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Summary: The only novel(s) Ive ever liked!
Review: I LOVE this series!
I LOVE the descriptions of history and the maps as well... they really help create this world. Tolkien is a genious... I have no Idea where he came up with this wonderful story, AMAZING that someone could just pull an entire world out of thin air with such clairity, down to the moss on a single stone!
The book was also refreshingly free of lots of writing cliches (how rare!)The only bad thing about this series is the sleep you'll lose from staying up all night reading it.... You wont be able to put it down! I read it in 2 days.
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Summary: The beginning of the beginning
Review: A new wave of readers are devouring the Tolkien books, thanks to the arrival of the first of the movie blockbusters (as you can tell by the pic of Elijah Wood on the cover). And that is definitely a good thing, because this trilogy not only spurred the fantasy genre into a respectable position, but also provided the template for virtually every elf, dwarf, lost king, and medieval fantasy world since. It's also a darn good read. We open some sixty years after the events of "The Hobbit" -- Bilbo Baggins is older, not much wiser, and quite eccentric. He has also adopted his bright young nephew/cousin Frodo, who was orphaned at a young age and had led a rather fractured life after that. On his 111th birthday, Bilbo suddenly vanishes, leaving behind all his possessions to Frodo -- including the golden ring that allows its wearer to become invisible. Seventeen years later, Gandalf the wizard shows up again on Frodo's doorstep, and informs the aghast young hobbit that his ring is in fact the One Ring of the dark lord Sauron. It corrupts those who have it, and most of Sauron's power is invested in it. Trying to deflect danger from the Shire, Frodo leaves with his best friend Sam and his loyal cousins Merry and Pippin. But Frodo has only the slightest idea of the hideous and dangerous journey ahead of him... Many fantasy cliches were spawned from this book (they weren't cliches when Tolkien used them). Orcs, elves, dwarves, halflings, sprawling medieval kingdoms, dethroned kings, gray-bearded wizards and evil Dark Lords. But no one will feel that these are stale; on the contrary, they feel fresh and unused, because that is what they were. Tolkien also demonstrated his skill in keeping the "feel" of the different races separate; without being too obvious, he emphasized the subtle differences between Elves, Dwarves, hobbits and Men. There are faint but distinguishable differences in their speech patterns and thought processes. You could never get Frodo mixed up with Legolas. Narrative-wise, this book begins on much the same note as "The Hobbit": it's lighter and more cheerful. But darker undertones begin to crop up in the very first chapter, when Bilbo begins clutching at the Ring and speaking in a Gollum-like manner. (The reader almost wants to yell "Don't do it!" when Frodo is given the Ring) The pace is pretty slow and gradual until the hobbits reach Bree, at which point it becomes darker, faster and harsher in tone and pace. The matter in it also becomes more mature, particularly in the chilling scenes after Frodo is stabbed by a Nazgul. One of the things that Tolkien did exceptionally well is atmosphere. With a minimum of words, he conveys the menace of the Black Riders, the beauty of the Elves, the decay of the ancient kingdom of Moria, the mystery of such characters as Aragorn. In some areas, he deliberately didn't overdo the descriptions of such things as the Balrog, leaving the visualization up to the readers. Another strong point is a sense of epic proportions. Too often a fantasy writer TRIES to write an epic, at the expense of individual character development. Tolkien managed to balance both of them, by focusing on the individuals in the center of epic struggles. I will warn you that you should have the second and third books on hand when you read this. As this was originally intended to be one huge chunk of a book, it ends on a semi-cliffhanger. (The movie ends in about the same place, so if it frustrated you there, you'd be frustrated here as well) If you're a person who can't handle anything more complex than a half-hour sitcom, or think that Harry Potter is the pinnacle of modern literature, then this book is not for you. Frodo himself is the quintessential "little guy" hero, one of the last people whom you'd expect to be on a mission to save the world. He's prone to moods of either cheerfulness or sadness, a little immature and bored at the beginning, but incredibly brave and stout-hearted when the pressure is put on him. Self-sacrifice is his middle name. Unlike Luke Skywalker and Harry Potter, Frodo also has no astounding destiny or special powers to help him. He's simply an ordinary person, an everyman... or should I say "everyhobbit." We also have Gandalf, who is fleshed out from the pleasantly crabby wizard of "Hobbit" -- we see more of his hidden sides and powers here. Sam, though not yet fully into the selfless role he plays in books two and three, aptly demonstrates his loyalty and love for Frodo, as well as displaying his progression from a shy young hobbit with a fascination for Elves to a bolder, more decisive person. Merry and Pippin aren't quite into their full roles either, but they are excellent: Merry is mature beyond his years, and Pippin is (and I say this with all affection) a goodhearted flake. Elf and Dwarf fans will find their enjoyment in Legolas and Gimli, who initially grate on each other, but show the beginnings of a loyal friendship. Tolkien wasn't the first fantasy writer, but he can rightly be described as the first noted fantasy writer, and he remains top of the heap today.
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Summary: My Fellowship of the Ring Review
Review: The movie version is good but the book is where you'll find the true joy. Tolkien can be hard to read if you don't have patience and a strong imagination. Some parts of the book are long in detail and short in happenings. Others seem too quick and light on detail. Tolkien sometimes skips around and you don't get to see everything that's happened. Instead you experience from outside view. But all this is as it's meant to be. Being with a single character every moment and knowing exactly what's happening at every instant would make for a boring read. Tolkien weaves magic by keeping you guessing and not always letting you see exactly what's happening. For the impatient reader I say stick with it. It's a journey worthwhile.
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Summary: A Good Story Buried in Plodding Narrative
Review: Tolkein has created a world of hobbits, elves, dwarfs and wizards that's so real you feel you're reading a history book. Unfortunately, I wanted to read the rollicking good tale that Tolkein buried with plodding details of topography, weather, and history instead. The pacing is so off that several chapters are given to a character that has nothing to do with the plot, while a pivotal scene involving Galdalf is told as a puny, bland page or two flashback. Luckily, the movie excavated the story and showed us what this book could have been if Tolkein was as skilled at storytelling as he was at world inventing.
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Summary: This is THE tape if you grew up on the book
Review: Very fine rendering that gets the pronunciations of proper names (including geographical ones) correctly, as Professor T. wanted it. Very good (I felt) on the nuances that readers notice in the book after first reading in (say) junior high and then re-reading it every five-to-ten years or so. Will especially appeal to the less fanatical Tolkien fan who deeply appreciates the book without getting into collecting the plastic figurines or going to the movie of it; the reader who because of the LOrd of the Rings went on to discover other, even greater stories like those of Shakespeare and Dante (for which I thank Tolkien whole-heartedly). Better than the (enjoyable, light) BBC version, and far superior to the American - accented production.
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Summary: The Facts in , The Fellowship of the Ring
Review: The book,The Fellowship of the Ring , is classified as a Fantasy or maybe even Science Fiction,but the author writes it likes it's history. It's a lot different than any other fantay I've ever read because it's not the kind of book that you can tell like a bed time story. The story is written like hard-core facts.And who's to say that it isn't?
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Summary: Really, truely, one of the most boring books ever.
Review: Although many people believe that "The Fellowship of the Ring" is a classic novel of its time, it is not. Granted it opened up many doors for the half hearted fantasy writing of today, it still used plane, boring and ohhhhh so long descriptions. What I don't understand is how JRR Tolkien could take a great idea about four young chaps (who happen to be midgets which kills alot of the drama for me) on a harrowing adventure to destory the ring that the evil one wants so he can take over middle-Earth. The whole book went through a phase of Duex Machinea where Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin where either saved by friendly hobbits, not so friendly hobbits, friendly Elves, not so friendly Elves, or friendly Men or not so friendly Men. Startaling trasitions from numbly simiple to madingly difficult dialog made the book jump from one pace to another. Tolkien didn't use mounting suspense through the book, but manic-depressive, spasmatic jumps. Putting a song in the middle of one of the few exciting scenes breaks the pace, and leaves the reader starting all over again, feeling bland. Altogether, the book was my least favorite "classic."
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Summary: Wow!
Review: I'm not really into Fantasy type novels, but I was blown away by this book. Written decades ago, the language and the style still fit into our world today. The maps are a wonderful addition so the reader can follow along on the journey. I would highly recommend reading this book.
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Summary: Fellowship of the Ring
Review: The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings is a novel written by one of the most famous authors ever, JRR Tolkien. The novel is actually broken up into 3 parts, the first part is 'The Fellowship of the Rings', the 2nd is 'The Two Towers', and the 3rd is 'The Return of the King'. These books in that order are a follow up to the even more famous book by him 'The Hobbit'. The Lord of the Rings takes you on an adventure with four young hobbits and their companions to destroy the ring that was placed before them. Before I go on you need to know that a Hobbit is a small creature that is about ¼ to ½ of our size and they are peaceful creatures that live in one place and enjoy staying were they are.
The main character of the story is Frodo Baggins, a young hobbit that grew up safe until being adopted by his uncle, the famous Bilbo Baggins. If you have ever read 'The Hobbit' then you would know who he is, and if you haven't read 'The Hobbit' then I recommend that you do before reading 'The Lord of the Rings'. Anyways, after Frodo is adopted by Bilbo he lives with him for quite so time, but soon Bilbo leaves leaving young Frodo alone with the adventure in front of him. Once underway, Frodo is accompanied by 3 other hobbits, a dwarf, an elf, 2 men and the famous Gandalf the wizard. Their journey starts from the elf homeland with the new fellowship, although it is a journey just getting there as you will soon find out.
This book was one of the best books that I have ever came across, since I have never really found it easy to sit down and read a book, when I do it must be a really good book. If I were you I would read this book and if you don't like reading I think this book will even be enjoyable for you. JRR Tolkien did a wonderful job writing this book and its worth the time to read it.
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Summary: Must Read!!!
Review: This book was awesome!!! It was full of adventure and excitement. I can not wait to finish the trilogy. If I were Frodo, I would have let someone else continue my journey when they reached the House of Elrond. I do not know how he kept up the courage to keep running from the frightening Black Riders of Sauron. I could not wait to turn the page to find out what was going to happen next. There is a lot of anticipation as the journey progresses. No sooner do you think that the fellowship is in the clear that they are on the run again from the Black Riders and Sauron. This is a must read book, even if you saw the movie. Having seen the movie, it interested me even more to read the book and finish the trilogy to see the next two movies. If you can help it, read the book before you go see the movie. Doing that will make the movie even more enjoyable.
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