Rating: 
Summary: Arguably Tolkien's best book
Review: I tried twice before to read this book but, for some idiotic reason, never got through to the end. What could I have been possibly been thinking? Anyway, many years later, after the cobwebs have (apparently) been cleared out of my mind, I can finally appreciate it for the awesome epic it is.This is the history of Middle Earth. That, to my mind, is basically what separates Tolkien's fantasy from most of what came after. Tolkien took great pains to build his world from the ground up and the Silmarillion is the most refined example of those labors. It exists primarily for the purpose of making the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings that much more rich and believable a world (Tolkien wasn't convinced it would make good reading for the book-buying public and wasn't all that eager about seeing it published; it was published posthumously). However, the tumultous battles and conflicts contained in this book are such that they make those in the Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings seem rather like mere skirmishes. It relates no less than the creation of the world and the god-like beings set to watch over it; and of the original Dark Lord, a scarier figure than Sauron, who was merely his servant. Those who point out the scarcity of women characters in LotR, can raise no such point here. Women are given meatier roles in The Silmarillion and practically every named woman is regarded almost as a goddess (even when they aren't). Women are also allotted the best names. While the male characters sometimes have these sort of weird, clunky names like Maglor, Turgon and Huor, the females have such great names as Galadriel, Luthien Tinuviel and Melian. It's obvious that Tolkien held women in great reverence. The most remarkable thing about all this is that Tolkien succinctly packages this grand epic legend in less than 400 pages (and this includes a summary of LotR); yet one can still relate to the characters and appreciate the scope of it all.
Rating:
Summary: Very difficult read... but you can do it!
Review: Ouch! I had to restart this book about 4 times before I actually built up enough momentum to finish. The first page can be very daunting indeed, as you are suddenly thrust into a complete world and its associated but not always explained mythology. It is, however, an excellent read, and really lets you understand the Lord of the Rings better.
Rating:
Summary: one of the best ever
Review: This was, simply put, a great suprise. One of my friends who read it said it was good, but a difficult read. Now that i read it i can say it is more than i anticipated and an excellent piece of storytelling. It can only be described as majestic, enchanting, and of course adventurous. Sure you have to refer to the index of people/places a few times in each chapter, but, in the end, it is extremely rewarding. I am somewhat new to fantasy, but have enjoyed scifi adventures for awhile. After reading lord of the rings, the hobbit, and this, i'm hooked. Silmarillion explains the history of the lord of the rings characters and middle-earth itself in a grand scale. I particularly liked the way tolkien gets you really interested in these characters in so small amount of space for each one. Their emotions and inner conflicts, such as extreme sadness, bitterness, and pride, are clearly interpreted. It is difficult to name my favorite characters and stories, but those of beren and luthien, turin turambar, tuor are the essence of what a perfect fairytale would be. The conflict of feanor and the valar, the wars, man's role, melkor's fall and sauron's rise, and the story of the rings are all captivating. However, i do agree that it is probably wise to read lord of the rings and hobbit first. To sum, i would say this mythology is maybe the most interesting story i've read (this or lotr) and would highly recommend the Silmarillion to anyone.
Rating: 
Summary: Maybe my brain just isn't cut out for this book..
Review: Okay, I will admit that I'm only about halfway thru this book, after having read The Hobbit and all 3 LOTR books. Honestly, to me there are too many names, and too many that are too similar. I can't keep straight in my head who is who, who is son of who, who's a Man, who's an Elf, where this place or that place is... I am just confused. I finally got thru the first beginning part where everything and everyone is named and now that there's an actual story happening, I can't follow it- who's that again? Where is that place he's going? And trying to look for the places on the map is a joke- some are written so small you almost don't see them, and then some places have like 3 names each! The people have 3 or 4 names each! How am I supposed to keep track of all this? I am glad that there is an Index of names in the back of the book, but I just don't check it often enough....
Just one example of my confusion, the "H" people: Haladin, Haldad, Haldan, Haldar, Haldir, Haleth, Handir, Hareth, Hathaldir, Hathol, Hildor, Himlad, Hithlum, Hurin.... Some of these are places, some are singular people, some are different groups of people...
I'm sorry, but this book is confusing me more than anything.
Rating: 
Summary: A must for any LOTR fan
Review: Even though The Silmarillion was published post humously, it was, for the most part, written before the LOTR. It is compiled from JRR's notes and writings on the history of Middle Earth, and just explains so much that went on, leading up to the events of the Third Age that we know so well. Especially interesting, if you ever wanted to know more about the history of the Elves, of Sauron and Morgoth, and of what origin Gandalf is. To me, this book should be read by every person who reads LOTR, as it is a companion. I had to go back to re-read the trilogy again, right after finishing The Silmarillion. And you'll also be happy to know, it's written in the same completely absorbing manner that Tolkein wrote LOTR in.
Rating:
Summary: The Silmarillion, what more could be said?
Review: A long time ago in a mystical land far away Iluvatar created 14 valar,those with power. Iluvatar also created his children Elves, immortal, and Men, doomed to die. Of the first the greatest story of Middle-Earth. The Silmarillion is a book filled with adventures of Elves, Men, and Dwarves. A reason this book is so good is because of it's ability to take the reader to a mystical land filled with orcs, dragons, and elves. This book is highly recommended. It is wonderful reading of the early years of Middle-Earth.
Rating:
Summary: Superb reading of Tolkien's epic storyline.
Review: NOTE: The below pertains to the audio (CD) set, not the book per se; Amazon seems to have misplaced this review. Martin Shaw is to be commended for his magnificent reading of J. R. R. Tolkien's "The Silmarillion," the epic saga of the Eldar days of the world that became the setting for the better-known Lord of the Rings. He brings a gravity and seriousness that is perfectly in flavor with these sagas of cosmic import (nothing less than the entire creation of the Universe is represented here, after all). And never once does he stumble or feel uncomfortable with all the different languages (primarily Elvish) and names that Tolkien so liberally doles out. These stories -- narratives, not a novelization like LOTR -- have tremendous scope and power and beauty. They make the Rings books seem almost confined and diminished (as Tolkien indeed made the world out to be by the Third Age), such is their scale and vastness. Many stories only alluded to in the Rings are here told in full, and the context in which the Rings of Power came to arise, the fall of the Elves and of Numenor, and the rise of Sauron (himself only a diminished version of the truly awe-inspiring Morgoth) is gloriously spread before the enchanted reader (or listener, in this case). Centuries ago, tales such as these would have circulated orally, so this set makes a splendid addition to your fireside gatherings, say, or to relieve the tedium of long traffic commutes. Read the book, by all means, but don't overlook this gem of an audio set!
Rating:
Summary: Not a story, but a Glossary.
Review: The Silmarillion rates 2 stars in either case. As a story it is nearly devoid of any readable pace, it does not flow like the other Tolkien works. It reads mostly as a genealogical - geographical & etymologic survey with all the excitment such a hybrid is likely
to have. If this work was set up like the appendixes of The Return of The King it would be far more interesting and useful, but as it stands it is just an overwhelming assault of information that no one can hope to digest without multiple re-readings of each passage. Here's an example of what I mean: Imagine that the first paragraph of The Hobbit was written in the same way as the Silmarillion:(Elvish names made up for illustrative purposes)
In a hole in the ground, in the land of the Shire, known to the Noldor as Ulma, and to the Grey Elves as Shuma after the star of the North named Shumallil or "Lives in Holes" in their tongue after the ways of their kin, there lived a Hobbit, which were also known as the Pereniath by the Elves and Fuztpah by the Dwarves who in turn were known as Gulliamari by the Green Elves who were led by Luthior son of Luthio and brother to Luthi and father to Luthiori the tall, Luthirio the Grim and Luthiorio the Slender, etc etc etc You get the idea...The ENTIRE book is like this, and needless to say it's very wearisome to read. Call me a heretic, but I'm sure that Tolkien himself wouldn't realease this book as we have it now.
Rating:
Summary: ONLY FOR THE SERIOUS
Review: If you have read The Lord of the Rings and you want to understand the "History" behind it, this is for you. It is not a novel and you should regard it as a reference work. It is like a "parallel Bible" of Middle Earth. If you have a hard time with Tolkien because all of this was "in his head" as one reviewer said, then you clearly don't get it and you shouldn't waste your time. If you understand that this is the real stuff of Myth than you will love it. Some people can't get through the first few pages of "The Lord of the Rings" Me? I have read it, the Hobbit, the Silmarillion, the Lost tales, the Unfinished Tales.....yadda yadda. I even read "Bored of the Rings". If you can relate, buy this book.
Rating:
Summary: Sublime modern literature
Review: I have read that Tolkien considered The Silmarillion his most important work. I agree with that. Upon reading The Silmarillion, my experience with Tolkien's other popular works - The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogy - has been GREATLY enhanced. Be aware that The Silmarillion is not a novel and it is a difficult read - its implementation is nothing like that of The Hobbitt or The Lord of the Rings trilogy. It is a difficult read only because it is such a complete mythology and reading it is like reading the Bible - you must struggle through the "begats", wishing they would quickly come to an end. If you push through such (necessary) sections, however, you will find many sections that will absolutely thrill you or bring you to tears and have you wishing you would never reach the end. I cannot imagine an emotion that I did not experience while reading this work. It is truly one of the most sublime works of literature that I have ever encountered. Whether you are interested in Tolkien's other works or not, I highly recommend that you read the Silmarillion.
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