Hey Rogue

[Stang]

Or anyone else that can help me.

Id like to read the Tales of LOTR from the Hobbit on but I have looked and have no clue what books to get. I looked online at Barnes and Noble and they had pages and pages of books. So I thought I'd come ask the expert . I know not to get the ones that have the picture of the movies on them cuz they are like the movies.

After watching the Two Towers I want to read about it now . It kinda pulls you in . And find out if there is more to the love story between Arwen and Aragorn .

[Walks on Clouds]

I'm sorry to break it to you, but no, there isn't much more to the love story between Aragorn and Arwen, it's actually more a love story between Aragorn and Éowyn. Peter Jackson has been quite liberal with his artistic freedom...

I especially dislike the way he lets the worlds highest-level living elf hero (Haldir) get killed by some hundred simple orcs. (I mean, LOTR is obviously a level-based system. Just look at Gandalf and the Balrog, for instance. Or Aragorn and the Uruk-Hai in FoTR.)

When it comes to buying books, I'd recommend simply checking for books with a printing date sufficiently preceeding the movie release date.

[XRogue]

Ignore that, Stang, he's being ironic because Peter Jackson is annoying.

The LOTR trilogy consists of: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King. They can be obtained in three separate volumes or in one big book, softbound, paperback, or hardbound as you like.

I have a large one book copy currently, the large black softbound that you have prolly seen. I wore out my first 3 book set, bought a second three book set and gave it away to a friend, then bought the one book copy. I like having it in one book, easier to keep up with and smaller to store. ( I have a serious book storage space problem, and expect this to continue. )


After you read the trilogy, you might read the Silmarillion, or some of the other books, but the trilogy ought to hold you awhile.

Oh, and incidentally, the books with the movie pictures on them are NOT novelizations of the movies, there are no plans to make such, so you could go ahead and get them if you want. It makes no difference, they are the original novels.

[Ghryphen]

What about prior to the Fellowship? Was the Hobbit the cartoon movie from a book prior to that?

[XRogue]

Yes, a book titled The Hobbit, which concerned Bilbo's adventures and his acquisition (rather, theft) of the One Ring from Gollum. Gandalf makes reference to this in the opening scenes of FOTR when he refers to the 'incident with the dragon'.

[Aluscia]

And if you want the before story History wise, the Silmarillion is the way to go... (A warning... Don't read it before LOTR, because if you don't like LOTR, you won't make it through the Sil)

[KitZune]

The Hobbit is the story of Bilbo baggins... it's written for children but I personally think it sets the stage for Lord of the Rings, so I suggest you read it first... In Lord of the Rings it IS the book that Bilbo is writing (YOu may have seen that in the extended version his book called "There and Back again" The Hobbit's subtitle is "There and Back again" no coincidence...)

Then the three lord of the rings books are the same name as the movies...
Fellowship of the ring
The Two Towers
and The Return of the King.

Each book is technically TWO books... there are infact 7 books in the lord of the rings series but you will rarely see them published seperately... But I'm mentioning that incase you find one like my collection, I have the hobbit seperately then the 7 lord of the rings books and the silmarillion. The Silmarillion is like reading the bible... it's long and boring... but in the end leaves you with a greater knowledge of Middle Earth. As laur said, I only suggest the silmarillion if you aren't bored easily.

[Stang]

Cool thanks alot guys. Ill have to venture out to the bookstore this weekend.

So the books with the movie on the front is the same as the rest of the books?

If you could find some pictures of what the books should look like too that would help me out too. I dont want to get the wrong ones.

Dont worry Rogue I wont listen to that WoC

We watched a little video clip last night about Middle Earth was pretty interesting. Weird how Tolkein made that map and it looks like so many of the mountain ranges around the world. Helped explain what Middle Earth was.

[Ghryphen]

I use to have a read-along record for The Hobbit and have seen the movie a few times. Stang and I downloaded The Hobbit movie before we went and saw fotr so that she would understand the movie better.

[KitZune]

The books will come in many different shapes and sizes... but in the end if they have the right titles on them, they will be the right ones on the inside. I've seen ones with the movie covers as the book covers, but they're the same books.

[XRogue]

I don't think they'll be doing movie novelizations, Stang. Tehy can't use the original titles to put on the novelizations, because Tolkien's estate will have to give permission for that, and you can confidently expect the Second Coming before that'll happen.

Not to mention the rabid Tolkien fans'd kill anyone who did that.

[Stang]

Ok cool, just wanted to make sure I didnt get them, if I get those ones, and then find out that they are the wrong ones.

Ill go find The Hobbit and read that first .

[XRogue]

No problemo, that is what we manic Tolkienites are here for.

Incidentally, do you intend to try to read all 3 before the 3rd movie comes out? I'd advise it, but I don't know if that is what you'd rather do.


'3!!'-Gimli

'17!!!"-Legolas

"Grr!!!!"-Gimli

[Stang]

Im going to try I have a year before the last one comes out .

[XRogue]

Heh, good idea. The third one is my favorite of the 3 books. Beware, most ppl say the first hundred pages or so of the first book is the hardest to get thru, but after that, supposedly it gets much easier, tho I personally didn't have much trouble.