More Reading

After many months of wanting to, followed by two failed attempts, I have finally had a successful start of reading J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings.

For Christmas last year, I was gifted with a single-volume copy of all three books that I found in Barnes and Noble's for around $60 ($80, but with discounts). It's huge, it's heavy, and it's like a zillion pages long.

The two failed attempts at reading occured after the several forewords - this is like the Umpteen Millionth Edition, and apparently warrants a metric shit-ton of explanation as to why - and at the beginning of the elder Tolkien's actual prologue. Which is a bummer, because that's where the foundation of the story is laid and character development begins. Well, this time I pushed through, and got mesmerized in the prologue. Once I got to "Concerning Hobbits", Ian McKellen's voice took over and I was walking in a pub in Middle Earth.

I have made it to about the middle of Chapter Two. I'm not reading particularly fast - I usually can't, and I consider this an advanced read - but I'm soaking it in, big time.

I am also picking up many differences between the books and the screenplays. You really do have to make a movie for movie theaters; copying a book is nearly impossible. I respect Peter Jackson's work. As my brother put it, Peter did what he did by his passion for the story. But it isn't directly out of the books. And I'm fine with that.

So, I have set a goal. I intend to finish The Return of the King before Monster Hunter Vendetta hits the shelves. Which will be made of ultra-concentrated awesome. Of course, there will be a bit of transition shock going between Tolkien's elves and Correia's elves*.



tweaker

*if you haven't read Monster Hunter International, you must purchase it and read it immediately. You are required to do so. Quit staring at your monitor; get thee hence to Barnes and Noble!!!