The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings

[Batty]

I thought I'd post this here since it's Tolkien related. I'm really looking forward to it.

https://www.tolkienbeowulf.com/

 

[NAZGUL-KING]

I thought I'd post this here since it's Tolkien related. I'm really looking forward to it.

https://www.tolkienbeowulf.com/

Looks interesting - I'm definitely up reading this. Thanks for the info!

 

[Batty]

Looks interesting - I'm definitely up reading this. Thanks for the info!

No problem! I love Beowulf...I can't wait to see Tolkien's take on it.

 

[Pork Chop Express]

That looks really interesting, I'll check it out.
Love both Tolkien and Beowulf so it should be worth reading, thanks.

 

[Commander Cody]

This year I read the Hobbit and LOTR for the first time.
I read this whole thread and you guys have a wealth of information about middle earth!
Seems I need to find this Silmarillion and read it. I had no idea Middle earth was far bigger than these 4 books. I wondered why it was only man fighting in LoTR and it gets answered here just like that!

Sent from my SPH-M840 using Tapatalk

 

[The Josh]

Congrats! That first time is something special. The Sil is a hard book to read so just take your time. I finally was able to get through it after several attempts.

 

[BagginsOfBagEnd]

Congrats! That first time is something special. The Sil is a hard book to read so just take your time. I finally was able to get through it after several attempts.

I found The Silmarillion very tough going, its a book I really need to try reading again and this time actually finish!!

 

[The Josh]

I found The Silmarillion very tough going, its a book I really need to try reading again and this time actually finish!!

Slow and steady.

 

[ChibiSchmoo]

But not too slow - there's a lot of detail to absorb and its easy to lose all that if you set it aside for too long. It's a very different reading experience than the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings. The style is a lot like the narrative portions of the Old Testament Bible (well, the content is like that too, I guess). I'd actually recommend using one of those name guides (like Foster's Guide to Middle Earth) as you go through it - even when you get some spoilers. It helps to see the big picture and figure out which details you should to focus on.

If you find it rough going in the beginning, just know it really picks up after they get out of Valinor. I do love these stories - totally on the same level as the Lord of the Rings to me. Would be a dream to see them attempt to put this on screen. (but we all know the situation with that...)

 

[The Josh]

Yeah, i agree with that first part. You cant go too slow and a guide is a goof idea. Some of the Sil is really good and other parts i could do without.

 

[BagginsOfBagEnd]

^^ Thanks for the tips both!! I think I'll definitely be giving it another go - hopefully this time I might even get to the end of the book!!

 

[Pork Chop Express]

The more you read Sil the easier it gets.

But you gotta want to go through it to begin with, still my favorite Tolkien.

 

[Adolfo]

Treat each chapter of Sil as its own story/book...Sil Is basically the whole Middle Earth story especially regarding first and second age...there are other books that even deeper to explain stories of Sil

 

[K07]

I attempted reading LotR about twelve years ago after seeing FotR for the first time. I thought it was boring. I'd like to revisit it. But before I try again, would you suggest I read the Hobbit first or does it not matter?

 

[marker2037]

It doesn't matter. The Hobbit has a different tone to it and is a pretty easy read since it's more meant for children. You can easily tell the different audience that LOTR is meant for.

 

[ApeManRyan]

I read The Hobbit for the first time and only took me a week to finish. I loved it! I knew once I saw the final Hobbit film I must read the book. I will now read LOTR next.

 

[The Ween]

I need to read Sil sometime. I've always been rather nervous to start it because so many say it's a hard read.

 

[Pork Chop Express]

I need to read Sil sometime. I've always been rather nervous to start it because so many say it's a hard read.

It's a narrative so it can seem dry at times but there is more than enough dialogue and characters to carry the whole way through. Elves have multiple names for everything; people, events, artifacts, you name it... so it can get confusing. If you can get through it your ME lore will greatly improve.

 

[egel]

That's how I read it at the time, purely a way to expand your Middle Earth knowledge. Plus, those name lists help a lot.

 

[starscream0]

I need to read Sil sometime. I've always been rather nervous to start it because so many say it's a hard read.

I'm assuming Sil is the Silmarillion

I would encourage anyone to read it. I think the reason people say that it is hard reading (and someone please correct me if I'm wrong) is that a lot of the beginning stories were pieced together by JRR's son Christopher. JRR must have had many stories lying around and Chris had to organize it all. A lot of the beginning chapters are redundant and some material is repeated but the later stories are much easier to read and I found them incredibly enjoyable.

It starts at the very beginning of Middle Earth and that is why I enjoyed it so much. Tolkien was a great story teller