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Just finished reading the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Last time I read it was as a teenager over 20 years ago. It’s fun having memories come up from that time, and when reading certain parts of the books it really feels like revisiting a place I once traveled to.
What strikes me most about the books now is how comforting and warm they are. It made me think about what Edith Hamilton wrote in an introduction to an anthology of Plutarch: that some authors live on in part because of their great love of mankind. She said there are authors who we respect for their craft, but a hard to love because they did not have much love towards humanity (examples might be Hemmingway or Flaubert). But of the authors who are loved she gave the examples of Dickens and Shakespeare, Plato and Plutarch. I would add J.R.R Tolkien to this latter group.
If I had to pick a word to describe the books, I think the first word of the first title is best: “fellowship”. Amidst the many wonders and horrors of the journey, what always anchors the tale is the deep affection and comradery that ties the many characters together. You can just feel Tolkien’s love of good company, storytelling and nature brimming out of him in his writing. As impressive as all the lore and world building is, I think it is this love that will continue to make fans of the series for as long as there are people to read it.
Music
+ Show Spoiler +How about some reggae today
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I listened to the audio books last year, fantastic time  As you say about the relationship between characters, some of my favourite parts of the series are the interactions between Gimli and Galadriel (and his near obsession afterwards) and between Theoden and Merry.
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On March 23 2022 06:00 emperorchampion wrote:I listened to the audio books last year, fantastic time As you say about the relationship between characters, some of my favourite parts of the series are the interactions between Gimli and Galadriel (and his near obsession afterwards) and between Theoden and Merry.
Oh yeah Gimli's obsession was so funny... ready to fight with anyone lol. Maybe I'll try audio book for the next read... must be totally different to hear all the voices acted out.
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I’m in a kind of similar situation, having read them as a teenager maybe 15 years ago. I remember, back then I was too impatient to read everything up to the cool stuff I knew from the movie, so I ended up skipping some sections.
Now, I really look forward to read it again, but there are several books on my reading list before that. Let’s see if this time around, I’ll have a different appreciation for the beautiful world Tolkien has created.
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United States1906 Posts
On March 23 2022 13:09 Starlightsun wrote:Show nested quote +On March 23 2022 06:00 emperorchampion wrote:I listened to the audio books last year, fantastic time As you say about the relationship between characters, some of my favourite parts of the series are the interactions between Gimli and Galadriel (and his near obsession afterwards) and between Theoden and Merry. Oh yeah Gimli's obsession was so funny... ready to fight with anyone lol. Maybe I'll try audio book for the next read... must be totally different to hear all the voices acted out.
I highly recommend audio books. I have listened to a bunch of warhammer 40k/horus heresy books and the emotion of the voice actor takes the novels to an entirely different level.
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United States24750 Posts
I saw the movies before reading the books. What I found most interesting was seeing what did and didn't get adapted into the movie. I don't really feel like I disagreed with the decisions overall, though.
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On March 24 2022 11:43 micronesia wrote:
I saw the movies before reading the books. What I found most interesting was seeing what did and didn't get adapted into the movie. I don't really feel like I disagreed with the decisions overall, though.
Yeah from what I remember they did a really good job. Time to rewatch the movies again too now. The one thing that bothered me when reading the books now is that I picture the actors as the characters instead of getting to imagine them.
On March 23 2022 22:18 Mizenhauer wrote:Show nested quote +On March 23 2022 13:09 Starlightsun wrote:On March 23 2022 06:00 emperorchampion wrote:I listened to the audio books last year, fantastic time As you say about the relationship between characters, some of my favourite parts of the series are the interactions between Gimli and Galadriel (and his near obsession afterwards) and between Theoden and Merry. Oh yeah Gimli's obsession was so funny... ready to fight with anyone lol. Maybe I'll try audio book for the next read... must be totally different to hear all the voices acted out. I highly recommend audio books. I have listened to a bunch of warhammer 40k/horus heresy books and the emotion of the voice actor takes the novels to an entirely different level.
Definitely will try it out. I haven't ever listened to an audiobook so it should be a fun experience.
On March 23 2022 21:14 smille wrote:
I’m in a kind of similar situation, having read them as a teenager maybe 15 years ago. I remember, back then I was too impatient to read everything up to the cool stuff I knew from the movie, so I ended up skipping some sections.
Now, I really look forward to read it again, but there are several books on my reading list before that. Let’s see if this time around, I’ll have a different appreciation for the beautiful world Tolkien has created.
Honestly some sections I wanted to skip. Had a hard time imagining some of the long travel descriptions (like they went east on this road, this river was on north). But yeah it is a very a beautiful world... nice to visit places like Rivendell and The Shire during these unsettled times in our own world.
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Not to derail this too much but The Dresden Files read by James Marsters are an amazing series of audio books. His delivery perfectly matches the tone of the books.
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On March 24 2022 17:29 LuckyOwls wrote:
Not to derail this too much but The Dresden Files read by James Marsters are an amazing series of audio books. His delivery perfectly matches the tone of the books.
Thanks for the recommendation. I read the first book of that series long time ago and remember enjoying it.
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I could never get get through the first book, not because it wasn't good. But due to the constant singing of the hobbits every other page. I'd imagine The Hobbit to be worse.
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On March 29 2022 02:04 {CC}StealthBlue wrote:
I could never get get through the first book, not because it wasn't good. But due to the constant singing of the hobbits every other page. I'd imagine The Hobbit to be worse.
There's way less singing in the 2nd and 3rd books. Nothing wrong with skipping over the poetry sections though.
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On March 29 2022 02:04 {CC}StealthBlue wrote:
I could never get get through the first book, not because it wasn't good. But due to the constant singing of the hobbits every other page. I'd imagine The Hobbit to be worse.
I think the audiobooks really shine here. My partner didn't like the song parts too much, but I thought they were awesome. The tom bombadil songs slap.
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Some of the "sound effects" are incredibly difficult to listen in audiobooks, whether its singing, gunfire, trumpets or anything made by the reader. In some versions you can get real recorded raindrops, wind, fire, songs etc on the background which works WAY better, as long as it isn't too loud. A great fantasy example is "Stormlight archives", I believe it was audibles version with background sound effects that are amazing unless its storming (the storm is too damn loud and hurts the ears).
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I've never been able to read these books despite owning them for over 20 years.
I love absolutely ADORE the Peter Jackson movies. But for some reason I've just never been able to read the books. Every time they start singing and dancing i just put it down.
I've read the Hobbit, it's one of my favorite books of all time. But I can't read the Lord of the Rings. Something changed in JRR Tolkein's writing style that made him considerably harder to read between those two series.
Don't want to seem like I'm disrespecting the legacy that is LOTR. I'm forever a fan of the movies, and forever a student of the legacy it left on fantasy writing. I just have never been able to read the actual source material myself.
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LOTR is a story about walking around in different landscapes so its understandably "hard" read. Plenty of people call it boring for its writing style. But if you bother to read the books its a wholesome experience and 4/5 worth it. Just don't hold your breath for the action scenes or plot twists, its not about them.
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On April 14 2022 16:52 Vindicare605 wrote:
I've never been able to read these books despite owning them for over 20 years.
I love absolutely ADORE the Peter Jackson movies. But for some reason I've just never been able to read the books. Every time they start singing and dancing i just put it down.
I've read the Hobbit, it's one of my favorite books of all time. But I can't read the Lord of the Rings. Something changed in JRR Tolkein's writing style that made him considerably harder to read between those two series.
Don't want to seem like I'm disrespecting the legacy that is LOTR. I'm forever a fan of the movies, and forever a student of the legacy it left on fantasy writing. I just have never been able to read the actual source material myself.
Funny I'm the reverse... started the Hobbit several times but never could get into it.
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Thanks for the best recommendation. I will read all the books of that series.
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This book is amazing. Must say that it's one of my favorite books (I've read a lot of them). I'm studying at the journalism faculty, and reading helps me a lot to develop my skills. I'm also working at this source where students ask for help with their writing tasks. There are a lot of life lessons in this book. That's why I love it so much. It's not my fav genre, but it's still on the top.
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