As a big fan of the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit movies, I was interested in the background of those stories - thus I wanted to read the Silmarillion. The heavy style of the Silmarillion is confusing. For example, the same character may be referred to by three or more names in the same chapter. HOWEVER, there is a convenient index of names in the back of the book. I rated the book a 4/5 stars because I learned a lot of critical information (for example, the original Orcs were elves!!), how Mordor came about, more about the variety of elves both inside and outside of middle earth, and so on.. I highly recommend this book for any one seeking to understand more about Lord of the Rings. However, I took off a star for the often confusing style of the prose.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
First off, let me say that I don't frequently read works of fiction. I prefer to spend my reading time on things that are, for the most part, educational. As well, I have a friend who, about seven years-ago, suggested I watch the Fellowship of the Rings. It was on video at the time. I'm not into the fantasy genre but I watched the movie. In the five minutes I was blown away. The Lord of the Rings trilogy (all considered as one) is my favorite movie. I have to say the same for the Silmarillion. It is now my favorite book(as far fiction is concerned.) It is an extremely rich story, loaded with details and a sense of history. It makes the Lord of the Rings even more enjoyable to watch. The Lord of the Rings seems like a small tale when compared to the events of the Silmarillion. One of my favorite things about the book is the Name index. It makes the book much easier to follow. I enjoyed the helpful items that are in the book (e.g. maps, pronunciation notes, geneaology charts and more.) I found the stories of the book to be very intriguing. It really fed my imagination. If you like any other work of Tolkien or the various movies, games, etc., inspired by Tolkien, then I suspect you'll really like this book.Read full review
The sort of book you want to immediately reread after finishing it. This collection of earlier works unpublished at the time of Tolkien's death, does a great deal to shed light on the more popular and well known The Lord of the Rings (and The Hobbit to a lesser extent). It makes the reader more aware of the background and provides a richer reading of the works. As a tip, when reading try as much as you can to read straight through a passage without stopping to check names, translations of words, lineages, or maps as these are frequently explained within the section (often the following line or two) if you have the patience. Also, while the first two works (Ainulindalë and Valaquenta) are written in a fairly "high" prose style, much of the Silmarillion proper (especially around Chapter 16 on) modulates to a "lower," more plot-driven style that, while still challenging, is much easier for the reader. It's a rewarding read if you can get through it.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
This is a great book about the background stories and creation of Middle Earth. It's a collection of short stories chock full of all the information regarding the creatures that Tolkien created. For example where Shelob came from or the story behind Sauron and the history of the elves etc, etc...
I haven’t read it yet, but the condition of the book is almost brand new! I live in Guam, and it got here real quick! Kudos
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
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