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Number Three, Bagshot Row  by GamgeeFest 10 Review(s)
nancylea57Reviewed Chapter: 15 on 12/5/2008
your comment on fickle muse says you have a hard time hurting your hobbits:

maybe true but you sure know how to make them all better.

Author Reply: Every day domestic hurts and sickness is one thing. Putting them through the reamer, and for no real reason, is quite another. I can do the first. It's the second I have trouble with - unless I can find a reason and make it as much as the first as possible. ;)

And making them all better is the best part. The 'hurt' part of my h/c is always over quite quickly, with the 'comfort' taking its sweet time. :D

Grey WondererReviewed Chapter: 15 on 6/29/2008
This was sweet and sad all at once. Sam's question about whether or not he'd remember his mother and the way they all looked at Marigold almost had me in tears. The teasing that came after was very well placed. Lovely story!

Author Reply: Count on Halfred to ease the mood, and the other children follow like his lead in perfect hobbit fashion. Sam will sadly forget many things about his mother, but he’ll remember plenty too and they’ll all be able to tell their little sister about Bell once she’s old enough to understand the stories.

AntaneReviewed Chapter: 15 on 6/21/2008
Nice to see you back, GF! And sorry to have taken so long to read this - so busy! Love sweet, loving Sam though an ache is there to for his worry over his sister. And to be 4 and already lost his ma! :( Nice to see the Gaffer in a positive light since I don't think too positively of him myself from Sam's remarks in the Red Book about how the Gaffer regards his youngest son.

Namarie, God bless, Antane :)

Author Reply: I always saw the Gaffer as rough on the outside, but loving on the inside. I can't see Sam as being who he is without a loving and endearing family, and I really couldn't see him being so worried about what his father might be saying or thinking during the Quest if he didn't do so as way of seeking comfort and distraction. The Gaffer may have some hard words to say, but he would have his reasons for it and balance them out with plenty of love and caring.

This was a hard year for the Gamgee clan, first losing their grandfather, the head of their family, and then their mother, and then May getting sick. But they made it through it and all the stronger and closer for it.

Thanks for reading!

altheaReviewed Chapter: 15 on 6/19/2008
These were absolutely precious. It's always a pleasure to drop in and spend time with the family at Number 3. The children each have such true to life personalities and Bell is a very loving mother. It was fun, though, to have the emphasis placed on the Gaffer in these three stories and to see him as wonderfully patient and wise father. With such a role model, it is easy to see how Sam grew to be such an excellent hobbit.

Author Reply: Hello Althea! So lovely to hear from you again! I’m glad you enjoyed these. It’s been a long time since I paid visit to Number 3; Father’s Day presented the perfect opportunity. Showing the family from the Gaffer’s point of view allowed me to show all those thoughts he so often keeps to himself.

harrowcatReviewed Chapter: 15 on 6/17/2008
A lovely trio GF and I am looking forward to more. Your Gaffer keeps reminding me of my own Dad.

Author Reply: The Gaffer is so much like my own father, that I feel as though I know him. Thanks for reading!

EstellaBReviewed Chapter: 15 on 6/17/2008
Oh, these three chapters were very sweet, especially the last one. Poor Gaffer, trying to cope with his wife's passing as well as all the new things he had to do. I loved Sam's appearance in the last one, as well as that fact that he's "not as slow as his name would suggest". The fact that he insists on sitting with May whilst she's sick... well, he's getting some early practice in for the Quest, then...

Oh, wow. *claps* these were lovely.

Author Reply: Thank you Estella! Gaffer has been landed with more challenges than he’d thought he’d ever see. It will take a while for him to find his footing, but one day, he’ll realize he long ago stopped pretending and started doing. Sam won’t remember any of this by the time of the Quest, but the skills and determination he shows then certainly have their roots here.

DreamflowerReviewed Chapter: 15 on 6/16/2008
Aww...this is so sweet and sad. Poor little Gamgees, losing their mother, and then worried for May.

I just adore your Gaffer, GF. He's a perfect well of wisdom and love.

Author Reply: May did pick a bad time to get sick. ;) Bad things come in threes, but this one turned out to a be a good one in the end.

I always saw the Gaffer as a big cuddly teddy bear, though most only see the bear part!

LarnerReviewed Chapter: 15 on 6/16/2008
It would be a worry for young Sam, it would. And I'm glad the Cottons could take Marigold right then, and that plans were made so the children didn't have to worry about being separated from one another.

Author Reply: Sam is still rather confused over the ‘disappearance’ of his mother. He only knows that she was sick, he and siblings were sent off the Cottons, and when they came back, she wasn’t there anymore. Hamfast understood Sam’s need to be near his sister, so long as the healer allowed it. Hamfast and Bell most likely decided together what to do with the children should the unimaginable happen, and worked it all out with their family while they were in Tighfield at the beginning of the year.

Baggins BabeReviewed Chapter: 15 on 6/16/2008
Nothing like a visit to the Shire to make any self-respecting hobbit lover feel good! This was lovely, and the Gaffer is such a sweetie, even if he does feel out of his depth at times.

Poor little May - I'm glad she is up and about again - and Sam os learning skills he will need one day.

Author Reply: The Gaffer may have his rough edges, but he’s all soft and cuddly inside. He adores his family greatly. May is a trooper and she’ll be dotted on for a bit after this. Sam won’t remember any of this once he’s old enough for the Quest, but the protectiveness and his need to care for his master certainly have their roots here.

shireboundReviewed Chapter: 15 on 6/16/2008
There's so much love in these stories, and they're so beautifully written. I feel as if I'm reading a wonderful book about the Gamgee family... a book Tolkien would have written, had he the chance.

Author Reply: There was so much love and unity in Tolkien’s Epilogue; I can just see Sam growing up in similar conditions, though the Gaffer may have stumbled a few times along the way.

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