The Return of the King by J. R. R. Tolkien, a book review

The Return of the King by J. R. R. Tolkien was a really terrific close to The Lord of the Rings. I particularly like that this book (which appears in three bound volumes) in truth is one book rather than three. One way I could see that clearly is that there is not much, if any, reminding you of the previous occurrences throughout the course of the current volume.

In this volume, Aragorn comes into his own. It was interesting to me that he was so reticent to enter the city after a major battle, but when he actually enters, it makes a great deal more sense to me. I guess it relates more to guys and “territory” that maybe I just don't care all that much about? Regardless, I like the way his part in the story ends up.

I wasn't quite as happy with Frodo's end. I guess I feel like he took the lame way out, in a way.

Sam, Merry, and Pippin ended up pretty okay. I love how Sam's story is tied up.

I dislike that we know so little of what happens with Gimli and Legolas after the fellowship's dissolution. I would have liked to know a little more about how they part, I guess. And whether or not they have friend-get-togethers periodically.

My two eldest daughters (13 and 10) have thoroughly enjoyed this book and series. They may have enjoyed it even more than me. I could be wrong about that, I suppose, but by their effusive complimentary and adoring remarks, I think they loved it.

One difficulty I have with the whole story is how very limited a part women play in the whole of it. I guess, since it's basically about war, that makes sense since the author is male. But I don't have to like it, even though I understand that most men don't/can't/won't make room for women in such stories.

All said, though, I did enjoy the book in three volumes. Now, I'm curious to see the more modern live-action movies by the same names. Not sure when I'll make time for that… we'll see.

Have you read The Return of the King by J. R. R. Tolkein? What did you think of it? How did you like the ending for each of the main characters?

Okay, so maybe my book reviews have been pretty lame. And I'm not suggesting that this one was really much better, but I have begun to think that I want to beef them up a bit. So… maybe soon they'll be a bit better. Not promising anything, ya hear? I am, afterall, a writer second to mother… and with six children to look after and “manage,” well, I end up in basic survival mode more often than I like to admit.

The Two Towers by J. R. R. Tolkien, a book review

The Two Towers, the second bound part of The Lord of the Rings, by J. R. R. Tolkien continues to follow Frodo on his journey to dispose of the ring that rules them all.

I do like this book, even though I thought I wouldn't based on my experience with the very old animated movie version of it, because it is easy to enter the tale and imagine the world of Middle Earth. Frodo, Sam, and Gollum are pretty well established characters by the end of The Fellowship of the Ring. As a result, getting into the story, as it were, is very easy to do.

As I read, I wondered how many guys identify more with Frodo or Sam. I cannot really imagine any identifying with Gollum, though I certainly could be wrong. For me, I enjoyed reading more reading as an observer, rather than sort of 'being' one of the characters.

Because I haven't seen the live-action movie version of this book and it's been decades since I saw the cartoon, I have few visual interferences. I definitely prefer to read books before seeing their movie version because the movie in my head is way better than anything I've yet seen on the screen.

Have you read The Two Towers by J. R. R. Tolkien? What did you think of it?

Fellowship of the Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien, a book review

Fellowship of the Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien is the first bound book of the The Lord of the Rings book. My brother just younger than me gave me a copy of The Lord of the Rings for Christmas one year. He was head-over-heels in love with the book (which is incorrectly called a trilogy, according the author himself) and found out I hadn't read it yet. He read it before it was the crazy cool thing to do, I must add… about 25 to 30 years ago!

I neglected it all that time, thinking I would get to it at some point. Why? I guess mostly because I thought it was a guys' sort of story. I had seen the very old animated version of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, so I wasn't too excited about the book version because I had not loved the cartoon movies.

After all these years, I decided to read the books my brother bought for me and started Fellowship of the Ring. In reading it and beyond, I have learned that I was correct in that it is very much a guys' read. Yet, I have not felt myself proved right in the distressing way I had anticipated. I thought the book (in three bound parts) would be tiresome and overlong. I guess there might be a couple times where it does feel a bit of that to me, but not as frequently as I expected.

Fellowship of the Ring itself begins with Bilbo leaving the ring he found on his journey with Frodo. Shortly thereafter, Frodo begins on his own journey and ends up with a group of other guys traveling along. Some of those companions are unlikely and certainly seem unfit to travel together. Still, they form bonds that only those who have traveled and/or fought together can truly understand.

By the end of Fellowship of the Ring, Frodo leaves most of the company and continues on with only one companion, which, of course, leads directly into the second part of the book which is bound separately.

Have you read Fellowship of the Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien? What did you think of it? Make sure to tell me whether you're a girl or guy because I really think it makes a difference.