Newbie- Just want to ask about Tolkien books

[Day-dreamer]

Hey all!

Ive just joined this board and well frankly I didn't even know something like this existed! One day I was bored and decided to see whats good on the net and to my surprise, I stumbled upon this great site I have always loved reading Fantasy Novels and now I see that Im not alone.

Anywaz enough with the intro. The first book Ive read by Tolkien is The hobbit. It took me about two weeks to read it considering I wasnt much of a book lover then and to my surprise I loved it! At the time I still dont know there were other books written by Tolkien, until a few years ago I heard about LotR and immediately set up to get the first series from the Library. Well here's the worse part. I did not find it interesting. The first couple of chapters was interesting but after that for the rest of the 1/4 of the book ( it's as far as i could go without falling asleep ) was a bit tedious and well boring. There was not alot happening and well I just gave up. Now Im asking people here- should I continue reading this book cuz it sounds from alot of people that it will become interesting. Should I agian attempt to read LotR!?

[Kyote Fields]

First of all, hello and welcome.
Second of all, the people who are here in this entmoot, they love LOTR, they read it once, maybe even twice a day, all three books. They could tell you the difference between Noldor and Teleri, name all 7 Dwarf Fathers and tell you if Balrogs have wings or not, all without batting an eye lash. (Well, maybe not the Balrog part )
So for you to come and say, in essence, Hi, your book is horrible and boring, aint the the best way to win friends and influence people
Third and lastly, if you don't like it, you don't like it. I don't like fish, some people like on the sea and eat nothing but. You could try it again but don't sweat it. And maybe once you read a few more threads and posts you learn more about the history and the world of Tolkien and you'll enjoy the books.

And that's all that I have to say about that...

[Darth Tater]

Fellowship does start out slow, I'll admit it. But LOTR is why the fantasy genre exsists, and it is pure genious

[Strange-Looking Lurker]

Welcome!

You can read Tolkien on differant levels. The first level is the Hobbit. The second level is LOTR. The interesting thing is that once you finish the second level, the first takes on more meaning. And once you finish the third level, the first and second take on even more meaning! But not everyone is interested in the higher levels. That's fine. Enjoy what you find enjoyable and don't sweat the rest. However, I would recommend trying at least one more time to read LOTR, it's a really, really, really good book.

[Renille]

It took me at least three false starts to really get into the Fellowship of the Ring. My real stumbling block was the chapter, 'The Council of Elrond.' I never seemed to be able to get through the chapter, so I put the book down for a while. "A while" often became a week. About the fourth time I began, I resolved to get through that chapter...do or die. Surprisingly, I found it quite interesting. After that chapter, I felt I could do anything. I've finished all three of the LoTR books and the Hobbit. I am using the "Council of Elrond" technique to finish the Silmarillion, and guess what? It's working! I'm loving the Tolkein books more every time I read them! So my big point?

DON'T GIVE UP!! The Tolkein books ARE long, but take one page, one chapter, one council at a time. You'll finish, and I promise you'll love them.

(Oh yeah, you can all fine me $2,000,000 if I'm wrong. )

[Ñólendil]

Welcome Day Dreamer!

Kyote Fields, I would like to declare that I for one do not read the entire Lord of the Rings twice or even once a day Nor do I or anyone else know all the names of the Dwarf fathers, unfortunately

I don't see anything wrong with what Day Dreamer said. If you don't enjoy it, you don't enjoy it, as you say Fields. But I would give it another go just to make sure.

Renille, interesting you should say that about the Council of Elrond. Tolkien said he had perhaps erred too much in trying to give too much past history. He said many readers, for example, got rather stuck at the Council of Elrond.

[anduin]

Count me in as one of those who got stuck at the Council. I put it down for a couple of weeks but eventually made it through that chapter. But now I include that chapter as one of my most favorite. Tolkien works that way it seems. It a part seems long and boring there is probably something in there that is really worth reading, and could very well become your favorite part. Ditto for the songs and poetry....which I skipped over my first couple of read throughs.

I would certainly give it another chance. I read LOTR before The Hobbit and didn't even finish The Hobbit the first time I read it. To me it just wasn't as good. But I was comparing it too much to LOTR, which wasn't such a good idea. Eventually I picked up The Hobbit again and found it to be great. So yes, I would definitely give it another try.

[Renille]

Wow, I did NOT know that about the Council. Now I want to go back and read that chapter again. But I CAN'T! I think I left my copy of the Fellowship in a rental car last summer on my way home from Canada...now I'm REALLY mad at myself. Oh well...another birthday present to ask for

By the way, I'm also another who do NOT read the Lord of the Rings every day. I'd like to...but school stands in the way...

[ringbearer]

I, also got discouraged with the "Council", and like Anduin, it is now one of my favorites. I still get chills, when Frodo pulls out the Ring, and Elrond says, "Behold, Isildur's Bane", and when Gandalf
recites what he read on the Ring in the tongue of Mordor. I wonder how many of us, at first, got "hung up" on this chapter!

[Sister Golden Hair]

Well, I think Day- dreamer felt something or he or she wouldn't have even posted.
I for one read the Hobbit first years ago, and loved it. When it came time to read the Fellowship, I was very excited. As I read, and saw that it was different, and different characters, I was a little discouraged. However, as I continued, I loved it and the Hobbit kind of took a back seat. The Council of Elrond was a tough chapter for me as well. It was the first really long and complex chapter in the story I think, but a must. I eagerly read through the rest of the books and was never brought to a moment of dul reading until RotK. You know what though? By the time I got over all of these reading hurdles, I was hooked. I have read the Silmarillion, (my favorite) and Unfinished Tales. Some of the HoMe as well.
Continue reading. I also guarentee when you are finished, you will be in love, and hunger for more. PROMISE!

[olorin]

Keep going, you're almost there. About three more chapters, and you will be on the edge of your seat, up until 3 am, reading like a maniac. And I really don't know anyone who really liked The hobbit and not the Lord of the Rings. So have another go.

[Selwythe]

Strange, I loved the chapter on Council of Elrond the first time I read it. I read through it in one sitting, engrossed in it.

Yes, the first book is not very good. I was very weary at reading about how the Hobbits went to Rivendell. Even now when I re-read it, I skip those chapters. That was really boring. But the story starts getting good when at Moria. Ditto for The Scouring of the Shire, that was boring too.

[ArwenEvenstar]

most of my friends find this really wierd, i read the silmarillion before i finished LOTR.

[Day-dreamer]

Thanx Guys!

I'll take those comments into serious consideration. It seems that I'll just have to finish the book before making up my mind. Well you all persuade me to take another shot at it When I finish the book, I'll tell you all what I think For now, thanx again for the encouragement..
P.s.
To clear up Kyote Fields comment abut me thinking LotR is "horrible and boring". I would like to say that, yes I did find it boring when I read it, but I dont think it's horrible at all! You may have interpret my meaning as an insult but it wasnt intended like that. Hope there's no misunderstanding there!

[Idril Celebrindal]

the first time I read LotR, I got past the council of elrond with no problems... for some reason, however, I stopped reading when I got to Moria
I don't get it... the next time I tried reading LotR, I was hooked once I got to that point, and yes, I did sit up all night reading on several occasions.

[Sister Golden Hair]

Originally posted by ArwenEvenstar
most of my friends find this really wierd, i read the silmarillion before i finished LOTR.

When I read LOTRs there was no such book as the Silmarillion, or Unfinished Tales. It is funny though how the Silmarillion became my most favorite of all though I love LOTRs too. Can't wait for the movie.

[Kyote Fields]

Inoldonil, ok, ok maybe not once a day....
Once a week?
And as for Day Dreamer - I use alot of sarcasm in my speech and I forget that slight influctuations in tone can not be "heard" by you the reader. No harm, no foul. No offence is taken and I hope no offence received (streches out hand to be shaken).

[Day-dreamer]

Takes hand in good will No harm done. Im not easily intimidated so I dont mind if people say bad things about me but I hate to give off the wrong impression

[samwise of the shire]

I found that the first half of the Return of the King to be boring and hard to read because I wanted to know what happened to Sam and Frodo,I mean when I left them Sam was.... well I'll shut up about the book now considering Day dreamer has'nt read TRK.
First off Day Dreamer to help you with what we mean by certain abbreviations.LOTR is The Lord of The Rings. FOTR means the Fellowship of the Ring. T2T means the Two Towers. TRK means The Return of the King.ME means Middle earth. Second when you read LOTR the most boring parts are the most importent(well sometimes)so read it whether you like it or no.
And thirdly have fun here and any questions will be answered so dont be afraid to ask.
Sam
Ps. Ooops forgot somethin. Elen Sila Lumenn Omentilmo Mellon. A star shines on the hour of our meeting friend. Welcome! Call me Sma or Sotshire.

[Renille]

Oh, I LOVED the first half of the Return of the King!!!!! (This is really weird...) But, then, Aragorn, Legolas, and Pippin are my favorite three characters...no WAIT! I forgot Gandalf. Still, that would explain my oddities as far as book-liking is concerned.