Fangirl Moment: The Lord of the Rings-Fellowship of the Ring

TGIF! Here we are again with another Fangirl Friday! This week I’m not covering any of my usual topics, this time I decided change it up by covering a book that I just recently finished reading.

So today’s post will cover the first “book” in J.R.R Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings saga, The Fellowship of the Ring. Originally released in between 1954 and 1955, Lord of the Rings, was supposed to be published as one complete work. However, the publisher decided to split the work into three separate volumes: Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and Return of the King. The central conflict of the story revolves around the One Ring, which was created by the Dark Lord Sauron to assist him in his efforts to enslave all of Middle Earth. However, before his plan could be fully realized, the ring became lost and peace descended upon Middle Earth. After some years had passed, the ring was found by the most unlikely of heroes, setting in motion an events that would dictate the future of Middle Earth.

I tried to read this book back when I was in middle school, but I just couldn’t get into it. So I ended up returning it to the library after two weeks completely unread. I was a Harry Potter girl back then and Tolkien was way over my head. But, oddly enough I had no problem with watching the three hour long movies… but, even after watching all the movies I had no desire to pick the books up again. It wasn’t until last year when I found a copy at a thrift store that I even considered giving this fantasy epic another go. So, on a whim, I bought the book and began reading it during my hour and a half commutes to and from school. At first it was a slow go, because I kept forgetting to put the book in my schoolbag. Then, when I did manage bring it, I’d wind up playing Solitare on my phone instead… But, when I did read the book, I had a hard time putting it down!

Seeing the films only gave me half of the story, there was so much that the movies didn’t use, that it was almost like reading a completely different story! I understand that most films have time limits and whatnot, so not everything can make it into the film. But, with LotR, if you haven’t read the books, you’re missing out on some vital information! Don’t get me wrong, the films are great and all, but they cut some interesting stuff, like To Bombadil! I really wish they had included Tom Bombadil in the films, he was such a unique character and his ability to resist the One Ring’s power would have been a great plot point to include in the film… Plus, he’s a total badass, hermit and I would have loved to have seen that translated to the big screen.

But, what really blew me away was Tolkien’s mastery of language, he did an excellent job presenting Middle Earth and its inhabitants to the reader. At times I forgot that I was reading a work of fiction, the prose blends fantasy and reality in such a way that it all seems so plausible. I found myself half believing in Hobbits and Elves and magic rings, because Tolkien doesn’t just expect you to believe in them, he makes them real. He includes facts and histories throughout the narrative, to help explain some of the more foreign plot points, which I found extremely helpful.

I have the other two books and I hope to get to them soon, so I can uncover even more nuggets of wisdom the films left out! I highly recommend reading the books if you haven’t already, there is so much more to the story than what’s portrayed in the films!

Have you read any of Tolkien’s other works? What do you love most about the books? Do you have any suggestions for Fangirl Moment post? Any burning questions? Want me to review a specific book, film, anime, manga, show, or webcomic? Feel free to Comment on this post or Ask Me on my tumblr!  As always Thank You for reading!