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Post by Lady Elwen on Feb 19, 2005 2:14:30 GMT -5
Out of curiosity, what kind of Tolkien reading level are we at? I've been through most of his stuff - LoTR, the Hobbit, the Sil, Unfinished Tales, HOME, the letters, Roverandom, his essay on Beowulf (one ridiculously long essay, too!), and various accounts from other people - a couple from Tom Shippey, and of course the latest Sindarin book from David Salo. (I'm raving about that book right and left.  Way too lazy to italicize book titles properly here, so pardon me... So how far has anyone else read? I think I'm a bit of an extremist, which is why I ask, and I'm curious to see how many people have gone into the histories for LoTR. Random, yes. But it's me.  ~ Elwen |
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Post by Nurnoviel on Feb 21, 2005 3:20:06 GMT -5
I've pretty much only read the main ones. That is, the three books in the trilogy (admittedly, I've read them three or four times, but that's beside the point), the Hobbit, and the Silmarillion. I've always wondered what the Unfinished Tales were about, and the title really turned me off them. I mean, the thought of reading unfinished tales...  |
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Post by Lady Elwen on Feb 21, 2005 14:14:19 GMT -5
I'll put it this way - you're probably normal. And you've beat me - I've read the trilogy twice, simply because I'm reading everything else. There is a downside to that... As for the Unfinished Tales, yeah, the title is kind of wacky, but they're really good. Or, well, I'll put it this way: if you thought the histories of the Sil were interesting, you'd like the UT. Tolkien rewrote parts of the Tale of Turambar and Tuor's coming to Gondolin, as well as various other things - notes on the Istari, the Battle at the Fords of Isen, an early History of Galadriel and Celeborn, the histories of Numenor, what really happened to Isildur when he was killed, and other notes. I personally really liked them - it's kind of annoying in places that you don't figure out what happened, but they're fairly filling. It's a good thing to read if you like those little tidbits of information that most people don't think about. *shrugs* I'd recommend them - a little tougher to read than, say LoTR, but easier than the Sil. Did that make sense? ~ Elwen |
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Elbereth
Ranger
~The light of Il?vatar lives still in her face.~
Posts: 190
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Post by Elbereth on Mar 1, 2005 0:39:22 GMT -5
I've read most of his Middle-Earth stuff; haven't gone outside his writing, or his writing on ME, so I've done LoTR, the Hobbit, Sil, UT, part of HOME, and I think that's it. Still finishing HOME, and I'd like to see that Sindarin book and his letters. And Nurnoviel, the UT are really good - yeah, they're unfinished, but it's such great background story for what they do have! I've read them five times - more than I've read LoTR! - and I think they're awesome! Did that answer the question? ~ Elbereth |
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Post by Varda on Mar 14, 2005 0:54:03 GMT -5
Can I answer this? I've gone up to HOME, going in the same order that Elwen listed, but I really want to see his letters and the Beowulf essay. I love Beowulf - think it's fantastic. And Nurnoviel - you really should read the UT. If you're even slightly interested in what the history of ME was like, that's such a good read! ~ Varda |
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Post by Mithwen Delbaeth on Apr 30, 2005 15:12:09 GMT -5
I have read the books 4 times, I've read the Silmarillion, I am reading HoME, I own the Tolkein's Guide To Middle-Earth and the Unltimate Tolkien companion. I by now know more about LOTR than my dad who has been a fan for over 20 years whereas I've been a fan for 4 years. I have also read part of UT
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Post by Lady Elwen on May 10, 2005 21:47:22 GMT -5
*grins* I'm celebrating now.... It's nice to see members who really know the books and what they're talking about... I can now baffle you with all my random questions.... ~ Elwen |
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Post by Anaroriel on May 11, 2005 17:22:28 GMT -5
Lessee....
I've read the Lord of the Rings (Tolkien hated it when it was called a Trilogy: little random fact, btw), the Sil, The Hobbit, some of the HOME (they're so expensive!), A Gateway to Sindarin (haven't finished yet), erm...
I suppose this doesn't count, but I read a lot of biographies of Tolkien online. And I read lots of Elvish discussions online too. But I tend not to read the latter too much, it makes my head ache to think about all those linguistical stuff for too long. *dizzy*
Some random ones: Tolkien's Ordinary Virtues, the Lord of the Rings and Philosophy. These I recommend actually. The first one is good because it gives a simple and clear overview of the themes throughout the books so you can a step back from the heavy stuff and look at the basics. The Lord of the Rings and Philosophy, on the other hand, is the total opposite. It is sometimes a difficult read, and some of the chapters (each chapter is by a different author, usually a philosophy professor) I think "how in the world did you come up with that conclusion?" but a lot of the chapters are good. For the Arwen lovers, there is one chapter than gives more good debate points that are worth pondering and maybe even using.
And a million fanfics! Woohoo!!! Fanfics rock my socks!!! ;D
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Post by Lady Elwen on May 19, 2005 22:41:06 GMT -5
Hehe... Yay... I can now overwhelm people with random questions. ;D But yeah, the HOME is really expensive - half of them aren't even published in paperback. I had tons of cash for the bookstore at one point, so I went in after Christmas and blew it all on that sort of stuff.  Oh, you've read those two? I've been searching everywhere for those!! I've heard some stuff about them - good and bad - and I really want to see them. Can you give me the authors? ~ Elwen |
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Post by Anaroriel on May 20, 2005 19:32:45 GMT -5
Yay, overwhelming's fun!  Yes, HOME is expensive, and I've only got 6. The first five in paperback and then number 9, Sauron Defeated. My favorite HOME book, btw. So good! It's amazing how much Tolkien changed Frodo's character in the last draft of the Lord of the Rings... Love it, love it, love it. *wishes she had a store of cash to blow like Elwen* *sighs* Fine, make me go take out my Tolkien book stash and look up these things... Tolkien's Ordinary Virtues by Mark Eddy Smith. I actually could not find this in a bookstore and randomly came upon it in the Church's bookstore. So, I suggest you go to a free thinking Christian bookstore (not one who's too conservative because some churches are terrified of magic) and hopefully you'll find. The Lord of the Rings and Philosophy Edited by Gregory Bassham and Eric Bronson. Regular bookstore you should be able to find this. |
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Post by Lady Elwen on May 31, 2005 12:21:53 GMT -5
Yay!! Thanks!! God, but my book list keeps getting longer.... Gah!!  And yeah, it's really amazing to see the changes that the story underwent over the course of its writing. I suppose its like any writing process (see my thread under the "Pen in Hand" thing...  ), but it's still really odd. Interesting, but odd. Very odd. And I will stop saying it's odd now. ;D I won't spoil the changes for people (I may start a HOME spoiler thread... ) but I'll suffice it to say that it's so different - it's like reading two different stories in their entirety. ~ Elwen |
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Post by Anaroriel on Jun 5, 2005 21:11:50 GMT -5
Woohoo! HoME spoiler thread! Yay! I agree about the changes, they are really fun to read! The first two books are kind of random though. The House of Lost Play, wasn't it? *shrug* Interesting read, nonetheless.
Anyone else have some good ones? I considered getting those "Introductions to Middle Earth" kind of books, you know, with the pictures and descriptions of Elves and other creatures, but I held back. Anyone read those?
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Post by Lady Elwen on Jun 6, 2005 0:10:44 GMT -5
*grins* Is that saying you want one? I'll get around to it tomorrow and start adding in new boards for stuff... But yeah, the House of Lost Play... Some of it really didn't seem to have any pertinence to ME at all, and yet, at the same time, seem very tied into it, which probably didn't make sense at all. Took me a while to figure out the significance of the House and its location, too. And no, I haven't read those; never really had any motive to. Nor have I done those "before/after Tolkien" things - like the ones on the creation of myth, etc. I've always sort of turned away from those, even though I'll read almost anything ever written by or about him, save the movie guides, so yeah..... ~ Elwen |
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Post by Anaroriel on Jun 6, 2005 16:30:07 GMT -5
I would like one, but I have a feeling it would just be me and you talking about it. *shrug* I haven't read movie guides either. I mean, they explain the world to me, and I already know all of that! Lots of pretty pictures though (ok, ok, I skimmed through it at a bookstore, but I don't consider that reading). Still don't get the House of Lost Play. Oh well. |
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Post by Lady Elwen on Jun 15, 2005 17:34:42 GMT -5
Haha good point... Exactly - I always feel weird picking one up, so I just don't bother, and instead go and raid the Tolkien section to see if I can find anything that I haven't already read... The House of Lost Play... I think it was meant to symbolize something of what Rivendell later became - a place for lore and refuge. If I remember correctly, it also lay between Valinor and Middle-Earth, sort of the halfway point for both sides. It was a bit confusing, but then there was the stuff on where mortals attend to after death, etc. so there you go... Did any of that make sense? ~ Elwen |
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Way too lazy to italicize book titles properly here, so pardon me...
), but it's still really odd. Interesting, but odd. Very odd. And I will stop saying it's odd now. ;D