At a recent meeting of my book club, one of my friends told us about how a guy friend was teaching her how to play Dungeons and Dragons and had suggested that she read Robert Jordan's Eye of the World, the first installment of the Wheel of Time series. I refrained from rolling my eyes … Continue reading I Want to Start Reading Adult Fantasy, But Where Do I Start?
The Lord of the Rings
LotR Reread: The Road Home
Chapter VI: Many Partings Time has passed. It's after mid-summer and things are great. Aragorn is king, Arwen is queen, and the world is rebuilding and making itself anew. But Frodo and the hobbits want to go home. I can't blame them. Who wouldn't want to go back to the Shire? But Frodo wants to … Continue reading LotR Reread: The Road Home
LotR Reread: A Whole New World
Chapter IV: The Field of Cormallen Frodo and Sam have saved Middle-earth, with a little help from Gollum. The Ring has been destroyed and Sauron has fallen. We come back to the Black Gate where the armies of the West are making their last stand, and Gandalf suddenly notices that the Eagles are coming. These … Continue reading LotR Reread: A Whole New World
LotR Reread: “Here at the end of all things…”
Chapter III: Mount Doom This installment is early. Why, you ask? Well, it's March 25th. For Tolkien fans, that means it's Tolkien Reading Day! And why is Tolkien Reading Day on March 25th, and not on September 22nd (Frodo and Bilbo's birthdays) or on January 3rd (Tolkien's birthday)? Tolkien Reading Day occurs on March 25th … Continue reading LotR Reread: “Here at the end of all things…”
Lotr Reread: The One Where Sam Simply Walks into Mordor
Book VI Chapter I: The Tower of Cirith Ungol So. There Sam was, below Cirith Ungol having knocked himself out by flinging himself against the orc door in a desperate attempt to get into the tower to rescue Frodo, who wasn't actually dead, just comatose from a massive dose of monster-spider venom. Fortunately for everyone … Continue reading Lotr Reread: The One Where Sam Simply Walks into Mordor
LotR Reread: Once More Unto the Breach
Chapter IX: The Last Debate Legolas and Gimli are walking through Minas Tirith on their way to the Houses of Healing. Gimli thinks the place needs improvements in its stonework, and Legolas thinks it needs more gardens. Both vow to send their people to improve the city, assuming they win the hopeless war, but in … Continue reading LotR Reread: Once More Unto the Breach
LotR Reread: The King Returns! Sort of.
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.
LotR Reread: “But no living man am I!”
Chapter V: The Ride of the Rohirrim Now that he's been riding through the gloom for days, being carried along like a bit of baggage, ignored by the Marshal of the eored, Elfhelm and everyone else, Merry is completely miserable and questioning why he disobeyed King Théoden's orders to stay behind. What can he do … Continue reading LotR Reread: “But no living man am I!”
LotR Reread: “So we come to it in the end…”
Chapter III: The Muster of Rohan We return to Rohan and Merry's perspective. He is riding with King Theoden through the mountains toward Dunharrow, where the Rohirrim is gathering before they ride on to Gondor. There is a spectacular description of the landscape with its craggy mountains, dark forests, and waterfalls. It's more than a … Continue reading LotR Reread: “So we come to it in the end…”
LotR Reread: On the Move
The Return of the King Book V Chapter I: Minas Tirith From the cliffhanger ending of The Two Towers, we got back in time a few days. The great horse Shadowfax is carrying Pippin and Gandalf to the city of Minas Tirith. To Pippin, these days of travel pass in a blur. He sleeps through … Continue reading LotR Reread: On the Move
