The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (The Fellowship of the Ring/The Two Towers/The Return of the King)
I first read these books when I was perhaps 13 or 14. I reread them when the movies came out-give or take late 2001. I'm not sure I have read them since, though for sure its possible. On a late summer vacation my Nook was lost somewhere in between home-MSP-BWI-my sister Kim's house-the beach house-the other beach house-my sister Cathy's house-RDU-a six hour layover in BWI-MSP-home again. So I hit the basement bookcases for reading material. These books (the trilogy) were sure to keep me occupied and entertained while I procrastinated obtaining a new Nook.
As a (if not the) forerunner of the entire fantasy genre, Tolkien has a special place in my heart. I loved his books as a youngster and love them even now. The story of Frodo and his Companions is timeless and in revisiting it I was not disappointed. The fellowship of man, elf, dwarf and hobbit along with all of the mystical creatures they met along the way from Hobbiton to the end of the world and back again is beautiful. This story (and the 1,200 + pages of the books) will surely hit my reading list again someday. It certainly ranks a solid SUTMRs (stands up to multiple readings). I could go on and on about how great the book is but let's just agree that its a solid #2 Fabulous and move on to one thing I noticed about them this time around that I did NOT remember from previous reads...
Middle Earth is a big place and absent a couple of eagle flights, our heroes cover it all on hoof or foot. Over the course of the book there is much traveling from here to there and then over thataways and then to some other there...its a lot. I am geographically challenged under the best of circumstances (like even with a navigation system I get lost...frequently) so trying to follow the paths between Rohan and Isengard and Rivendell and Minas X and Mordor- it was really best if I did not try. I'll not deny that I may have skimmed over some of the more dense travel-y sections. Ditto for the songs and poems scattered throughout the books-I just couldn't do the deep dive on those-I'm sure its my loss. Also, HUGE pet peeve...did Sauron and Saruman really have to have basically the same name? I would have been happier and slightly less confused had they not.
This couple of paragraphs doesn't do the books justice but my sense is, if you are or would be a fan, you have probably read them already. If you haven't, its probably because you are either put off by the length or by the fantasy genre and nothing I have to say will make any difference. I loved these books and I am sure, god willing and the creek don't rise, I'll read them again someday.
Rating: #2 Fabulous
As a (if not the) forerunner of the entire fantasy genre, Tolkien has a special place in my heart. I loved his books as a youngster and love them even now. The story of Frodo and his Companions is timeless and in revisiting it I was not disappointed. The fellowship of man, elf, dwarf and hobbit along with all of the mystical creatures they met along the way from Hobbiton to the end of the world and back again is beautiful. This story (and the 1,200 + pages of the books) will surely hit my reading list again someday. It certainly ranks a solid SUTMRs (stands up to multiple readings). I could go on and on about how great the book is but let's just agree that its a solid #2 Fabulous and move on to one thing I noticed about them this time around that I did NOT remember from previous reads...
Middle Earth is a big place and absent a couple of eagle flights, our heroes cover it all on hoof or foot. Over the course of the book there is much traveling from here to there and then over thataways and then to some other there...its a lot. I am geographically challenged under the best of circumstances (like even with a navigation system I get lost...frequently) so trying to follow the paths between Rohan and Isengard and Rivendell and Minas X and Mordor- it was really best if I did not try. I'll not deny that I may have skimmed over some of the more dense travel-y sections. Ditto for the songs and poems scattered throughout the books-I just couldn't do the deep dive on those-I'm sure its my loss. Also, HUGE pet peeve...did Sauron and Saruman really have to have basically the same name? I would have been happier and slightly less confused had they not.
This couple of paragraphs doesn't do the books justice but my sense is, if you are or would be a fan, you have probably read them already. If you haven't, its probably because you are either put off by the length or by the fantasy genre and nothing I have to say will make any difference. I loved these books and I am sure, god willing and the creek don't rise, I'll read them again someday.
Rating: #2 Fabulous
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