I think we can safely declare that high fantasy is not my thing.

I read all 4,224 pages of the Harry Potter series to the boys, but this was killing me -- all the names, the history, the constant ballads.

After struggling through this book for a month, my children gave me permission to desist. "We can just watch the movies again."

Yes, please! Especially this part:



(which isn't even in the book).

The Fellowship of The Ring (Pretty damn good. I like all the history, it's a fully realized world. Tom Bombadill sucked ass and that part was way too long.) ( )

Now I recall why I have not re-read the LotR in 40 years. It isn't solely the interminable poems and songs. It is the _endless_ trivial details (which direction someone walks, for example) that have no real bearing on the outcome of the plot or the development of the characters. I know this is a beloved classic and all us fantasy fiction fans owe Tolkien a great debt of gratitude. But jeez, a strong editor sure could have tighted this thing up. (Horrible thought: one did so. Tolkien's original was even longer!) ( )

Like with The Hobbit, there's not much I would write here that would be of great value that probably the millions of other readers have said and discussed. However, the story through the mind of a child might offer some insights that would be of value. For 2024, I read the story to my 8-year-old; going about half a chapter at a time. As the reader, Fellowship offered many slow spots that made it, at times, difficult to encourage a sit-down and read time. The Hobbit had been undertaken previously as a backdrop and the only movie watched so far is the Rankin Bass The Hobbit version after reading the book. The following is a review by the 8-year-old with only questions prompted by the father:

The Listener enjoyed the plot as a whole. The story follows the slower passage of time without being too long in between plot points. The details used laid out the world and the length of the description helps add to the sense of time passage for just the right amount of time. The Listener liked how the journey wasn't smooth and it offered a lot of exciting moments between the travel section. Overall, she found the pacing was done well and enjoyed the world-building a lot [a bit too slow and too detailed in the world-building for the reading dad].

The characters were a big hit with Listener's favorite, Gandalf, returning as the mysterious but kind wizard. Sam was also a new favorite as he exhibited a mixture of seriousness and silliness. Frodo was a fine character and some parallels were seen between him and Bilbo but also being his own character worth following. The Listener liked how many fewer characters there were than in The Hobbit as she wasn't able to remember or image all the dwarfs but all the distinct characters. The interactions between the characters were interesting and the connections between characters in different parts of the story made for a more interesting and well-rounded story; also the unrealized backstories yet to be uncovered or fulfilled are exciting to think about what may be coming up.

The best scene for the Listener was Khazad-dûm and the battle with the Balrog [somewhat added to the enjoyment was the Reader really getting into the voices and rising action]; although the final outcome of that plot section was not enjoyed and the loss felt in the story was felt in the Listener. Another favorite scene was Galadriel's mirror scene [again aided by a passionate reading] but on the opposite end, she didn't enjoy Boromir's turn towards the end of the book.

In comparison to The Hobbit, she enjoyed it more than Fellowship as it was self-contained and there was no "cliffhanger" ending. However, she is looking forward to the next book. The Listener gave the score a Final Grade - A- ( )

This is the first book I've read in 2020, the year I have the goal of reading longer books and those that intimidate me. I've read the Hobbit twice, once in fifth grade and then again last year, and I think it's a fun story, but I've never read the Lord of the Rings and haven't read much high fantasy.

I read this front to back, including the foreward and prologue - this made me very concerned that this book would be incredibly dry. It is noted that the trilogy is an attempt at "a really long story that would hold the attention of readers." Thankfully the meat of the story is usually not very dry.

I feel it reads well going into it thinking it will read like a DnD campaign rather than a "typical" novel - there are long journeys, battles, moments of rest, and I can imagine the successes, twists and turns, and failures as being controlled by a roll of the dice. (I'm not sure how typical this is for fantasy.)

There are slow moments, a lot of songs, and a lot of names of places and people, but I really enjoyed the importance of nature and the merging of human-like beings with the natural world.

Maybe it's just my current priorities in life that have colored my reading, but there were strong themes of stewardship of the land and immersion into nature. Nature is neither good nor evil in this text, rather it's shaped by the people around it. When nurtured and tended to such as Tom Bombadil and Galadriel have done, the land is abundant and nuturing back. In other regions, there is no steward for the land, and it is wild and is neither kind nor harsh.

The corrupt and imperialistc forces destory the natural world. Sam has visions of trees being felled in the Shire and smoke pouring out from a new brick building and he wishes to be home to protect it. Sam is also the character who is gifted soil with which he can garden when his journey is over. (And presumably rebuild.)

I wasn't really expecting the strength of this message of the goodness of working with the land to create bounty rather than its neglect and/or exploitation for one's personal power and gain. This message was a nice surprise because it isn't very well conveyed in the movies.

Overall, a different type of reading experience, but I enjoyed it. ( )