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Summary: Silmarillion as entrancing as the Silmarils!
Review: Welcome to the wondrous universe of JRR Tolkien. A universe of epic proportions, expanding over ages of time. Welcome to a new world, where elves dance in the light of the Two Trees and where dwarves create brilliant works of intense beauty. Welcome to Middle-Earth!The Silmarillion is a great masterpiece, woven by the spellbounding skill of JRR Tolkien. The enchanting words traps one in its vivid imagery.It was very well-written and one would be frozen in awe at the beauty. Middle-Earth, the world created by who Richard Adams calls "O Mighty Tolkien! Prince of Fantasists!" And after reading the Silmarillion and his other works, Lord of the Rings, I agree. Middle-Earth is a place populated by tall elves who never sleep, short dwarves ever-digilent and noble men fighting gloriously. The Silmarillion tells the history of the creation and the stories of Middle-Earth. I am amazed with JRR Tolkien's ability to delve so deeply into his land whereas other authors would write a book and leave it as that. He tells of the good and the bad times of Middle-Earth and you cheer with the defeat of MElkor-Morgoth and mope with Dagor Bragollach. I heard about the Silmarillion after I read the LOTR. I was hooked on the first few pages and kept gorging it down until I was done. This is an excellent book. But I must warn, there are plenty of names, places and events that you must remember to keep along with the fantastic rhythm of the book. Read this book, and you also will be hoping to be in Valinor!
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Summary: for Elve freaks
Review: As profoundly beautiful as the creation of the world through the eyes of Tolkien really is, this book is for those who *have* to know *more* about Tolkien's elves, or for those who have a passionate love (and attention span) for myths and ancient legends. Where as the Hobbit was a children's story compared to the breath and scope of the Lord of the Rings, the Silmarillion is another step up in the complexity ladder of Tolkien's fictional history books. Interweaving characters and situations together, creating a complicated tapestry of Middle Earth, pre-War of the Rings, this is not light reading - but it's just as fanciful and enjoyable as Tolkien's other Middle Earth works. Brave it only *after* you've read the Lord of the Rings, if you so desire to know more about the origins of many characters and places such as Galadriel, Elrond, and Rivendell. Sorry, the Sil *still* doesn't explain that whacked out Tom Bombadill character though!
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Summary: Of Elves
Review: This book is so close to Shakespeare. It has some of the most beautiful language I've ever read. It's different then the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings, but in a really good way.
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Summary: The Pinnacle of Fantasy Literature!
Review: J.R.R. Tolkien spent his entire life developing a myth for England. The result is the Silmarillion, the epic mythological masterpiece that was begun in Tolkien's early twenties in the trenches of WWI and left unfinished at his death in 1972. Actually this is not quite correct. A whole host of other books (13 of them) containing JRR's writings on the history of Middle Earth have since been published posthumously by his son Christopher and thus deserve mention as being part of the story of The Silmarillion. Altogether they comprise several thousand pages, but the book known as The Silmarillion is the official (and rather brief) tale of the first age of Middle Earth. The Lord of the Rings was the natural (and popular) extension into novel form of this more abstract mythology. The Silmarillion is not a novel but a collection of accounts, written in near biblical fashion, which chronicle the formation of Arda (Earth), the pre-historical dealings of the Valar (god-like spirits), the coming of Elves and Men, and the 500 year war between the Elves and the most powerful and evil of the Valar, Melkor. Like the Bible or an ancient Greek myth The Silmarillion involves events that cannot be translated into their literal form as we would percieve them in a logical and rational universe. The first part of the book tells of the Valar, 14 spirits derived from the one God Eru Illuvatar, and their dealings in Aman, the Undying Lands west over the sea from Middle Earth, before the coming (creation) of Men or Elves. These early accounts are especially abstract because the Valar seem to have a mostly etheral form. As the book progresses, the storyline shifts its focus to Middle Earth on a land called Beleriand (the west part of Middle Earth). What follows is a set of largely disjointed stories set against a common backdrop: the war between the Elves and Melkor. Among the various stories, most dealing with the different battles in the war, a few stand out as especially important (and play a more prominent role in many of Tolkien's other writings): The Tale of Beren and Luthien, Turin Turambar, and the story of Tuor and the Fall of Gondolin. Further explanation of the plot is complex and therefore prohibitive. So let's get down to some casual discussion. If you haven't read any of Tolkien's works then don't read this one first; start with the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings (LOTR). If you like these then go ahead with the Silmarillion. Then after reading the Sil, go back and read LOTR again. I say this because although the Sil is only 300 pages, it reads almost like the Bible. We don't get to follow any Hobbits around (who basically act as mediators between the reader and Middle Earth in LOTR) or even get to know any of the characters very well. The narration is performed from a removed point of view and Tolkien has the tendency to sweep over years of storyline with a single sentence. As a result, beginning readers may easily become disenchanted by the Sil. Reading LOTR first provides you with motivation for reading the Sil: it explains the historical background of the Middle Earth we get to know so well in LOTR. The Silmarillion isn't all abstract exposition. It is the epitome of what Tolkien called Faerie stories. Many of the tales are romantic, but most of them are tragedies in the classic sense. My favorite tales are those of Beren and Luthien and The Fall of Gondolin. The former tells of the love between a mortal man and an Elf maiden who must give up her immortality in order to be with him. However, her father is the King and demands a Silmaril (a jewel containing the light of the two trees of Valinor and fashioned by Feanor, greatest of all Elvish craftsmen, and stolen by Ungoliant, a giant spider, and taken by Melkor) from the crown of Melkor before he will let Beren marry Luthien. An adventure ensues in which Beren and Luthien travel to Angband, the Iron Stronghold of Melkor in the North, accompanied by a giant talking dog named Huan. Along the way we meet giant warewolves and giant cats and giant Eagles. This is the stuff of pure unhindered imagination at its best...the stuff of myth. JRR Tolkien once noted that we as human beings, being made in the image of a creator, are ourselves entitled to creation of our own (though I think he put it more eloquently). The Silmarillion is among the most innovative and imaginative creations of mythological literature. And for those interested in fantasy it is a unique experience and arguably the single highest pinnacle of achievement in the genre.
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Summary: A hard read, but worth the trouble, I promise!
Review: Ahh, Tolkien, Lord of Fantasy and Creator of worlds! After reading the Lord of the Rings, I found myself seeking more writing by the master of fantasy, J.R.R Tolkien. That's how I came across the Silmarillion. I admit that Tolkien's style may not appeal to many (I personally love the way that he writes); it's too dry or too hard.... Tolkien starts of retelling the Story of Creation (or rather, just before Creation). The depth came be a bit hard to grasp, because the beginning of the book is basically retelling Genesis in Tolkien style. The first few hundred pages is a snore if you don't like fantasy, but I swear that as soon as the Elves make it to the domain of the Lords of the West, the whole tale really picks up. It's important to keep in mind that the Elves are immortal, and many of them reoccur in several places later in the book. Keep track of the events, and you'll be sure to pick up everything that happens in the story. There is one thing that I have to remind you of, though: YOU CANNOT SKIP OVER ANYTHING IN THE BOOK! If you do, you'll definately be lost very quickly. If you tried Tolkien over and over again and still don't like it, then I suggest the following authors/books to you as a fantasy fan: Robert Jordan--The Wheel of Time, Melaine Rawn--The Dragon Star & the Dragon Prince, Dennis McKiernan--The Iron Tower Trilogy, George R.R. Martin--A Song of Fire and Ice. Also, pick up any of the older classics, like the story of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Just because you didn't like Tolkien doesn't mean that you have to give up on fantasy all together!
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Summary: A masterpiece
Review: "The Silmarillion" is, in a single word, a masterpiece. J.R.R. Tolkien writes a mythic and epic story in a very poetic form that is polished lovingly until it glistens. Credit should also be given to Christopher Tolkien for his masterful compilation of his father's notes. This book illuminates some of the great mysteries remaining from the "Lord of the Rings", describing the early history of Middle-Earth and the people that lived there from the creation of the world to the end of the Third Age. The poignant thing about this book is the feelings of sadness and regret that permeate the later parts of it, a feeling that the world is in an inescapable state of decline without hope of redemption. This book, far from being a let-down, however, actually uplifts the reader, giving one a feeling of being part of an adventure as old as time. This is an amazing book and a wonderful story, and one that everyone that still believes in a bit of magic should read.
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Summary: A surprisingly easy read
Review: I admit it. I was reluctant to read this book. I thought it would be difficult to read and enjoy (even worse that the first hundred pages of FotR). But it wasn't. It was amazingly smooth and enjoyable reading. Yeah, I wasn't always entirely sure which elf whose name starts with Ea I was reading about, but I still enjoyed it. I could hardly put it down. Not only did it explain a lot about LotR and make my next reading of them deeper, but this mythology was interesting by itself. Although I doubt anyone who hadn't read LotR would be willing to suspend their disbelief enough. One (or two) warnings - this does NOT explain everything. There are big gaps, such as just where Hobbits come from, and who the other Istari are. I don't know if Tolkien ever decided. But then he did have a lot of other things to write about.
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Summary: A jewel of a book
Review: I first read this book in sixth grade. Then, all it did was confuse me. When I had re-read it enough to understand it, I feel in love with it. Tolkien writes so well, I would recommend this book to anyone. The imaginativeness in the book is well-worth the read itself. While I love this book, it is not for one who does not like skipping from story-to-story or the "olden" type of english. The only thing that I don't like about the book is the many names of some of the characters, when there's at least a hundred. (most likely more).
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Summary: Tolkien's greatest work
Review: This tale is by far the best I've ever read. I don't suggest it to any old person, just someone who is a really strong reader, who doesn't mind the way it's built. My favorite part is The Voyage of Earendeail and The War of Wrath, which tells of the breaking of Angband, the scattering of the dark forces, the banishing of Morgoth Bauglir, and the first defeat Sauron was to experience.
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Summary: a good background
Review: but terribly written, most pages require 2 or 3 re-reads...the book is terribly dry, but i think the background was very helpful before reading the hobbit and the lotr trilogy for the first time...still, i wouldnt suggest it, the book is just too difficult to understand.
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