Halflings, Hobbits, Warrows & Weefolk [Paperback]

Baird Searles (Author), Brian M. Thomsen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 1991

Take advantage of the interest generated by the Tolkien centennial with this delightful collection of fantasy tales. Miniscule yet mighty, the pygmy couch potatoes of the magic realm have their day in this cozy collection of wondrous little tall tales by the world's best-loved fantasy authors.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This collection in honor of J.R.R. Tolkien's 100th birthday in 1992 features stories about heroes who, like Tolkien's hobbits, are small in stature and not heroic in the traditional sense. ``The Eranis Pipe'' by Mickey Zucker Reichert is somewhat formulaic and ``The Twice-Born Bard'' by Michael Williams is a*n uninspired poem, but otherwise the stories are quick and delightful--much like the protagonists. They range from the pure silliness of Craig Shaw Gardner's ``A Fumbling of Fairies'' (with weefolk named Lalalillylololoobaloobashebangshebang and Ramalamadingdong) and R. A. Salvatore's ``A Sparkle for Homer'' (carrying on Tolkien's tradition of hobbits who deplore adventuring) to the graceful wonder and storytelling magic of Jody Lynn Nye's ``Moon Shadows'' and Judith Moffett's ``The Origin of the Hob.'' The most fascinating twist on the legend is Maya Kaathrynsp ok Bohnhoff's ``Hobbits,'' in which a child overlays the hobbit image on an elusive alien--a somewhat shocking ending involves the family cat (tellingly named Troll). Searles is the author of Films of Science Fiction and Fantasy ; Thomsen edits the Questar science fiction line.

Copyright 1991 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing (December 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446392812
• ISBN-13: 978-0446392815
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,193,542 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Half-pint storytelling, May 7, 2004

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Halflings, Hobbits, Warrows & Weefolk (Paperback)

They say that nobody can write halflings like "Lord of the Rings" author J.R.R. Tolkien, and the tepid collection "Halflings, Hobbits, Warrows and Weefolk" seems to back that up. A few stories are entertaining, but most are poorly written or hideously plotted. (An eagle called King Cumulonimbus? Please, wake me from this nightmare...)

A tale of troll invasion kicks off the volume (Mickey Zucker Reichart's "The Eranis Pipe") followed by plodding, dialogue-heavy tales (Jody Lynn Nye's father-and-daughter "Moon Shadow" and Judith Moffet's leaden "Origin of the Hob"), and the ghastly R.A. Salvatore story "A Sparkle For Homer," which involves an idiot halfling in a giant's castle. Charles de Lint's otherworldly story is good, but seems out of place.

The saving graces of this volume are stories by Craig Shaw Gardner ("A Fumbling of Fairies") and John Dalmas ("The Stoor's Map"). The first involves the adventures of the sneezing wizard Ebenezum and his hapless apprentice, while the second is the story of a halfling elopement that runs into some serious spider trouble.

The title is a bit misleading -- only one story dares to refer to hobbits (the story called "Hobbits," which starts off promising but ends grotesquely). And no stories refer to Dennis McKiernan's Warrows; probably the name was included just to make the title snappy. The standard "wee folk" tend to loosely fit the hobbit mold, but with too many magic spells and too few brains.

Most of the stories are overwritten and unnatural-sounding (enough about wiggling toes already!), and the characters tend to be dull and over-talkative. What's more, some of the authors are sufficiently unimaginative that they cobble bits from J.R.R. Tolkien's work, most notably hobbit holes and the name "Bracegirdle."

If readers are desperately hungry for hobbits, this might make you happy for a little while. But in the end, it's bland and boring, with a few sparkling stories sprinkled through it. Not recommended.