You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
mehdi_k 's review for:
The Return of the King
by J.R.R. Tolkien
What a journey! I first read The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers when I was fifteen - a tough read, even in my own language. I had given up on the first book once before I could complete it. The extensive descriptions (at times painful), the many references to events and people who were never introduced or too briefly, and Tolkien's writing style made it very difficult for me to latch on. As a result, I had never read the third book.
Some years later, same story: I read the first two books, got bored at the beginning of the third.
Almost fifteen years after my first try, I had a nuanced perspective on the books - the extent of my passion for the film adaptations had triggered a stronger eagerness to know more, and to discover the differences between some of my favourite movies and the books that inspired them.
Still, the beginning of The Return of the King was not easy. I had taken too long a break after The Two Towers, and it took me a solid 50 pages to get back into Tolkien's style. There are at least two ways you can read The Lord of the Rings: you either look up every character or place that wasn't introduced - the online resources for that purpose are plentiful and invaluable - or you can just accept that these characters and places are not that important to know, and move on to where the action begins. My reading style sat somewhere in-between, depending on my mood.
Overall I very much enjoyed discovering the third and last part of Tolkien's trilogy. I particularly enjoyed discovering certain differences from the films - especially the last few chapters, telling the stories of Éowyn, Faramir, and the Hobbits' return to the Shire. Now that I have finally reached the end, I almost - almost - want to start over and be a more thorough reader, looking up every character, every location, every song. Tolkien really was an insanely creative person, and the universe he came up with is full of wonders. Next step: the Silmarillion?
Some years later, same story: I read the first two books, got bored at the beginning of the third.
Almost fifteen years after my first try, I had a nuanced perspective on the books - the extent of my passion for the film adaptations had triggered a stronger eagerness to know more, and to discover the differences between some of my favourite movies and the books that inspired them.
Still, the beginning of The Return of the King was not easy. I had taken too long a break after The Two Towers, and it took me a solid 50 pages to get back into Tolkien's style. There are at least two ways you can read The Lord of the Rings: you either look up every character or place that wasn't introduced - the online resources for that purpose are plentiful and invaluable - or you can just accept that these characters and places are not that important to know, and move on to where the action begins. My reading style sat somewhere in-between, depending on my mood.
Overall I very much enjoyed discovering the third and last part of Tolkien's trilogy. I particularly enjoyed discovering certain differences from the films - especially the last few chapters, telling the stories of Éowyn, Faramir, and the Hobbits' return to the Shire. Now that I have finally reached the end, I almost - almost - want to start over and be a more thorough reader, looking up every character, every location, every song. Tolkien really was an insanely creative person, and the universe he came up with is full of wonders. Next step: the Silmarillion?