Maybe it's sad, or ironic, that The Hobbit was more exciting than the LOTR trilogy.
You might appreciate this interview about why Christians should read fiction. The author takes a jab at Tolkien at some point. http://www.challies.com/interviews/fiction-literature-an-interview-with-russell-moore
Love this bit: "On to the sample pages you supplied. From what I can see, most of your first chapter is taken up with back-story concerning "hobbits" and their unusual living arrangements. Indeed - by the end of this first chapter, the story still hasn't started. Might I suggest commencing at a different point in the narrative? Your best bet would be to open with Bilbo in the grip of the Trolls, and gradually, as the tale progresses, present the back-story of how he came to be there. This will grab your young reader's attention from the start, enticing them to read further while moving the story along at a much quicker pace."
I first read LOTR when I was 12 (I started reading the second volume first, since my mother was struggling with the first volume -- she gave up before finishing). After finishing the trilogy, I went back and read it all over again. I went to summer camp that year. I noticed another boy reading The Hobbit, and I asked him if I could borrow his copy after he finished. He said he was just finishing it and would sell it to me for 50 cents. I bought it, and started reading it every free moment I had at camp, even reading it late at night with a flashlight in my sleeping bag (lights weren't allowed on past curfew).
My only complaint about Tolkien's stories is that they weren't long enough.
How I ended up taking "Bilbo" as my pseudonym is a different story, which I won't go into. I'm not sure the original owner of that name would be pleased with my use of it. But after years of using it, it's sort of stuck to me, I'm afraid. I hope I haven't dragged it through too much mud.
3 comments:
Well the dragon is a female, if that counts.
Maybe it's sad, or ironic, that The Hobbit was more exciting than the LOTR trilogy.
You might appreciate this interview about why Christians should read fiction. The author takes a jab at Tolkien at some point. http://www.challies.com/interviews/fiction-literature-an-interview-with-russell-moore
Love this bit:
"On to the sample pages you supplied. From what I can see, most of your first chapter is taken up with back-story concerning "hobbits" and their unusual living arrangements. Indeed - by the end of this first chapter, the story still hasn't started. Might I suggest commencing at a different point in the narrative? Your best bet would be to open with Bilbo in the grip of the Trolls, and gradually, as the tale progresses, present the back-story of how he came to be there. This will grab your young reader's attention from the start, enticing them to read further while moving the story along at a much quicker pace."
I first read LOTR when I was 12 (I started reading the second volume first, since my mother was struggling with the first volume -- she gave up before finishing). After finishing the trilogy, I went back and read it all over again. I went to summer camp that year. I noticed another boy reading The Hobbit, and I asked him if I could borrow his copy after he finished. He said he was just finishing it and would sell it to me for 50 cents. I bought it, and started reading it every free moment I had at camp, even reading it late at night with a flashlight in my sleeping bag (lights weren't allowed on past curfew).
My only complaint about Tolkien's stories is that they weren't long enough.
How I ended up taking "Bilbo" as my pseudonym is a different story, which I won't go into. I'm not sure the original owner of that name would be pleased with my use of it. But after years of using it, it's sort of stuck to me, I'm afraid. I hope I haven't dragged it through too much mud.
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