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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
relaxing
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
How could an original J.R.R. Tolkien piece not receive five stars? It’s unthinkable. That being said, it is not a traditional story told with main characters and a single plot, but rather a history of the world many love and adore. From the literal creation of the world to the beginning of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, this story spans eons. For that reason, it may be a difficult read for some who prefer traditional novels. This is not that, but it’s worth the read for any fan. Immense world building, melodic tales, beautiful language, the dark the light the grey, it is truly epic. It’s clear how thorough yet imaginative Tolkien is through his creation of a world painted more beautifully than any religion has ever painted our own. Five stars all the way.
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I have been avoiding reading this for years. Huge mistake because it was lovely. Would it be too much to compare it to the Bible? I've never read the Bible but I really feel like they'd have similar strengths and weaknesses.
challenging
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"Slow." "Boring." "Dry." "Ponderous." "Self-indulgent."
How does one review The Silmarillion? For those who read The Lord of the Rings and thought the descriptions above were all too accurate, they'll only find more of the same with The Silmarillion.
In fact, the very weaknesses that LOTR's detractors cite as their problems with the books are only more prevalent in The Silmarillion. Middle school me, who loved LOTR but still had a tough time with the drier parts, was overwhelmed by the scope and history of The Silmarillion and couldn't finish it.
If you did not absolutely love LOTR, even it's long-winded descriptions, then you won't like The Silmarillion. But the opposite danger is present as well: if you're looking for the heroic action scenes, the beautiful descriptions of lands and cities, and touching dialogue between characters such as Gandalf and Frodo that defined LOTR, you'll bad sadly disappointed.
The Silmarillion has beauty, heroism, tragedy, and action, but they're all painted with much broader strokes. The book covers thousands of years and probably hundreds of named characters. The central event is the War of the Jewels, fought over three gems known as the Silmarils, from which the book gets its name, but really the book covers all of the events of Middle-Earth and Arda leading up to and after the events surrounding the Silmarils.
I believe it would be more appropriately titled A History of Middle Earth (or perhaps A History of Arda, though the name is less well-known) and this would have set the reader's expectations a little more accurately, as I'm sure many over the years (including middle school me) picked up the book expecting a LOTR prequel, and got a history lesson instead. Sadly, I'm sure marketing got involved, as while "A History of Middle-Earth" is more accurate, it is perhaps not very exciting.
The book is full of worldbuilding that reaches a creativity and depth unmatched by any other work of fiction, and it's a shame Tolkien never lived long enough to turn these stories into actual novels, though I wonder just how many lifetimes the man would've needed to finish writing everything that was in his head. Somewhere in the multiverse there exists the ten to twenty novels that cover all of the events of Arda. That is just how many books would be needed to cover the vast history contained with this book.
So of course, Christopher Tolkien had to tell these events with very broad strokes: "This happened in this year, then next year these people went to this place. This person said this thing, then the other said this..." and so on. It definitely gets a bit dry at times, and would be extremely slow and tedious compared to the average novel, so the reader must instead treat this like the history book it is and review it as such, and anyone looking to pick it up must expect the same.
Still, for the Middle-Earth fanatic, this is a must-read and an amazing look into the mind and inner-world of the author of the greatest fantasy series of all time.
How does one review The Silmarillion? For those who read The Lord of the Rings and thought the descriptions above were all too accurate, they'll only find more of the same with The Silmarillion.
In fact, the very weaknesses that LOTR's detractors cite as their problems with the books are only more prevalent in The Silmarillion. Middle school me, who loved LOTR but still had a tough time with the drier parts, was overwhelmed by the scope and history of The Silmarillion and couldn't finish it.
If you did not absolutely love LOTR, even it's long-winded descriptions, then you won't like The Silmarillion. But the opposite danger is present as well: if you're looking for the heroic action scenes, the beautiful descriptions of lands and cities, and touching dialogue between characters such as Gandalf and Frodo that defined LOTR, you'll bad sadly disappointed.
The Silmarillion has beauty, heroism, tragedy, and action, but they're all painted with much broader strokes. The book covers thousands of years and probably hundreds of named characters. The central event is the War of the Jewels, fought over three gems known as the Silmarils, from which the book gets its name, but really the book covers all of the events of Middle-Earth and Arda leading up to and after the events surrounding the Silmarils.
I believe it would be more appropriately titled A History of Middle Earth (or perhaps A History of Arda, though the name is less well-known) and this would have set the reader's expectations a little more accurately, as I'm sure many over the years (including middle school me) picked up the book expecting a LOTR prequel, and got a history lesson instead. Sadly, I'm sure marketing got involved, as while "A History of Middle-Earth" is more accurate, it is perhaps not very exciting.
The book is full of worldbuilding that reaches a creativity and depth unmatched by any other work of fiction, and it's a shame Tolkien never lived long enough to turn these stories into actual novels, though I wonder just how many lifetimes the man would've needed to finish writing everything that was in his head. Somewhere in the multiverse there exists the ten to twenty novels that cover all of the events of Arda. That is just how many books would be needed to cover the vast history contained with this book.
So of course, Christopher Tolkien had to tell these events with very broad strokes: "This happened in this year, then next year these people went to this place. This person said this thing, then the other said this..." and so on. It definitely gets a bit dry at times, and would be extremely slow and tedious compared to the average novel, so the reader must instead treat this like the history book it is and review it as such, and anyone looking to pick it up must expect the same.
Still, for the Middle-Earth fanatic, this is a must-read and an amazing look into the mind and inner-world of the author of the greatest fantasy series of all time.