Gnomes by Wil Huygen &  Rien Poortvliet

This is a book based on just about every aspect of a sentient culture that one could think of in their ways & abilities to survive.
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1st version of this book was 1976 in the Netherlands
In 1977 they released an English Translation
The version I have is from 2006
The font type is easy to read
Comprehension level is child friendly
It has a beautiful illustrations on all the pages.

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The following are some of the aspects of gnome life according to the book…
(I’ll stick with the basics, in my own words.)

They live in a cluster of 3 trees: 1 is the entrance, 1 is for livingspace, 1 is for storage.
The book gives specific details of the different rooms of the home.

normal lifespan: about 400 years

adult height just under 6 inches (15 cm)

travels by foot at almost sonic speeds

master craftsman

helpful to animals (& sometimes humans)

sharp sense of smell like animals have

Has great difficulty with trolls

Uses doe hair to make wool for clothing

Uses rabbit fur to make softer clothing

Uses sheep’s wool, caught on fences, to make blankets & sweaters

The gnome’s head isn’t pointy, the hats are solid from the top of the gnomes head to the tip.

The female wears a green cone hat and the male wears a red cone hat.  The hats are given to them when they are young and kept their entire life.  They add to it as needed over the years. They never remove their hats except in darkness and maybe when they take a bath.

Some folks believe the hat has the power to make a gnome invisible.

The gnomes get their leather from the hides of animals that have been killed by un-natural causes.  They never use the hides of animals that have died of natural causes.

Types of gnomes:

Woodland Gnome – resembles an ordinary gnome

Dune Gnome – a fraction taller than a woodland gnome

Garden Gnome – general type of gnome

Farm Gnome – resembles a house gnome

House Gnome – resembles an ordinary gnome & most knowledgeable of mankind

Siberian Gnome – centimeters larger than European gnomes, pals around with trolls & has a really bad attitude

Other elementals of varying types are mentioned & described in the book.
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Just a few of my thoughts here about Gnomes by Wil Huygen & Rien Poortvliet:

The red & green cone hats are pretty standard in descriptions and the telling of gnomes. It’s my personal opinion that it’s more likely that the color of hats & clothing change with the seasons or terrain.  I would further think that most sentient beings know that bright colors that stand out from the environment could draw unwelcomed attention from predators or nosy humans. 😉

I don’t recall reading a specific reason for the difference in utilizing deceased animals based on the cause of death. I suspect the reason for using the hides from killed animals might be the way to keep the spirit of the animal alive and help it to further serve a purpose.

There’s so much in the book of Gnomes that some of it could be associated with the survival & existence of many other fae and nature folks.

You would just have to read it to take all the info in.  It’s a marvelous journey into the possibilities about how a tiny culture could live and survive. And the illustrations are absolutely marvelous.

Even though the illustrations are just pencil drawings, there are a couple that parents may not want their young children to see.  There’s a couple of illustrations of the robust female gnomes topless.  It’s not presented as vulgar or anything naughty, it’s in reference to their anatomy & such.

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Little Gnome Facts by Rien Poortvliet

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Is a small child size book of excerpts and illustrations from the ‘Gnomes by Wil Huygen &  Rien Poortvliet‘ book.

I think it would be a fun read for children.

🙂