The Silmarillion by J. R. R. Tolkien

‘Many are the strange chances of the world,’ said Mithrander, ‘ and help oft shall come from the hands of the weak when the Wise falter.’

 

The Silmarillion is a collection of myths telling the history of Middle Earth from creation through the events of the Third Age or the events described in detail in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

 

It consists of five parts:

• “Ainulindalë” – Creation of Eä (the world) by Ilúvatar
• “Valaquenta” – Tale of Valar and Maiar, subordinate deities
• “Quenta Silmarillion” – The first age of Middle Earth (primarily tale of the elves)
• “Arkallabeth” – The Second Age, the rise and fall of Numenor (highest race of mortal men)
• “Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age”

 

It was published posthumously and extensively edited by Christopher Tolkien and Guy Gavriel Kay.

 

This was my third re-read. I first read it in 1977, the year it was published. I’d read The Lord of the Rings in 1971 and was thrilled to have something new by my favorite author. I was a bit disappointed at the time. It wasn’t nearly as fun. It is more of a history book. Still, it was more Middle Earth, and I was happy to read it. I still have my first American Edition (pictured above).

 

I read it to refresh my memory and check the accuracy of the recent television series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. I found the television series entertaining in its own right, but it IS NOT true to The Silmarillion.

 

It was better on this re-read. It is filled with back story for Aragorn, Elrond, Galadriel, Sauron, and the Nazgul; new heroes Turin and Tuor; the three elven fathers Olwë, Elwë, Finwë; the tragic line of Fëanor son of Finwë; and as seems fitting, very little of Hobbits.

 

A MUST-READ for Tolkien fans!

 

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My Favorite Classic - The Classics Club Monthly Meme (May 2018)

My Favorite Classic – The Classics Club Monthly Meme (May 2018)

I’m very happy The Classics Club is reviving the monthly meme and I have to admit that the topic makes sense – it’s an obvious starting place to reboot the meme – But seriously?

What is your favorite classic book? Why?

You might as well ask which of my children is my favorite. Yes, I know that is not a very original phrase. I’m just reusing it because it makes the point so perfectly.

I just can’t.

But I want to support the return of the Monthly Meme, so I’m going to make an honest effort. For starters, I’ve given nine novels 5 Stars: The Grapes of Wrath, Lord of the Flies, The Lord of the Rings, To Kill a Mockingbird, Gone With the Wind, David Copperfield, The Count of Monte Cristo, The Chronicles of Narnia, and The Little Prince. 

I don’t give out 5 Stars easily, so I thought all these deserve mentioning. However, in my opinion, THE BEST of these Best are:

The Grapes of Wrath

Lord of the Flies

To Kill a Mockingbird

Gone With the Wind

Now it gets very hard. If asked, I might name any one of these at any given moment, but I think the one that would most often come to mind – To Kill a Mockingbird.

Why? It made me cry; it made me laugh. It filled me with rage; it filled me with hope. It moved my emotions to every extreme and it made me think. More than that – you may read my review. It isn't necessary to point out that in the review, I name The Lord of the Rings as my favorite; I’ve already confessed to being somewhat fickle on this subject.

So I did it. Now what is your favorite classic?

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Christmas Bookish Gifts - NOVA this week

Christmas Bookish Gifts – NOVA this week

Observations from my weekly wanderings, usually in Northern Virginia (NOVA).

We bookish sorts certainly make Christmas gift giving easy on our loved ones, no?

I always have a list of upcoming TBR, and even though I read mostly eBooks, I like to own the tree book. 

This year I received...

But the MOST exciting book gift this year was an individually signed copy of Deliverance by James Dickey. It’s also a very nice leather bound copy by the Franklin Library, but of course, the autograph is the real appeal.

Not a book, but related to my love of books, and in particular to my favorite books/author, I got several vintage Lord of the Rings posters. These are the actual posters that I bought in my youth when I and first fell in love with LOTR. I had given them up for lost, but son found them this year at my parents house, and then had them professionally framed.

This is a 1970 1st Trade Printing Map of Middle Earth by Pauline Baynes

And this 1988 poster by J. Cauty

And definitely not a book or even book related – just marvelously entertaining, I also got one of these:  https://www.facebook.com/casescene/videos/1787104894634259/

You really have to watch the video; it's amazing. 

Used Bookstore Finds - NOVA This Week

Observations from my weekly wanderings, usually in Northern Virginia (NOVA).

 

Usually in Northern Virginia, but this week mostly in NOAL (Northern Alabama), which comes very close to being a fun and ironic play on words.

I was in Huntsville on business, which is extreme Northern Alabama, nearly SOTN (Southern Tennessee - doesn't trip of the tongue so well). On the way home Thursday, I had a few hours to kill before my flight, and there was a used book store right next to my lunch stop – so as you can imagine – that was a nice diversion. I found a few treasures, most importantly this gem.

I read The Father Christmas Letters last year at Christmas time, from an eReader. It is a collection of letters that J.R.R. Tolkien wrote to his children, posing himself as Father Christmas. The letters were illustrated by Prof Tolkien (again, purported to be drawings Father Christmas made for the children). In my eReader, the illustrations were small and black and white. They are more enjoyable in full size and color. The cover is from 1926 and illustrates that the North Polar Bear accidentally turned on the Northern Lights full blast.

The book is a bit rare, so it was a good find.

Hope you have a Blessed Christmas.