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I read The Silmarillion when I was in middle school, having just finished Lord of the Rings for the first time and The Hobbit for the second. Expectedly, I hated it because it was so dry and shelved it for a decade. Now that I'm older and appreciate the historical background of fantasy works, I re-read it in preparation for the Hobbit movie and loved it. I especially felt it paid off when I realized that Gandalf inherited Turgon's sword  One thing that struck me was Tolkien's ability to write characters that are likable despite their arguably bad actions. Yeah, Maedhros was driven by his oath to his father, but he also didn't participate in the burning of the Teleri ships, and he made amends with Fingolfin's side of the family, so there was at least some good inside him. Side note, having Glaurung fresh in my mind before reading about Smaug again made me realize how ineffectual Smaug was in comparison. Smaug's attempt to burn down Laketown right before his death didn't accomplish much, but Glaurung's last minute "You hosed your brother, peace, I'm out" was a masterstroke. I just picked up Children of Húrin for three bucks, so I'm going to dive into that soon before swiping my dad's copy of Unfinished Tales.Could we post some pictures? I've been collecting them lately. Here's a map of Beleriand and Middle Earth. Looking at the map really helps if you feel like The Silmarillion throws you too many details at once.  For anyone who hasn't seen it already, Ted Nasmith does amazing artwork of the entire series. Gondolin  Rivendell  Tarn Aeluin 
Millions fucked around with this message at 15:34 on Feb 5, 2013 |
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Feb 5, 2013 15:22
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:I really like the illustrations drawn by Tolkien himself. I just bought a copy of the three LoTR books in oversized paperback form, their covers are recreations of the original Tolkien dust jackets:    My dad has this edition. It's compiled and bound in red leather with the Tree of Gondor on it. I don't think I'll ever actually read from it, I'm afraid of messing it up:  I have an irresistible urge to buy every edition of LoTR with a cool cover... which is nearly all of them. Too bad I can't find every Middle-Earth book in the same style as the three above. Millions fucked around with this message at 21:52 on Feb 5, 2013 |
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Feb 5, 2013 20:51
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Tom Bombadil BOmBadIL OBOBIL BILBO There's your explanation right there 
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Mar 29, 2013 20:40
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I finally managed to track down a few of the maps I've been looking for (thank you, Half Price Books!), so I thought I'd share my whole collection. The first one is framed in my office, I'm trying to decide if some of the others should follow suit... The first three are collected from various editions of LOTR and The Silmarillion, and the latter four are from John Howe and Brian Sibley's The Maps of Tolkien's Middle Earth. (click for huge)       
Millions fucked around with this message at 22:30 on Apr 2, 2013 |
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Apr 2, 2013 22:25
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I just rewatched the extended Fellowship with a friend who's never read the Silmarillion, and he was flabbergasted to learn that Gandalf is in possession of one of the rings of power for the entirety of the trilogy. I also got to point out some of Thorin's Company to him in Fellowship (that the tomb the fellowship visits in Moria belongs to Balin, which is explicitly stated but he never made the connection... and that Gloin was present at the council at Rivendell). Feels good being a nerd, man.
Millions fucked around with this message at 02:51 on Jul 9, 2013 |
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Jul 9, 2013 02:42
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