Some of my favourite quotes from LOTR:

Of Sam:  "He never had any real hope in the affair from the beginning; but being a cheerful hobbit he had not needed hope, as long as despair could be postponed"  [this has been a good one to keep in mind for the last couple of years]

"A quick duck had saved him.." [there were apparently ducks living underground in Moria?]

"Aragorn and Legolas went now with Eomer in the van." Clearly it was quicker to go by van than plod along on Rohan horses. [van = vanguard, the front group of the force]

Descriptions:

Day came and the fallow sun blinked over the lifeless ridges of Ered Lithui. Then suddenly the cry of brazen-throated trumpets was heard: from the watchtowers they blared,and far away from hidden holds and outposts in the hills came answering calls; and further still, remote but deep and ominous, there echoed in the hollow land beyond the mighty horns and drums of Barad-dur. Another dreadful day of fear and toil had come to Mordor; and the night-guards were summoned to their dungeons and deep halls, and the day-guards, evil-eyed and fell, were marching to their posts. Steel gleamed dimly on the battlement.  (The Black Gate is Closed)

The growing light revealed to them a land already less barren and ruinous. The mountains still loomed up ominously on their left, but near at hand they could see the southward road, now bearing away from the black roots of the hills and slanting westwards. Beyond it were slopes covered with sombre trees like dark clouds, but all about them lay a tumbled heathland, grown with broom and ling and cornel, and other shrubs that they did not know. Here and there they saw knots of tall pine-trees. The hearts of the hobbits rose again a little in spite of weariness: the air was fresh and fragrant, and it reminded them of the uplands of the Northfarthing far away. It seemed good to be reprieved, to walk in a land that had only been for a few years under the dominion of the Dark Lord and was not yet fallen wholly into decay. (Of Herbs and Stewed Rabbit)

Hello fellow Narniawebbers! It’s been a long time. Anyway, my hometown is displaying many of JRR Tolkien’s manuscripts to the general public for the first time. Thought I’d share the article in case anyone wanted to make the trip to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The exhibit will last through December:

https://www.tmj4.com/news/milwaukee-tonight/j-r-r-tolkiens-lord-of-rings-drafts-and-manuscripts-on-display-at-marquette-university

When was the first time that you read Tolkien?  For me it was The Hobbit in high school. I read the three parts of The Lord of the Rings for the first time during one of the summers when I was in college decades ago. I thought the books were good, but I didn’t really understand their greatness until years later.  In fact I had actually liked Narnia better perhaps because Lewis took less time to tell his story than Tolkien. Years later I began to have more patience with Tolkien when I reread his books and now I like him about as much as Lewis. So I guess an acquired taste takes time and patience as it does with reading Dickens.

I first read The Hobbit when I was 7 years old, hot on the heels of the Chronicles of Narnia. I loved it so much that, especially as my older sister had just recently read The Lord of the Rings (and given me a few spoilers, but none that really ruined it), I went right on with the epic sequel — and loved it even more. Well, to be fair, Mum and I were reading it together (as we did with books every evening, taking it in turns to go chapter by chapter), so she was able to explain some of the more difficult words to me, even if she did grumble a lot at having to get her tongue around "funny made-up names" (our one-volume edition left out most of the appendices, including the one that gives pronunciations of Elvish words and names). It took a fair while to get through — I'm pretty sure I was 8 by the time we finished it! — but I was absolutely hooked and have been ever since, and have only grown to appreciate it more on every re-read.

I will admit I STILL haven't read The Silmarillion or any of the other posthumous works collated by Christopher, but they are on my list... the problem is I always have too many books I want to read and not enough time. I'm sure others here know the feeling!  

I was always somewhat baffled by some people who thought that Tolkien’s books were boring. I think they take more patience to read than Lewis’, but there is always something interesting to keep you going.  The Silmarillion is Tolkien’s hardest book to read, but it still has the intriguing attraction of an ancient world. Tolkien was a slow storyteller, but that hasn’t stopped people from enjoying his books. It may be unusual in a modern world to go at a leisurely pace, but apparently many people do enjoy it. 🙂

@courtenay I suggest you select one part of the Silmarillion to read, then come back to another part in a few weeks. It's like a set of long short stories. 

The beauty of the creation story should not be missed.

@coracle I did start reading the creation story and was awed, but had too much else going on at the time to be able to savour it as it deserves. The whole book is clearly not something to be skimmed or rushed!

I am kind of amazed that some people have reread The Lord of the Rings many times.  I read it only twice and someday perhaps I will read it again. Most books of that length of 1200 pages are usually read by people only once or twice, but there are people who love Tolkien so much that they never seem to get enough of him. And that is certainly to his credit, considering that in our modern world his stories are quite old fashioned.  🙂

Posted by: @courtenay

I will admit I STILL haven't read The Silmarillion or any of the other posthumous works collated by Christopher, but they are on my list... the problem is I always have too many books I want to read and not enough time. I'm sure others here know the feeling!   ... I did start reading the creation story and was awed, but had too much else going on at the time to be able to savour it as it deserves. The whole book is clearly not something to be skimmed or rushed!

Truly, Courtenay, regarding all you said here! When you do have some concentrated time to start reading The Silmarillion, I would love to hear your thoughts. I tried reading The Sil in my teens and just didn't get it. I waited a decade or so, tried again, and fell in love with the amazing tales therein. The first few pages of the first chapter, alone, "Ainulindalë, The Music of the Ainur", is some of the most glorious writing ever penned.

Posted by: @narnian78

I was always somewhat baffled by some people who thought that Tolkien’s books were boring.

I understand what you mean, but, granted, Tolkien's writing is not for everyone. And what amazes me even more is the Tolkien readers who say that a long, discussion/information-laden chapter in The Lord of the Rings like "The Council of Elrond" or "The Voice of Saruman" is uninteresting and drab. For me, they are some of my favourite chapters in the entire book: such wealth of M-e history and fascinating details.

Posted by: @narnian78

I am kind of amazed that some people have reread The Lord of the Rings many times

I tend not to go on about this a whole lot, but I am in the midst of my 26th read of TLotR. I delve into it faithfully every two years (only because I have so many other books I want to get through even once ) and, as with The Chronicles of Narnia, it becomes richer and more meaningful with every read. In 2020, as I began, for the first time I wondered if the story would begin to be old and worn to me. But as I jumped in, I knew there was no way I could tire of this breathtaking tale. And the same holds true this round, and will continue through each subsequent re-read, I have no doubt.

Posted by: @narnian78

And that is certainly to his credit

Indeed! I knew someone in our former town who said she could never read a book twice. But then, her taste in books was very different than mine.  

Posted by: @jo

tend not to go on about this a whole lot, but I am in the midst of my 26th read of TLotR. I delve into it faithfully every two years (only because I have so many other books I want to get through even once ) and, as with The Chronicles of Narnia, it becomes richer and more meaningful with every read.

I actually don't bother to keep tracks of how many times I read the books I like, and I've never understood why people are surprised at readers rereading their favorite books multiple times. If you really enjoy an experience, why not have it as many times as convenient? 

Interesting article from the Smithsonian website about the influences behind Tolkien's writing of LoTR. I had no idea how attached he was to the Atlantis myth and how Edward VIII abdicating the British throne may have inspired the fall of Numenor!

In the article there's tantalizing references to other pieces of fiction he wrote that are yet unpublished.

@cobalt-jade That's fascinating — thank you for sharing it! I really must get on and read The Silmarillion, not to mention all the other posthumous Tolkien works I can manage... (The friend who lent me The Silmarillion is also egging me on, as he's been listening to some of the others as audio books and clearly can't get enough of them.)

I've actually recalled reading in a trivia that in earlier draft, King Theoden had a daughter named Idis. She was later removed and replaced with a niece, Eowyn. I wonder if she had been kept in there, if she would have been made heir to the throne of Rohan after Theodred was killed.

[originally posted by Johobbit ] : I tend not to go on about this a whole lot, but I am in the midst of my 26th read of TLotR. 

For a lesser book it would surprise people. But for LORD OF THE RINGS, that's not as unexpected. It's a rich, dense slice of legendarium, which can still surprise us from time to time.

Consider these articles on two villains, Denethor and Lobelia. I can understand if the films lacked the time to portray their complexity. But it is annoying that the films found the time to portray them as one-dimensional buffoons.

Mind, I don't especially even like these characters (certainly would not want to meet either one). But I think that portraying all antagonists as villains, and portraying all villains as stupid, makes Good feel both "professional victim; poor me" ... and also, mighty smug. The truth is that most people do things for reasons that make sense to them, and a good storyteller will sometimes make the reader work for it.

Eowyn married Faramir, so she did become a Queen, but of the new land of Ithilien.