There is absolutely nothing wrong with The Lord of the Rings, from a writing point of view, but I would say that the writing style no longer holds up. readers have changed, so writing styles have adapted to reader preferences. people don’t search for this story because, let’s be honest, it’s a tome.
j.r.r. Tolkien was a brilliant writer.It is important to know that he was a linguistic genius and the worlds he built are amazingly large and intricate. he created not just maps of middle earth, but entire races with their own poetry and food and every little detail carefully sketched out in beautiful tomes of information. The reason Middle Earth is so alive is because of the care and passion Tolkien poured into his world.
You are reading: Are the lord of the rings books good
tolkien’s art is the reason we can’t get enough of hobbits and the story of the one ring. so how dare i say the lord of the rings doesn’t hold up?
How many people do you know who have read any of the Lord of the Rings books?
It takes a certain kind of person, someone patient and diligent, to read these novels. I first read them when I was in seventh grade, while the movies were coming out. i remember being stuck for months on elrond’s council. the way tolkien writes: he has no choice but to acknowledge every lackluster detail. when I tried to read the trilogy again in high school, I got caught up in – yes! – elrond’s advice, and put down the books.
j.r.r. Tolkien pioneered the epic fantasy genre, and any fan of fantasy will have tried this series. those I’ve talked to have a similar experience to mine: it’s not that the books aren’t good. is that… they are a chore. Anyone who dares to undertake this trilogy must be prepared to go into battle.
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the pace is slow, very slow, so minutely slow. the descriptions are complete and specific, so you have no doubts about the way an elf carves his bow, right under the tree it came from. There’s such an emphasis on world building that you end up on the sidelines about the songs of the dwarves while you wait to hear how the community will escape the mines of moria.
Modern readers don’t have time for these tomes, but in the age of social media, they don’t have the attention span either. in a way, it’s sad. but in many other ways, I get it. my generation has spent so much time trying to meet our societal expectations that the only way most people can dream of reading a 350+ page book is to listen to the audiobook while doing our mundane daily work, like going to work or cook. These slow burning books are now a labor of love.
So why, when there are pretty good adaptations of classic novels like the Lord of the Rings trilogy, do we bother with books?
because, by tom bombadil.
fantasy fans still flock to the tolkien omnibus because there is so much detail in the books that there is no way a movie or tv series can do them justice. The depth of detail that turns modern readers off also draws fans in.
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I have to admit that even though I love fantasy, I love epic fantasy, I struggle with the Lord of the Rings trilogy. A couple of years ago, I decided I was going to reread the trilogy. I have all three books on audible, and even managed to read the first one. the narrator isn’t even bad (audiobooks are made or broken by the narrator). but after i finished the fellowship of the ring, i needed a break. it’s heavy.
but I don’t regret anything. The Lord of the Rings trilogy is worth reading, although they are very long and a bit monotonous. there’s so much to the story that doesn’t make it into movies, side stories, and fascinating tidbits that you’ll miss if you don’t jump in.
When The Fellowship of the Ring was released in 2001, it was well received by the general public, but received some negative reactions from Tolkien fans. because where was tom bombadil? where was goldberry? These minor characters don’t really have much of an overall importance to the story, but they are a lot of fun. My personal favorite part of the camaraderie also doesn’t make it into the movie. again, the king of the barrows is not essential to the overall story, but he is interesting. these are little treasures that only readers of the books will see.
So, while I fully admit that the Lord of the Rings series is, frankly, a tall order… I encourage people to read the trilogy. It’s worth taking a walk through Tolkien’s imagination; he invented the subgenre and to this day is one of its strongest inhabitants. The stories are incredible, full of meticulous detail and exciting side quests.
if you love history, but don’t read the books…then you’re missing half the story.
so give it a try. friend, read them, if it helps you. force himself through elrond’s eternal council. worth the trip.
