Lord Of The Rings - Review (Does It Hold Up?) 

One thing Tolkien does that the movies don't do, and that other books don't do, is give you a feel for how long everything takes. It's NOT constant action or constant tension. The characters spend a long time journeying, and a long time resting during their travels, and Tolkien tries and IMHO mostly succeeds at letting the readers FEEL the length of the journey without boring them. I really love and appreciate this, but not everybody does.

When someone says they skip the poems it breaks my heart a little bit

People: LOTR is so difficult to read. Silmarillion: Oh you silly human. You know nothing.

One of the things I like about Tolkien's world building is that he leaves some things deliberately ambiguous. Not even functionally immortal beings like Gandalf are 100% certain what Tom Bombadil's deal is.

Back in the early 90s, as a 12 year old, I was looking for something new to read on a vacation to the Canary Islands so I packed my mother’s 70s paperback copy of Lord of the rings and got about 80% into it when realising: hey, they are never going to be able to get to Mount Doom by the end of this book, what is going on? So that’s how I found out that there were two more books, that I of course had not brought with me. So that vacation took a sour turn when I had to wait two weeks to get the next books and find out how it would end. Such a harrowing experience that I hope never happens to anyone else ever...

Someone who lived through the horror of two world wars might not be as enamored of detailed battle scenes described clinically. Just sayin.

I can't imagine reading this book and not reveling in his language. He was such a master of words. This book contains what is, in my opinion, the most beautiful sentence ever written in English: "Not idly do the leaves of Lorien fall." Read that sentence aloud and listen to how perfectly it captures the image it's evoking - you can _feel_ the motion of the leaves. It's in those repeating "l" sounds, and in the way the accented syllables fall in a precise rhythm: "Not IDly do the LEAVES of LOrien FALL". On each of those accents, the leaf swings through the air, slowly settling to the ground on the last one. It's a glorious work of wordcraft, that's just ONE SENTENCE in the entire book!

As a native italian who read the Lord of The Rings in italian at 12 and read it in English at 16, I really can't understand how native English speakers can find it hard to read. The writing is just SO good it's like music

As a high school student who’s native language isn’t english and just studies it in school, I gotta say, I do think lotr is much easier to understand than modern english literature.

I think the big factor to consider with LOTR is, its supposed to be an Epic. It's supposed to be modern English Myths, like Beowulf or the Odyssey or the Aeneid were myths in the past. It's why I'd actually be open to an animated adaptation that builds on this idea. Live-action Theoden shattering a horn with his breath would be ridiculous, but in an exaggerated animated style, it might work.

I must say, one of the best, strangest party experiences I've had, was when we, the last three people awake, started taking turns reading the lord of the rings to each other. I remember this night so vividly, because it felt so dreamlike.

The stoicism is kinda a highlight for me. These characters are almost purely heroes even if they just come from the Shire. It’s the purity and stoicism that shows us what we should be rather than what we deal with.

Something worth remembering; Tolkien experienced COMBAT. When he writes (or doesn't) about "the shit"... he knew it, he saw it, he smelt it. So had much of his audience as both World Wars were fresh. I learned post Marine Corps that conversations and portrayals regarding battlefield experiences can be difficult. Not even because of PTSD or emotional issues, but more because certain presuppositions and foundational experiences are often missing in the audience. A good communicator can overcome these issues, no doubt. But they are issues. Stellar review BTW. It's definitely getting a share on FB.

I read all these book when I was 8 and was just hooked on the world and couldn’t read anything else for years. Years later, revisiting them... they’re even better.

I low-key love books that describe food and drinks. I love the descriptions of smells, touch and texture. The way light will filter through trees etc, what the weather is like. I’m a bit weird like that I guess.

Beregond didn't make it into the movies, he was my favorite Character! Abandoned his post as Guard of the Citadel of Gondor when he heard Denethor was going to immolate himself and Faramir. Slew another guard to get into the building, killed two servants about to set the pyre aflame, and held the rest of the servants back until Gandalf arrived. He then blocked Denethor from stabbing Faramir, renounced his service to Denethor, and carried Faramir to the House of Healing where he stood by Faramir's side until he recovered. When Aragorn became king, he punished Beregond to exile from Mina's Tirith, never to step foot in the city again. But, Aragorn rewarded him for his faithfulness to Faramir by promoting him to Captain of Faramir's Guard.

I was helped tremendously by the fact that when I was in maybe 1st grade or kindergarten, my mom had read a chapter of The Hobbit to me every night before bed. This, coupled with me viewing the Fellowship of the Ring at the impressionable age of 7, left me very excited for reading LOTR. I can’t say this enough - when your first foray into reading seriously is LOTR at age 10 or 11, Tolkien is just magic. Still one of my top three faves in the genre.

I've never actually read it all the way through. The one time I tried reading it in high school and was really into it...the binding failed and the book fell apart. It was a library book. I freaked out, returned it, and never picked it back up. BUT! I just got a box set and am excited to give it another try.

"if you find this too difficult to read, that's your problem" omg yes

English isn't my native language and I love the writing style of Tolkien. His books are actually the only ones I read out loud, because, I don't know it just feels right like this.

A major reason for little non-movie inspired art is that Peter Jackson utilised the most prolific LOTR artists to help envisage the movies. So even the previous non-movie related art is still movie related through these artists and the small LOTR illustrating community.

I think when one sees the movies before reading the books there is a tendency to regard Aragorn as the hero you are following. Then one gets to the book and maybe there is a moment when we get like "this guy has no doubts, this isn't relatable"... But I don't think that was the point of Aragorn at all. For me, like Gandalf, Aragorn is larger than life, he is no ordinary man. I felt it was Frodo and Sam we were supposed to relate to, they are more human even without literally being human xD Actually one of my favorite things about LOTR is the writing style. Tolkien can write magnificence in a way that I have never seen before or since... Some scenes he writes in such a grand epic style that I don't even know how he can get away with it, but he certainly can. This is possibly my favorite book and during my fist readthrough I would often tear up not because what was going down was sad but because it was so majestic and beautiful (moments like the march of the ents, or the charge of the Rohirrim to aid Minas Tirith)

This is from the perspective of an old guy of 71 who read the books in 1970 and DMed D&D since before the first edition book came out. Daniel, you have done a great job on your video. I have read LOTR over a dozen times and was introduced to it by my father who generally read political and non-fiction books. We, mostly hippies, loved the books for the ideals that Tolkien presented, essentially that good will triumph over evil. That was something we believed in very much in protesting the war, advancing civil and women's rights, protecting the environment, and simply believing in goodness. We even had college courses in Tolkien. Enter D&D. When we first started playing this new type of game, we aspired to be heroes like Gandalf, Aragorn, or even jolly Hobbits who would show our companionship and worth by battling evil. As time went by, I would always have younger players join the game and I noticed a trend through the years. More people wanted to play evil or more complicated characters and rarely wanted to play the virtuous Paladin. The same thing happened in movies and books. No longer could a Tom Bombadil be appreciated. Times change, and literature both changes peoples attitudes and is changed by those attitudes. We should be pleased that many people are still interested in reading. We can always hope that some will recognize the value of a writer like Tolkien just as some realize that the best music ever was during the late sixyies and early seventies.

Oddly enough, I find the modern style of incredibly fast storytelling ruins the pacing of genuinely promising works. The world never breathes or develops. Characters are in such a rush to get to the next plot point, they start to feel like toys pushed along by an unseen overseer instead of convincing persons in their own right. It's like a rollercoaster you forget about once you're off. I rarely feel as invested as I want to be because there's just not enough context to fully immerse myself and become lost in the story. I think modern writers and readers alike have gravely misunderstood how slowing down your pacing can create such gratifying works.

I have Asperger's and I love, how the characters are written. I don't understand detailed emotions as well as other people, so the characters in Tolkien's works are much more relatable to me.

To those who think the poetry is boring: There’s literally a parody of “hey diddle diddle, the cow jumped over the moon” in LOTR that, when you realize what is going on, is one of the funniest things I have read in a book. Read the poetry. It’s hilarious sometimes, and awe-inspiring others. Sam’s song about Gandalf’s fireworks, the Oliphaunts, etc. It’s comedic genius. (Also read Farmer Giles of Ham. It’s a riot. Tolkien had a sense of humor that’s even funnier because he’s Tolkien and supposed to be serious.)

This book series is the only one I reread every year. There are other series that I love and reread, but none have influenced me like LOTR and the Silmarillion. Be warned, Book Spoilers Ahead.... Here are the things I love about the series that make it stand out above and beyond what Daniel has offered up: 1. The protagonist does not win at the climax of the story. When pressed by the Ring in the place of its creation at the Sammath Naur, where its power and presence are most intense, Frodo gives in and claims the Ring as his own. In this place Children of Eru can resist the power of the One Ring, not Elrond, not Isildur, and not even a kind hearted hobbit from the Shire. Instead, depending on how you read it, either a curse from Frodo and a vow made on that most trixy of Rings forces Gollum off the edge of the cliff or, Eru Iluvatar (God) gives him a push to honor Frodo's Herculean effort along with all of the heroes who resisted the Ring when it was within their grasp. 2. Frodo's hero moment comes in the middle of the story. It is in this moment that the Lord of the Rings is doomed though no one knows it at the time. "It seemed to Frodo then that he heard quite plainly but from far off, voices out of the past. What a pity Bilbo did not stab the vile creature when he had a chance! Pity? It was pity that stayed his hand. Pity and Mercy: not to strike without need. I do not feel any pity for Gollum. He deserves death. Deserves death! I daresay he does. Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give that to them? Then be not too eager to deal out death in the name of justice, fearing for your own safety. Even the wise cannot see all ends. 'Very well,' he answered aloud, lowering his sword. 'But still I am afraid. And yet, as you see I will not touch the creature. For now that I see him, I do pity him.' It is pity and mercy that win the day in the end not overwhelming magic or superior swordsmanship. Those are the province of Sauron the Dark Lord. If there is to be an overwhelming military victory in the story, only Sauron can achieve it. While Sauron has a answer for every spell and any military strategy, what he has no counter for is grace, mercy, and kindness. And, in the end, these are the very things that bring about Sauron's downfall. 3. The main antagonist accompanies the Fellowship on their quest. Although he does not make an appearance in bodily form, Sauron is ever present. The spirit of Sauron, bound within the Ring betrays Frodo to the Witch King on Weathertop, he also twists the mind of the noble Boromir into trying to take the One Ring from Frodo near the Anduin. Sauron is constantly at Frodo's throat, weighing him down and wearing down his will. Instead of being nonexistent in the tale as some claim, I would posit that he is ever present and must be battled constantly.

reviewers always SAY Aragorn "isn't relatable" and "too stoic" but I've never met an actual human who wanted Aragorn to be more of a whiner.

I so appreciate everything you're saying here-I understand that it's not for everyone, and I am *maybe* (definitely) a little biased since it is easily one of my all time favorites, but it makes me crazy that people won't give this story a try because of a myriad of what I believe to be narrow-minded reasons (the "old language," how it's not complex or gritty enough in comparison to a lot of modern fantasy, etc.). I think this was a really helpful way to unpack this story for modern audiences who are hesitant to give it a try.

More real life poetry breaks 🤟

O Elbereth, Gilthoniel, We still remember, we who dwell In this far land beneath the trees The starlight on the western seas

"Cause, you know, Tolkien decided to write a bible!" Thank you for that

Daniel: *reads tolkien's poem* Pip: THOU HAST SUMMONED ME!?

Me: Watches LoTR extended editions 16 times. Daniel: Makes book review Me: Maybe I'll watch it again.

For me, Tolkien's writing style isn't difficult to follow, at all. Sometimes it can be boring, but the construction is never obscure.

This was the first epic fantasy I ever read, and I still love Tolkien's books more than anything else. 25 years later, it's been hard to find the same level of satisfaction from other authors' stories. I highly prefer Tolkien's writing style and poetry interludes. I read other stuff, but when I pick up a Tolkien book I always feel like I'm going home.

I've found that people who read Tolkien when in their early teens, have an easier time of it. I recall reading Hawthorne when I was in my twenties for the first time and feeling exhausted after only a few pages. I had a different experience with Shakespeare having read Hamlet and The Merchant of Venice when I was 14. I think that perhaps adjusting to different writing styles becomes more challenging as we get older.

I genuinely believe I quote LotR (either books or movies) at least once a day. "I will do the dishes. But it is not this day" *offered vegetables * "we hates it, precious". Etc.

I read LOTR to each of my kids and they both insisted that I read the poems. My oldest insisted that I sing them.

I think reviewing LOTR in today's fantasy climate is tough, but I think you did a great job here. One thing I think can't be stressed enough is that Tolkien didn't start with a story and then build a world around it. He started with a world (rather, a language within that world), crafted it, and then told a story from that world to show off the lore and scale of that world. If you read LOTR with the understanding that it is a showcase of the world, rather than the world being an element of the story, it kind of changes your perspective on the story. I was a teenager the first time I read LOTR, and I will be honest, I skimmed through a lot of the poetry and prose to get to the action. As an adult, and armed with a much deeper understanding of the lore and history of the world, I have appreciated the depth and breadth of the poetry and prose (and the pacing!) much more than the action sequences. The other thing that Tolkien does better than just about anyone else I have ever read is immersion. As a reader, I feel all the things. The fear and determination of Helm's Deep. The slow burning anger of the ents at Isenguard. The sadness and desperation of Samwise near the end of Frodo's journey to Orodruim. The calm resignation of Aragorn at the Black Gate. I didn't just read it, man, I felt it. I got chills when the Riders of Rohan made their charge, and choked up when Theoden died. It is so rare these days to read a book that really makes me feel things. Real, genuine emotion. And don't get me wrong. I love the way modern fantasy books make you think. But Tolkien makes you feel. And every once in a while, I want that. All in all, this was an excellent review, and I thank you for it.

I am not a native english speaker. But when I hear that people - native english speaker - have problems with his writing style I am really dumbfounded. I think that the beauty of that prose is in its clarity. It starts with a simple concept like the hues of the Lorien trees, and than he embroidered poetry and worldbuilding on. Sometimes this lack of poetic sensibility in nowadays fantasy readers really worries me. Its not like you must love it at all cost but you know... sometimes won't hurt to enjoy some poetry in everyday life and won't hurt to not see everything throught default lenses. Not everything has to be modern, and up to date, and follow strict modern rules and so on.

I actually love Tolkien's writing style it builds a gorgeous atmosphere while reading. I just read the fall of Gondolin (don't know if it has different name in English) and it felt like sitting to Tolkien's feet in front of a crackling fireplace and listening to his words.

The pausing for songs and poems and is honestly one of the best parts of the book. It’s one of the ways that Lord of the Rings props up truth, goodness, and beauty as the ultimate values worth fighting for and preserving no matter the cost - and no one appeals to these values greater than Tolkien.

I just started my first read-through of The Lord Of The Rings after years and years of talking about how much I wanted to read it. I have to say - the writing it great and the poems are very fun to read. I have always worried that the style wouldn't fit with my reading preference, but it isn't that archaic - it's really not too difficult to read. I have never seen the movies (specifically because I wanted the books to be my first experience of the story) but now I'm looking forward to it!

Lord of the Rings was my first introduction to fantasy, and just my all time favourite. I thought your review did it justice. It's always so disappointing when people won't give it a chance. The way Tolkien crafts that growing sense of doom that takes you as the reader to such a low, and then by the end leaves you feeling so hopeful like you can do anything is reason enough for anyone to pick it up. I put Lord of the Rings down feeling better about myself and better about humanity, because of the love that is in that book, love for other people, love for the earth. Everyone can benefit from that.

My English teacher is like a geek in Tolkien. We read the hobbit as a class and discussed the Catholicism within the book. But basically what she said when he was originally telling it, it was a bedtime story to his children. That’s why fili and kilis death in the books and other possibly gruesome scenes were just glossed over bc u know he could’ve gone a lot more dark considering his experiences in the trenches. But when he wrote the LotR, he wanted to make a mythology for England. Mesopotamia had the epic of Gilgamesh, Greeks had the Iliad and the odyssey. Rly the only English mythology there was was Arthurian Legends, which was dying out. So he went into it creating a world to fit his languages, which he made first. He wanted to make England’s new thing that they’d treat it as their own Iliad or something like that.

Well it grabbed me aged 10. Forty three years later I have read it 54 times. I'm currently listening to Fellowship on Audible for the first time. I've read thousands of books over the years. Not just fantasy I admit. However it remains for me, my favourite book. I appreciate the songs and poetry now, more than as a 10 year old. I grew to love the history from my twenties. I find stuff that I've forgotten or missed in the past even today. The audio book in the last few days has made me go "really? How did I miss that? Regardless, thank you for your thoughts.

“If you find this difficult to read, then that’s your problem. 😒” I may have said this once or twice to some people. 😬

Not gonna lie, I'm one of the heathens who gave up halfway through book 1 because of the writing style and the pacing. But your comment about reading it to your kids makes me want to give the audiobooks a go.

When someone asks me if they should read LOTR my answer is always, "Maybe?" I love the books but just like Malazan or Dune it is not for everyone AND THAT IS OKAY. For me it is always one of the books that I slowly ready though IMHO. Every word is on a the page for a specific purpose rarely seen in today's writing. But the worst part of LOTR is the gatekeeping. To quote our Disheveled Goblin, "What language do YOUR trees speak?" Sums up many LOTR fans to a T.

I have never read Tolkien. But I've listened to the Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit over and over again. Hearing his writing out loud is so incredible. I highly recommend the version narrated by Robert Inglis. It is a work of art.

Gotta say when I was like ...9 sure the Song of Eärendil is like "okay fine, whatever" but as an adult, as someone who is writing fantasy I think it's important that a world have ...song, it adds to the culture, it gives you that history without an exposition dump so many people despise. So like...just... appreciate that most modern fantasy writers don't bother to even try because probably they can't.

If the poems are hard to get through, I'd recomend reading The Hobbit. The prose is charming and a breeze to get through.

Hey Dan can you do a review on The Hobbit and Silmarillion including the short stories of Beren and Luthien, The Children Of Hurin and The Fall of Gondolin. Beren and Luthien and The Hobbit are my two favorite stories from Tolkien.

See? Even the cat was moved by the prose.

I think Tolkien’s perspective style is interesting: Many authors nowadays filter the entire story world through the protagonist. It is a writerly technique to create intimacy with the lead character. But it backfires when much of the worldbuilding goes unseen. (I.e. Anything outside the main character’s perspective) This might be a nice trick to limit how much world building one must undertake as an author, but audiences can usually sense the shallowness of the world even if they can’t see it directly. The Return of the King: “It was a land in which it would be possible to creep from hiding to hiding, unseen to all but the most watchful eyes: possible at least for one who was strong and had no need for speed. For the hungry and worn, who had far to go before life failed, it had an evil look.” -Page 913 Notice Tolkien’s use of narrative perspective here. Also: “Neither man nor orc now moved along its flat grey stretches; for the Dark Lord had almost completed the movement of his forces, and even in the fairness of his own realm he sought the secrecy of night, fearing the winds of the world had turned...” -page 913 Notice we glimpse into the perspective of Sauron here. Tolkien manages to glean the objective details of Mordor while also supplying that same world as experienced (felt) by the main characters. It might slow the story down, but you have to appreciate the totality rendered in that perspective style!

It's over thirty years since I read these books, and yes I struggled with the first one but it was well worth it. I quite enjoyed the poems, but one of them, Bilbo's poem, brought me almost to tears and it's something I would like to be read at my funeral.

it's funny, at 18, i hated reading anything. I picked up lord of the rings and was hooked, then read dragon lance books then wheel of time.

The first time I read LOTR I skipped the poems. Then later, on rereading, I learned most of them. Two reasons for reading the poems, besides what was said here, are: 1. You glimpse the larger history of Middle Earth (Earendil, Beren and Luthien, etc.), and 2. Deeper appreciation of the different cultures that we meet (the Hobbits' rhyming poetry, and Elves' blank verse, and the marvellous alliteration of the Rohirrim).

My first journey to your page and I am hooked. I like your delivery and this review. Thank you for your work!

The new overlays with the detailed rating are awesome! Also Pips looks like the softest furball. Super cute.

"If you find this too difficult to read, that's YOUR problem." I love this so much haha. Couldn't agree more. It's not like the prose is so hardcore extreme difficult...no, it focuses on things that modern audiences might not be used to anymore, but those things hold so much VALUE in the very experience of reading the words.

Another awesome video that got me appreciating things a bit more deeply, and also gave me some ideas for the project I'm starting. Time to do a deep dive into your catalog to find more videos relevant to building new fantasy worlds and systems, finding a balance between the grand tradition and modern sensibilities and audiences.

The cat from 18:49 was so cute! This made to consider finally picking up the books from my shelf!

This was definitely an interesting interview. Your respect for Tolkien combined with your understanding of the modern audience made me actually smile.

I would add, that the PJ movies were inspired by art by Alan Lee.

As some who isn't a native english speaker and loves myths (from akkadian myths to norse sagas), I have never read anything in the 'fantasy' genre that has surpassed Tolkiens work. It just feels so complete and like any other myth-story that I cannot understand how just one single person wrote all this. It's so near to perfection - in my mind - that it has no equal. /edit: I especially love the poems!

All throughout my childhood my parents told me about the Lord of the Rings, quoting it and telling me (no-spoilers of course) about the plot. I didn’t think much of it until my best friend lent me his worn and underlined favorite copy of the Hobbit (of which he had three) when I was around 10. I finally picked up the Lord of the Rings around a year later, and I don’t think I’ve been so engrossed in a book since. The Lord of the Rings has a huge impact on me and I adore it, after watching this I might reread it again!

When someone tells me they don't like the prose in LOTR I automatically assume they take their steaks well done and talk during movies.

I actually loved Fellowship, thought Two Towers was a slog to get through (took me like 5x longer than fellowship to get through), and really liked Return of the King.

I read LOTR and, later, The Hobbit and Silmarillion, in my early teens. The gravitas of the history and world building buried in those books set me to delight in reading science fiction and fantasy to this day and to appreciate both the light hearted and dark stories, though I prefer tales that are a bit less Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever depressing. I have also re-read LOTR several time as the years have rolled by and found it holds up very well. "Deep roots are not reached by the frost", indeed.

I wound up listening to these in audiobooks and that worked for me. The poetry break that you read is rather awesome - in context it is a prophecy (if I remember correctly) so actually is useful. Also, it has one of my favorite lines ever - "All who wander are not lost."

It hurts that it's not the best selling ever anymore, but it's also good, it means fantasy is moving on and, hopefully, improving.

Short answer: Yes Long answer: *YYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSS*

I'm actually reading through the books for the first time right now (27 y). I've loved the movies since they came out. You said both things that have struck me the most about the books: 1. The action is... not so actiony. 2. The language is beyond beautiful. I often read aloud just because the sentences are so beautifully written. Also, I like mountain trekking, and I love how Tolkien knew how to describe grand landscapes like they really are.

Amazing review Mr. Greene. Very astute observations about expectation. I failed to read LOTR in my late teens/early twenties when I expected fantasy to have lots of action. Fastforward a few years and I was an avid reader who had come to like PJ's trilogy and was a lover of War and Peace. Tolkien's review of Beowulf put me in the mood, and I flipped open 'Fellowship' to where I had stopped and instantly realised I had made a horrible mistake in stopping. I began agian, this time from the Hobbit and went right through drinking it all like a fine wine.

When I started reading LoTR, coming from one of a kind prose pro like Rothfuss, was a full contact smack on the face. It was such a change that it made difficult the task (yes, intentional wording there) of reading the first book. But by the point I finished Fellowship and began The Two Towers, I was completely sold by everything Tolkien and the Middle earth were. And I want to almost scream this, I haven't read en ending so huge, monumental, satisfying, since LoTR. Probably one of THE biggest build up's in any saga ever written. As you said, as many things the ending was predicatble too, but that made the journey all the more enjoyable. I knew everything was intentional, everything was leading to that ending, so much stuff that happened along the way and how it impacted progress. As a young reader, that came from a context of modern epic fantasy, I can confirm it was a tough beginning, had to adapt, but it will be forever worth it.

When Daniel goes *bonkbonkbonk* on the table, you know he's passionate about what he's talking about

Tolkein being a oxford professor of linguistics, a huge language nerd and a WWI vet explains a lot of why he wrote his books the way he did.

Two thoughts I had: 1) I LIKE Lord of the Rings. I enjoy it. I respect it. I get it. But I still don't LOVE it the way superfans do and it's not my bookish comfort food. It's an immense achievement and it's clear to me why Tolkien was a genius. Everything in the books is intentional. I think it comes down to me just not having the same interests and inclinations as Tolkien. I don't share his heavily Christian view of human nature, his singular focus on Northern European culture, or his negative attitude toward modernity, and those suffuse the books. I value and appreciate different things from what he did, and that, for me at least, limits my personal, individualized feeling of connection with the books, even if it doesn't diminish my respect for them as literary achievements. 2) I've read a lot of modern fantasy and while I prefer that over so-called "classic fantasy", Tolkien's worldbuilding remains compelling to me and despite the fact that so many fantasy tropes originated with Tolkien, I don't think any imitators of his type of world improved on his vision. Tolkien's worldbuilding feels more like the organic product of an entire culture rather than the product of the mind of one man. It's like he singlehandedly duplicated an entire society's worth of mythohistorical content and that gives it a sheen of authenticity. You can easily spend as much time speculating on the nature of Tom Bombadil as you can on the nature of Baba Yaga or Beowulf. I know he based a lot of this on Northern European mythology, but he goes so much further and it never comes off as a cut and paste job.

"I can't throw it in for you . . . BUT I CAN THROW YOU!!" ........."Saaaaaammmmmmmm!!??"

A few years back, I tried. Granted... I didn't try hard... Only a couple pages. Still, I know I struggle to get through a physical book when the pros come off a bit higher than I'm used to. Should I try to power through or just audiobook it? If audiobook, which version? Edit: While writing this, I'm just now finishing Chapter 1 of the Rob Ingles narration on Audible while doing house chores. It's so charming!

I love all your Tolkien videos! (Binging all of them this December because, for some reason, LOTR fits the season of Christmas for me) They help keep my passion for Middle-earth alive, thank you!

I haven't read any classic fantasy books before. This was very helpful to me in understanding more about how the books are delivered and what to expect. The movies are my ALL TIME FAVOURITE films. After watching this I am down to read those poems, commit to the pace and appreciate Tolkien's writing. I think I'm finally ready. Also your cat melted me! MELTED ME!

I couldn't get through these until I started reading them aloud to myself. Reading them aloud really unlocked the glorious poetry in Tolkien's writing style and connected me to the heart of the story.

read them all for the first time 5 years or so ago when i was about 12 and got through them all fine, they've been my fave books since, i honestly don't get people who say they can't get through them lol

Wow! I'm so glad to hear this review! I really enjoyed the Lord of The Rings and it is EXACTLY what I look for in a fantasy. I just finished it yesterday and I have never read it before then. Growing up I adored the movies and it never occurred to me to read the books. Then I decided that I was going to read them this year and annotate it. Best decision ever. I actually read the last page and felt sorrow in my heart that the journey was over. Totally agree with all the points you made in this video! Though I truly love and appreciate LOTR I think it is very different from what fantasy looks like today!

Just finished reading through the first half of Fellowship of the Ring, and I have to say that Aragorn talks about his uncertainties a LOT in that part of the story. His deepest worries about worthiness are buried VERY deep -- how Arwen is presented as a great lady, and how he is presented in Rivendell compared to all the other great lords, comes to mind -- but his worries about the best route to get them to Rivendell actually provides a lot of the foreboding tone, which is the focus of the drama there.

I'm so grateful to my dad for reading this to me when I was young, granted I did fall asleep a fair lot and make him skip anything involving Shelob but the story instilled this awe and love of fantasy and language that I still have today. My aim is to read it at least once in every decade of my life! (Following in my fathers footsteps🤞) I definitely see the struggles for some modern readers; the council of Elrond for example drags for me, but the poetry I love! I often think that Tolkien was never writing in order to please audiences or sell books (which has to be in a lot of writers consciousness today), he just wrote what interested him and sometimes as a reader that can be frustrating. The commitment to craft and world building I just respect so much.

Just got to brag about my awesome mom for a sec. My mom has always been a firm believer in reading the book before watching the adaptation. So, when the lotr movies were coming out she bought the box set of Alan Lee illustrated copies and read them out loud to me and my siblings begin with the Hobbit and ending with the Silmarillion. She then bought a set of paper backs for me to dig through and not mess up her nice book and also the extended editions for us to watch. I will forever be grateful to her for instilling in me a love of fantasy and of books in general by taking the time to read to me(she also read all The Chronicles of Narnia books and The Little House On The Prairie books as well as countless other books). I know this is a passion I plan on passing on to my kids someday and I encourage anyone who has any to read to them.

As a young robust man, 30 years ago, it was the first book that made me cry. I felt like I'd fallen into a fully realised world, populated with characters I cared deeply for, by the end. That slow accumulation of detail, the result is mesmeric, like an hallucination. He was a scholar, a linguist and an artist, the breadth and depth of his learning was evident in every sentence. It was many, many years later that I had a similar experience with Pullman's Dark Materials. I love Paradise Lost and the work of William Blake so all that helped, I guess. Is there other stuff like LoTR and HDM in the genre? I'll be looking through your channel for recommendations, young man, as you seem to know. what you're talking about.

Imagine being a fly on the wall for a conversation between Tolkein and H.P Lovecraft.

A few years back, I realized that I had never actually read these books all the way through. So I took them with me to summer camp and read them all in the first week. I then realized that, yes indeed, I had read them before. I remembered almost every aspect of the liberation of the Shire at the end. That was a trippy realization.

I actually read the books as a child - my parents refused to let me watch the movies before I read the books. LotR was my introduction into fantasy, and it holds a special place in my heart. All the points you brought up were perfectly valid, and looking back I see what you mean, I'll definitely keep an eye out on my next reread.

I actually have never read anything by Tolkien or seen any of the movies based off his work. I read The Hobbit at the end of the year last year and had such a wonderfully fun time! It was a fun breath of fresh air after finishing the third dune book. I just started fellowship of the ring a month ago or so and I've been loving it so far! I find myself becoming attached to specific locations and characters and doing research online to what their life was. Where did they grow up, how did they get to the location that I met them for the first time in. I know it has been said before but it truly does make the book feel more historical rather than fictional.

Wow, this an AMAZING review. Lord of the Rings has been my favorite book for a very long time (though, Tolstoy plug here, I did just recently finish War and Peace and my god, it is amazing, so LOTR can be my co-favorite), and I have NEVER been able to understand why some people can't get into it. You pretty much explained it though. I read it as an adult. I was already 22 or so the first time I read it. I loved it instantly, and even weirder, Fellowship is my favorite part of the whole series. It's so damn tense! I love the long, oppressive traveling scenes. Anyway, my 12-year-old son is reading it now, and he's probably almost in over his head. He's persevering but I really should've waited a few years to recommend it to him. He's about 90% through, and he says he likes it a lot but I can tell it's been a hard read for him. GREAT video. You earned my sub for sure.

"Thou est beith the ringbearer!" Ah, timeless words

If i remember correctly, I heard in lections of some professor on youtube that Tolkien (as person that worked with translations of old text) tried to immitate that feel in the LOTR. Some artifacts like suprise poetry verse in old text can be found because person that rewrites that thing in the past would like to add something from himself. And the older text is the more of that "artifacts" can be found. So poetry in Tolkien book not only some literature craft by itself, but also another layer of crafting book of english myth from historic times.

Intelligent and insightful review ... what a treat to find on YT!

Fantastic review! That book turned out to be one of the most influential things in my life but it’s been 15 years since I read it. Time to dig it out of storage....