced with a facsimile of the illustrated first edition, a manuscript of Tolkien’s early draft of the story, notes and an alternate ending, and a lengthy essay on the nature of Faery.

Critical Praise

-

Product Details

• ISBN: 9780007557288
• ISBN 10: 0007557280
• Imprint: HarperCollins
• On Sale: 02/26/2015
• Pages: 224
• List Price:19.99 CAD
• BISAC1 : FICTION / Fairy Tales, Folk Tales, Legends & Mythology
• BISAC2 : FICTION / Fantasy / Dragons & Mythical Creatures
• BISAC3 : FICTION / Fantasy / Epic
• BISAC4 : FICTION / Action & Adventure
• BISAC5 : FICTION / Fantasy / Humorous

J. R. R. Tolkien

Biography

Humphrey Carpenter was born in Oxford in 1946. After reading English at Oxford, where Christopher Tolkien was one of his lecturers, he worked for some years for the BBC, and continued to broadcast after becoming a full-time writer in 1975. His biography of J.R.R. Tolkien was followed by The Inklings: C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, Charles Williams and their friends, and his other biographies include those of Benjamin Britten, W.H. Auden, and Ezra Pound. He wrote for children, including the bestselling and televised Mr Majeika books and he wrote book and lyrics for a children’s musical based on The Hobbit, for an Oxford choir school where J.R.R. Tolkien and his wife Edith then saw it performed. He compiled, with his wife Mari Prichard, The Oxford Companion to Children’s Literature and followed that with Secret Gardens, a study of the golden age of children’s literature. He died in January 2005.

Other Works by J. R. R. Tolkien

• 

  The History of Middle-earth (Boxed Set 1): The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales, The Book of Lost Tales, Part One & Part Two (The History of Middle-earth)

  By J. R. R. Tolkien

• 

  The Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien: Revised and Expanded edition

  By J. R. R. Tolkien

• 

  The Hobbit: Illustrated by the Author

  By J. R. R. Tolkien

Pauline Baynes

Biography

Pauline Baynes has produced hundreds of wonderful illustrations for the seven books in The Chronicles of Narnia. In 1968 she was awarded the prestigious Kate Greenaway Medal for her outstanding contribution to children's literature.

Other Works by Pauline Baynes

• 

  The Chronicles of Narnia Official Coloring Book

  By Pauline Baynes

• 

  Smith of Wootton Major

  By Pauline Baynes

• 

  The Adventures of Tom Bombadil

  By Pauline Baynes