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Tales from the Perilous Realm
- Narrated by: Derek Jacobi
- Length: 7 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Science Fiction & Fantasy, Fantasy
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it's ok.
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Summary
Combined into one volume, this is the definitive collection of Tolkien's five acclaimed modern classic 'fairie' tales in the vein of The Hobbit, read by Derek Jacobi.
The five tales are written with the same skill, quality and charm that made The Hobbit a classic. Largely overlooked because of their short lengths, they are joined here in one volume which reaffirms Tolkien's place as a master storyteller for listeners young and old.
- 'Roverandom' is a toy dog who, enchanted by a sand sorcerer, gets to explore the world and encounter strange and fabulous creatures.
- 'Farmer Giles of Ham' is fat and unheroic, but - having unwittingly managed to scare off a short-sighted giant - is called upon to do battle when a dragon comes to town.
- 'The Adventures of Tom Bombadil' tells in verse of Tom's many adventures with hobbits, princesses, dwarves and trolls.
- 'Leaf by Niggle' recounts the strange adventures of the painter Niggle, who sets out to paint the perfect tree.
- 'Smith of Wootton Major' journeys to the Land of Faery thanks to the magical ingredients of the Great Cake of the Feast of Good Children.
Taken together, this rich collection of work from the author of The Children of Húrin will provide the listener with a fascinating journey into lands as wild and strange as Middle-earth.
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What listeners say about Tales from the Perilous Realm
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Jules
- 04-12-17
Hmm
I'm not really sure what I think of this odd collection of stories. Tolkien's imagination is clear but I found some of them quite unfathomable. I'm not sure how many children would enjoy them. Brilliantly read.
6 people found this helpful
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- BrightSpear
- 27-12-19
Just so relaxing
Perfect reading of these stories, brought together in one volume. The only criticism is a technical one. Why when each story, poem or chapter has a name does audible only list them as chapter 1,2,3 ..... etc
3 people found this helpful
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- Kindle Customer
- 10-05-21
Unabridged?No title headings for start of tales
Ch 1 - Roverandum
Ch 11 - Farmer Giles of Ham
Ch 19 - The Adventures of Tom Bombadil
Ch 36 - Smith of Wooton Major
Ch 40 - Leaf by Niggle
Why no title headings for the start of each book, audible? It makes such a difference if you can easily navigate. You can do it yourself if you place a bookmark at the start of each and give them a name.
I'm not convinced this is the unabridged book. It seems to be just the main stories, nicely read by Derek Jacobi, with occasional bursts of appallingly irritating and pointless music that seem to have divided it for going on cassettes or CDs, as some are in the middle of nowhere, but give a break in the narration. The only introductory material is in the middle, at the start of Tom Bombadil, as though it has just been the main story of each individual book that was first recorded. With Tolkien, the introductions are usually quite informative, and often give details of the different variants on stories found in his notes.
The stories are J R R Tolkien, so always going to be good, though this has always been an odd combination, as Roverandum really doesn't fit with the others - it's a pleasing child's story. My favourites are the proper fairy tales - the final two, Smith of Wooton Major, and Leaf by Niggle, with Farmer Giles of Ham, nearly as pleasing.
2 people found this helpful
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- Malak
- 07-05-21
FIX THE CHAPTERS
Other Audible audiobooks consisting of short stories manage named chapters in the app to allow easy navigation so why can’t an important book by a major publisher?
2 people found this helpful
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- Stephen
- 19-02-21
No chapter headings
Nicely read, and great for Tolkien fans like myself.
Badly spoiled by the lack of informative chapter headings. A book of short stories would surely benefit from being able to jump to the beginning of any particular story, but the chapter headings are seemingly random with no detail at all.
A real shame to go to all of the effort of reading the book out and then not to quite finish it off
2 people found this helpful
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- Rajdeep
- 01-05-18
lovely listen
Apart from Tom's story ( personal preference), it's a delightful collection of stories in typical Tolkien's style.
2 people found this helpful
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- Paul Roberts
- 07-12-19
Tales from a perilous realm.
one of Tolkien's lesser known works,in truth I found it rather tedious but redeemed by the leaf by Niggle story and not without humour in fairness.
Derek Jacobi's voice also seemed absolutely ideal light and more than capable of expressing both the humour & when necessary the odd time of darkness .
I have mr. jacobi's Letters from Father Christmas also by Tolkien which I think is superior and well worth a listen especially at this time of the year.
1 person found this helpful
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- Yo
- 30-06-19
First class reading
I'm a fan of Tolkien and this book gave me the chance to explore some of his less known work. They are tales for children, plus a few poems of Sam Gangee's style, and the best: Leaf by Niggle, which is a Christian allegory. Jacobi's performance is outstanding. It's a real pleasure to listen to him. He even manages to read Oliphant with aplomb. Bravo.
1 person found this helpful
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- vicky buckland
- 12-06-18
dogs
I like dogs and fantasy this is perfect for me :3
I keep coming back :D
3 people found this helpful
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- Dave
- 16-05-18
Takes from the perilous realm
Very entertaining and inspiring can't wait till I get started on the next book that's it
1 person found this helpful
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- VMR
- 21-09-19
Thoroughly charming
This is the most charming book and Derek Jacobi makes it sing. His voice is so nimble and warm. I’m now off to listen to all of his narrations. Stories are also a balm for a listener: I love cowardly dragons and adventurous dogs and merpeople with an attitude. If your heart is in a need of a bit of a balm (and whose isn’t) this book is it.
15 people found this helpful
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- talk2tray
- 03-01-21
Tolkien Rules!
I am very glad I decided to read other stories by Tolkien at 70 years old, after reading the Trilogy first time in 1960's and three times since. I enjoyed Tales of the Perilous Realm, very different from Lord of the Rings, but just as amazingly creative and never a dull moment. I would say it would appeal to children under 12 more than the Trilogy did. But I got deeply lost in the stories, and Derek Jacobi did a great job.
13 people found this helpful
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- Linda Luella
- 28-03-17
Enjoyable Tolkien short stories
This was just an enjoyable series of shorts well performed and written in Tolkien's simple, well-written, inimitable English storytelling style. Like Winnie the Pooh and so many English stories, this collection is just nice, good fiction with kind Christian morals deeply hidden in a satisfying story. If you like Tolkien, Narnia, Milne, and the gentler English fiction well worth the credit.
15 people found this helpful
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- Bhc
- 07-10-16
Fun stories<br />
very enjoyable listening, just plain fun..Narration is good to, Enjoyed it.one of my favorite authors. great for a stormy day.
6 people found this helpful
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- G Spivey
- 11-04-21
Audible, please start using chapter titles
This is Tolkien it’s amazing.
The narrator is fine.
But not including chapter titles on Audible products is getting so old. All you get is chapter 1, chap 2, etc. This is annoying enough on a normal book, but ridiculous on a compilation.
Please think this through Audible. It can’t be hard.
Still, it’s Tolkien. So only docked it one star.
5 people found this helpful
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- Gvido
- 11-07-18
Funny and cosy reading
Several short stories by J.R.R.Tolkien that made me smile, laugh and think. Very well read! Loved it!
5 people found this helpful
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- Joe Blount
- 02-06-19
Some absolute gems, but some filler as well.
Excellent narration, and some excellent stories. However, it feels like filler stories pad the run-time.
3 people found this helpful
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- Gordon
- 29-06-21
Charming Selection of Short Stories
This collection of short stories is perfect for children, and even adults will be entertained. "Roverandom" was a tad too long for me, but the other stories are worth it.
I had been to a lecture on "Leaf by Niggle" and was intrigued enough to check it out. "Farmer Giles" was funny, as well as Tom Bombadil (would you expect anything less from him?). "Smith of Wooten Manor" was a surprise delight. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would.
Definitely recommend to read to the young'uns.
2 people found this helpful
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- Carlos
- 11-05-21
Great storytelling and stories overall
I think Roverrandom is the best one of the tales, but overall all of them do have it’s charm and magic.
1 person found this helpful
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- Charles
- 17-04-21
So much more than I expected it to be!
Loved it, the stories are every bit as captivating as you would expect from an Author such as Tolkien. The first story is truly amazing, reason enough to listen. The only slow part is story three, but, if you enjoy rhymes, you will enjoy that then too.
1 person found this helpful