Chapter VII: The Pyre of Denethor We're stepping back in time by several hours to the morning of the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, and heading back into Minas Tirith. The Lord of the Nazgûl has just left the city gates. Gandalf is about to head out into the battle, but Pippin stops him with … Continue reading LotR Reread: The King Returns! Sort of.
Hobbits
LotR Reread: Maybe Don’t Bring a Hobbit to a Sword Fight
Chapter XI: A Knife in the Dark There’s a significant change in tone across the last few chapters of Book I of The Fellowship of the Ring. Chapter I, ‘A Long Expected Party’ is a bridge between the children’s tale of The Hobbit and the grown-up tale of The Lord of the Rings. We see … Continue reading LotR Reread: Maybe Don’t Bring a Hobbit to a Sword Fight
LotR Reread: In Which the Company Meets a Tall, Dark Stranger
IX. At the Sign of the Prancing Pony Bree-land is an island of habitation in the midst of an empty and wild land. There are four other towns besides Bree itself: Staddle, Combe, Archet, and Chetwood. It is inhabited by brown-haired, rather short people who are cheerful and independent. There’s no one around to govern … Continue reading LotR Reread: In Which the Company Meets a Tall, Dark Stranger
LotR Reread: Home is Behind, Weirdness is Ahead
Chapter VI- The Old Forest I’ll be the first to admit that I find forests a little creepy. I’ve lived on the Great Plains all my life. We don’t do vast expanses of trees. Hiking through the forests of northern Minnesota and Colorado is eerie enough. How do you know there isn’t a bear … Continue reading LotR Reread: Home is Behind, Weirdness is Ahead
LotR Reread: Frodo Baggins and the Worst Birthday Gift Ever
“When Bilbo Baggins of Bag End announced that he would shortly be celebrating his eleventy-first birthday with a party of special magnificence, there was much talk and excitement in Hobbiton.” Chapter One: A Long-Expected Party Thus begins The Lord of the Rings: with a party like in The Hobbit, only this party was a long-planned … Continue reading LotR Reread: Frodo Baggins and the Worst Birthday Gift Ever
Traveling in Books 