I recently finished J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring, his first volume in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. As many know, this is his three-part epic inspired by ancient Norse culture, the seed of all modern fantasy, and a very popular movie series, now.
A few years ago, I had started this book, but never finished. About three days ago, however, I finally did, and this is my conclusion: wonderful.
Tolkien writes very well. His balance between dialogue and description is very good, and the story is phenomenal. At some points, I was a bit confused about what was happening, but I blame that on watching the movies first.
Reading the book really helped me to appreciate the characters better. Some say that Merry and Pippin are hard to tell apart in the books, at least until later on, but partly from seeing the movie first, their differences seemed evident far earlier.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes fantasy and good writing. The Lord of the Rings, I think, is the seed from which modern fantasy has sprung.
Before Tolkien, elves were thought of generally as being tricksy thieves with pointed ears, small in size and not particularly ‘cool’. Now, elves, tall woodland folk, often skilled in archery, have become a staple to the fantasy world.
I still have two more books to read, but generally, I really like them, and encourage you to try them, if you have not already.
My Favorites:
- Character:
- Aragorn, “Strider” (and other aliases)
- Passage:
- “‘And it is not our part here to take though only for a season, for a few lives of Men, or for a passing age of the world. We should seek a final end of this menace, even if we do not hope to make one.’”
-J. R. R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring, Gandalf
(Sorry I haven’t posted in a while, I just had by wisdom teeth removed.)
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