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skylacine's review against another edition
3.0
This wasn't really it for me. It's mostly just dry texts with information on various aspects of Middle-Earth. Also I didn't expect to be doing maths in a fantasy book.
Was expecting more of like an encyclopedia-style book rather than texts with various themes with not a lot of cohesion.
Was expecting more of like an encyclopedia-style book rather than texts with various themes with not a lot of cohesion.
mjwatt1's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
gav_ferreira's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
lillanaa's review against another edition
5.0
I had no idea what to expect with this, and I do agree that some parts are rather dry, but this is a trove of background information that I'd highly recommend to anyone as in love with the universe Tolkien has created as I am. This is definitely for the hardcore fans only, not meant in a gatekeeping way, as the first chunk being mostly math can be fairly daunting, but I would absolutely use this as a masterclass in worldbuilding and a fabulous peek into the writing process.
verbadanga66's review against another edition
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.75
leesmyth's review against another edition
4.0
I skipped Part I, but found Parts II and III interesting. So the star rating reflects only the parts I read.
gps1138's review against another edition
This is a tough book to rate or review. This is a collection of notes made by Tolkien about everything from the gestational period of elves to making lembas. Included with each note is a description of the type of writing implement used and what kind of paper it was written on. (Tolkien used the blank backs of a variety of papers for a lot of these.) Some parts, like the math about the aging of the elves, are pretty dull, but I found myself drawn into the incredible details of the specifics of the elves' immortality and linguistics. This is definitely for hardcore fans only, but if you are interested at all in the minutia of Tolkien's impressive world-building, you should probably check this out.
ashndean88's review
2.0
This review is written with typescript text, which is unfortunate because black-nib pen is the preferred method of writing in regards to this book. To be frank, the best thing this book can do is sit pretty beside the rest of my collection of a shelf.
I honestly haven't had a worse time with a Tolkien book ever, and I know that was not due to Tolkien himself. This was slow, repetitive, dull, and full of so much math. I haven't read the word "gestation" in a book more than I have here. And I've read some baby books prior to this.
Were there some interesting parts? Yes.
Was this information useful to further understand Middle-Earth? No, most of it was not.
Did I think every incomplete scribble of Tolkien needed to be published, including what writing utensil was used and on which stationary type? Also a giant no.
I guess I wanted more of a story and not a cash-grab info-dump full of things that can mostly be found in other, more enjoyable Tolkien works. Originally I was not going to give this less than 3 stars based on my biasm for this series, but when I realized the thought of reading more of it was in itself agonizing, I knew I had to go one lower. I don't find this particular book necessary to read in order to comprehend all the lovely things Tolkien has to offer.
I honestly haven't had a worse time with a Tolkien book ever, and I know that was not due to Tolkien himself. This was slow, repetitive, dull, and full of so much math. I haven't read the word "gestation" in a book more than I have here. And I've read some baby books prior to this.
Were there some interesting parts? Yes.
Was this information useful to further understand Middle-Earth? No, most of it was not.
Did I think every incomplete scribble of Tolkien needed to be published, including what writing utensil was used and on which stationary type? Also a giant no.
I guess I wanted more of a story and not a cash-grab info-dump full of things that can mostly be found in other, more enjoyable Tolkien works. Originally I was not going to give this less than 3 stars based on my biasm for this series, but when I realized the thought of reading more of it was in itself agonizing, I knew I had to go one lower. I don't find this particular book necessary to read in order to comprehend all the lovely things Tolkien has to offer.