Author: J.R.R. Tolkien
Rating: A+
Format Read: Kindle
Genre: Fantasy
Keywords: Doom, Good vs Evil, Companionship
Kid Appropriate: Yes, older
Review:
So this is actually my third time reading this book. 2020 has been a massive rereading year for me as I have found myself gravitating away from new releases and more towards my old favorites. This means that I have read a lot of Sarah J. Maas, J. K. Rowling, and now Tolkien.
The first time I read The Fellowship of the Ring was in high school. My edition was a mass market paperback I picked up after having been gifted The Hobbit and devouring it. When in graduate school I downloaded the audiobook version narrated by Rob Inglis and absolutely loved it. His low gravely voice still reminds me of being a kid and sitting down while your grandparents tell you a story. If you want to check out my review from 2017 of listening to The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring audiobooks you can check that out here.
I absolutely loved the series the first two times that I read it. The world, the creatures, the adventure. It was all perfect and what I was looking for as a kid that could not get enough of the fantasy genre and as a grad student looking to read about anything but international relations theories. This story is a great escape full of friendship, duty, fantastic worlds, and a journey of good defeating evil.
In my third go around, I tried yet another medium of consuming Tolkien's work. While experiencing a massive reading slump I began flipping through my shelves on my Kindle Paperwhite. There were plenty of new books, mostly a random collection gathered through sales or free classics. Then my eye caught on the single volume The Lord of the Rings that I had gotten when its normal $16.99 price had dropped to $4.99. The huge page count of 1,209 pages had me apprehensive to pick up this book. I was already in a slump. Such a big commitment would surely drag me down further? Nope. The second we get to Bilbo's birthday party I am hooked.
I carried my blue Kindle around with me absolutely everywhere. Every lunch break at work I had my eyes glued to the page. Every car ride to the grocery store I was curled up in the passenger seat reading away. Every night, like a little kid, I was reading by the faint glow of my screen. Magically, Gandalf and the fellowship had banished my reading slump and I was excited to pick up books again.
Since my 2017 rereading I have rewatched the movies several times and I always seem to forget how much more bearable Frodo is in the books that he was in the movies. He seems more like a genuine character in the books that you care about at least a smidgeon. This isn't even mentioning all of the wonderful differences and details that the book offers.
If you have not read the trilogy and want to avoid spoilers, skip this paragraph! Some of my favorite details that I had forgotten since rereading (and I will admit my 2017 reread was a bit of a distracted one) were Tom Bombadil and his wife Goldberry after he saves the hobbits from Old Man Willow. Their home and that part of the journey with the ring have always been a favorite setting for me in Middle-Earth. Another, is that Pippin and Merry did not just stumble upon the journey with Frodo and Sam. They willingly chose to go and planned it out in advance with the help of Fatty Bolger, a hobbit definitely not in the movies. He and much more of the shire is explored in the book. One exception of a character hardly being in the books but is present in the movie is the elf Arwen. Her grandmother Galadriel is much more heavily featured. Final detail that I had totally forgotten: Gandalf says "You cannot pass", not "You shall not pass". I had to rereard that line twice.
Rereading this at 25 versus when I first read this as a 15 year old, I was actually able to enjoy and absorb more of the story. I found that I was better able to follow what I have heard many describe as the "rambling" descriptions of scenery and lore that Tolkien tends to go on. The history and characters more easily stuck in my mind and I was definitely less confused this go around. This is a common theme I've noticed this year as a former hater of rereading. The stories that I loved so much the first time around have even more to offer when revisitied.
Whether you're in a slump, or maybe going through a hard time in general, I really recommend checking out that old favorite book you haven't picked up in a while. I was downright giddy to reexplore the journey of the ring with the fellowship and am now happily diving into The Two Towers. Happy reading!
If you have not read the trilogy and want to avoid spoilers, skip this paragraph! Some of my favorite details that I had forgotten since rereading (and I will admit my 2017 reread was a bit of a distracted one) were Tom Bombadil and his wife Goldberry after he saves the hobbits from Old Man Willow. Their home and that part of the journey with the ring have always been a favorite setting for me in Middle-Earth. Another, is that Pippin and Merry did not just stumble upon the journey with Frodo and Sam. They willingly chose to go and planned it out in advance with the help of Fatty Bolger, a hobbit definitely not in the movies. He and much more of the shire is explored in the book. One exception of a character hardly being in the books but is present in the movie is the elf Arwen. Her grandmother Galadriel is much more heavily featured. Final detail that I had totally forgotten: Gandalf says "You cannot pass", not "You shall not pass". I had to rereard that line twice.
Rereading this at 25 versus when I first read this as a 15 year old, I was actually able to enjoy and absorb more of the story. I found that I was better able to follow what I have heard many describe as the "rambling" descriptions of scenery and lore that Tolkien tends to go on. The history and characters more easily stuck in my mind and I was definitely less confused this go around. This is a common theme I've noticed this year as a former hater of rereading. The stories that I loved so much the first time around have even more to offer when revisitied.
Whether you're in a slump, or maybe going through a hard time in general, I really recommend checking out that old favorite book you haven't picked up in a while. I was downright giddy to reexplore the journey of the ring with the fellowship and am now happily diving into The Two Towers. Happy reading!
No comments:
Post a Comment