Reviews

The Book of Lost Tales, Part One by J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien

njdarkish's review against another edition

2.0

Made almost totally unreadable by Christopher Tolkien's editing.

ollakalla's review against another edition

3.0

If you've read The Silmarilion, you won't find any surprises here. But the book is ok, neither important nor necessary. Are you a Tolken fan, this is a good book to have read.

3.5/5

queerofthedagger's review against another edition

adventurous challenging informative slow-paced

4.0

I do this every time, but I am once again in awe of the work Christopher Tolkien did on this. That aside, it was also fascinating to read some of the early drafts of what was to become the Silmarillion, the things that would get changed as well as those that stayed as the basis through countless years and rewritings. 

That said, we really are in draft-land now. There are missing sections, words, things that can only be guessed at, and approximately yet another three new/old names for characters that already have five. Personally, this is a feature and incredibly interesting, but it is by no means an on-going narration or tale.

sialia95's review against another edition

5.0

This is some advanced nerd shit. What an incredible undertaking by Christopher.

monicalaurette's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

While I liked the stories and the world of Middle Earth, it was hard to get through this book with the notes and comments.

unrealpunk's review against another edition

4.0

This really makes you wish the Eriol/Aelfwine frame could have been part of the published Silmarillion.  But there's an extra charm to it's effect in the Book of Lost Tales in the way Christopher's painstaking excavation of these texts is like a meta counterpoint to Eriol's pursuit of the tales and full appreciation of Tinfang Warble's music.  There's a multidimensionality to the presentation of the texts as a heterogenous assemblage of partially formed narratives, palimpsests, and disorganized leaves that befits the profusion of Tolkien's imaginative project into something like a lost cultural mythology that must be carefully studied and cross-indexed to be properly reconstructed.

infinite_harness9030's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

monicadee88's review against another edition

3.0

This book contains a collection of partially finished stories written by J.R.R. Tolkien that his son Christopher Tolkien does an excellent job of weaving together into an almost comprehensible history of Middle Earth. Like The Silmarillion, this prelude of sorts is tooth-grindingly boring; the web of names and variations is confusing and headache-inducing. Even so, I couldn't help but be awed by the individual stories and the work as a whole. J.R.R. Tolkien was an admirable scholar and writer; his desire to create an entire universe from scratch, his love for and dedication to his art is obvious in every sentence. It's also fascinating to see how his stories and his world evolved as he revised and continued to write.

fatima_'s review against another edition

challenging informative slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

ameserole's review against another edition

4.0

Ever since I started reading J.R.R. Tolkiens books this month I had this strong urge to read the short stories and learn more about the "middle-earth." Now, I haven't officially read all of his books or the different series he has written that are set in the middle-earth but I still found these stories highly entertaining. I really liked how Christopher took his dads work and made it into the book of lost tales. And now after reading these I'm even more pumped to read the rest of J.R.R's books. I seriously can't wait and I'm definitely going to read the second part of these lost tales. I hope they get better!!