Farmer Giles of Ham

By: J. R. R. Tolkien

Narrated by: Derek Jacobi

Tolkien’s acclaimed modern classic ‘fairie’ tale, read by Derek Jacobi.

Farmer Giles of Ham is one of Tolkien’s most popular stories, full of wit and humour, set in the days when giants and dragons walked the earth. He did not look like a hero. He was fat and red-bearded and enjoyed a slow, comfortable life.

Then one day a rather deaf and short-sighted giant blundered on to his land. More by luck than skill, Farmer Giles managed to scare him away. The people of the village cheered: Farmer Giles was a hero.

His reputation spread far and wide across the kingdom. So it was natural that when the dragon Chrysophylax visited the area it was Farmer Giles who was expected to do battle with it!

Two further stories in this collections are Smith of Wooton Major which tells of the preparation of the Great Cake to mark the Feast of Good Children, and the strange events which follow, and Leaf by Niggle, which recounts the strange adventures of the painter, Niggle.

Critic reviews

‘A fabulous tale of the days when giants and dragons walked the kingdom’
Sunday Times

Farmer to King

Would you consider the audio edition of Farmer Giles of Ham to be better than the print version?

It is an enjoyable listen that goes well with the print version.

Have you listened to any of Derek Jacobi’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Derek Jacobi is excellent once again. Children will be able to follow along easily and perhaps even take more of the story in as a result of his narration.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I did listen to it in one sitting as the book is full of Tolkien 's humour and is well narrated and easy to listen to.

Any additional comments?

Children and adults alike, should enjoy this Tolkien adventure with a deadly dragon, a dog who keeps crying help and a farmer who becomes a king.

Brilliant Little Story

This is a brilliant little story. It's witty and fun, clever and comical, not at all obvious and, as all Tolkien's works do, has a great and timeless moral to the story. It is also brilliantly delivered.

A Simply Wonderful Story

Loved it! Hard to put down... though my teen and tween children didn't care for it quite so much.

excellent story by tolkien!

read by derek Jacoby too! this story shows how great tolkien's writing was. even not as lotr!

worth a credit

This is an absolute classic fantasy tale and the Accents used in the narration or on point.