Best J.R.R. Tolkien Book

[DARKastheRAIN]

I'm gonna go with the Silmarillion. It's just amazing in so many ways. :):):)

[HisLeast]

It was Return of the King for me. Extremely satisfying conclusion.

[Laish]

I loved the Hobbit . In my opinion the perfect fantasy story not too long but great story telling full of detail an character development.

[Bethany67]

Can I opt for None? I've never really managed to get into Tolkien (The Hobbit was okay when I was 9), which is a shame. I try LOTR every once in a while but anything past Tom Bombadil defeats me every time. I prefer Guy Gavriel Kay.

[DARKastheRAIN]

^to each his own, I suppose.

[HisLeast]

Can I opt for None? I've never really managed to get into Tolkien (The Hobbit was okay when I was 9), which is a shame. I try LOTR every once in a while but anything past Tom Bombadil defeats me every time. I prefer Guy Gavriel Kay.

Yeah... the Tom Bombadil sequence is a strange one. Even die-hard Tolkien fans scratch their heads over it. Its definitely not a universally enjoyed part of the story. Fellowship of the Ring is the slowest of the three. If you can manage to get through it, I think you'll see what the rest of us are really on about.

[HisLeast]

My favorite sequences from the books are...
- Gandalf's showdown on the Bridge of Kaza'dun - only the barest hint given as to Gandalf's true nature. So compelling.
- Eowyn's battle against the Nazgul King - the meek claims victory over the terrible.
- Ents - and everything about 'em. :)

My favorite sequences from the movies are... (in rough order)
- The Charge of Rohan. Possibly my favorite moment in 30 years of movie watching. "Ride for ruin... and the world's ending!!". The hardcore Tolkien enthusiast would note that this is Eomer's line, and not Theoden's, but it was still darned good cinema.
- The Last March of the Ents. The last vestiges of a pure and ancient strength take the field for the last time and save the day. That plust the musica score for the scene is second only to the Charge of Rohan in intensity.
- Gandalf's showdown on the Bridge of Kaza'dun. I still prefer how I imagined it... but Jackson certainly brought a presence to the Balrog I hadn't pictured.
- The Fall & Redemption of Boromir. Sean Bean brought a nobility, struggle, and remorse to Boromir that the books couldn't have captured if they had added a 4rth novel just for him.

[HisLeast]

And I'd like to add that there has never been and probably never will be a book-to-movie adaptation casted as well as LOTR was. I can't think of a single actor who didn't fit their character PERFECTLY as well as add that "certain something" that overwrites how you originally pictured them.

[DARKastheRAIN]

Yeah... the Tom Bombadil sequence is a strange one. Even die-hard Tolkien fans scratch their heads over it. Its definitely not a universally enjoyed part of the story.

When I first read LotR I found the Bombadil part boring, but reading it again after reading the Silmarillion, I found it quite fascinating. (certainly got me scratching my head, but in a good way :))

[Buzzword]

You would ask me to pick favorites among my children?

;) J/k, but seriously...

Probably have to go with Silmarillion.

It's like the love-child of the Bible and Greek mythology...love it!
Though they'll never be able to make a movie version. :P

[DARKastheRAIN]

It's like the love-child of the Bible and Greek mythology...love it!


:rofl:


great analogy

[Jules C]

Lord of the Rings for me - especially Fellowship of the Ring.

[Izdaari]

The Silmarillion is a wonderful work of lore and of world creation, but LotR is a much better story. For that reason, I had to vote for LotR.

[DARKastheRAIN]

^I always thought the Silmarillion was a better story. The style is harder to follow and get into, but the story in itself is amazing. If the Silmarillion was written in detail like LotR, (it would be 5 million and one pages long) it would be the most amazing thing that ever happened to literature (It already is :) but whatev')

[HisLeast]

^I always thought the Silmarillion was a better story. The style is harder to follow and get into, but the story in itself is amazing. If the Silmarillion was written in detail like LotR, (it would be 5 million and one pages long) it would be the most amazing thing that ever happened to literature (It already is :) but whatev')

Well, to me its a little like comparing apples & oranges. LoTR is the story. Silmarillion is a volume of background lore. Its like comparing Homer's "The Odyssey" to a text summarizing Greek mythology.