http://www.tolkien-online.com/
J.R.R. Tolkien
Yup, the creator of the Lord of the Rings. I never got around to reading Return of the King (the last Lord of the Rings book in the trilogy) but I have read The Hobbit, The Fellowship of the Ring, and The Two Towers.
I think I like Tolkien's work more or less for the same reason I like William Shakespeare's literary prowess. He just has a way of talking about things while he's telling you his story that just really suck you in. As weird as it may sound, it's like I'm completely lost with what he's saying, but at the same time I know exactly what he's describing. He has a very intricate way of feeding you the story. My favorite thing about his writing is the way he describes the surroundings of a particular scene. If there is one thing I know I need to work on with my writing (as far as stories go) it would be showing, not telling about the particular environment a scene in my book is taking place in.
Tolkien's the man.
After "The Fellowship" movie came out, I became a pretty big Tolkien fan as well. I read the trilogy in sixth grade, so for me; the books were some pretty confusing stuff at the time. I enjoyed the adventures though and to an extended I think I enjoyed the idea of reading his books. I read some of his other stuff as I got older, and I'm not going to lie, his writing style isn't my favorite, however I really appreciate the books and what Peter Jackson did with his books. The whole "LotR" experience that I went through in the sixth grade sort of made me sure that I wanted to head into the writing literature field.
ReplyDeleteYou should check out Robert E. Howard, the man who created Conan The Barbarian. While he never achieved the kind of, I don't know, "high brow literary" acclaim that Tolkien received, Howard is equal to, and maybe even better than Tolkien. There's an intensity to Howard's fantasy writing that really sucks you in. Might have to do with the fact that he was kind of a loony tune, but still. Check out "The Hour of The Dragon" if you can. Great stuff.
ReplyDeleteWell, maybe this is the summer when I read some JRRT. I've had enough friends and students recommend it that I know it must be great--but I have this terrible fear that it's going to be boys' stories!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the post--and the reminder.
I read the trilogy for the first time about two years ago and I totally get what you're saying about the way Tolkien is so adept at setting a scene and wholly realizing the world within which his stories take place. And Prof, I don't mean to discourage you, but the movies, especially the extended DVD editions are pretty accurate in regards to the text, so if the movies didn't grab your attention, I'm not sure how the book will fair.
ReplyDeleteI have actually never read the Lord of the Rings or any of those movies. Lol i was told myself i was too cool too, but from what you wrote I actually now want to read the book. I heard the book is a lot better than the movie.
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