Lord of the Rings?

Question

Ok, so I want to start reading these books. So far I know of the Hobbit, and The Lord of the Rings Trilogy. But now im finding out that there are other books; The Silmarilon (sp?), The Book of lost tales, The History of middle earth...

My question is, which one should I read first (and what order should i read them) in order to get the maximum effect of the story? And are there other books that I didnt mention?

Answer 1

If you want to read about the First Age of Middle-earth, start from the beginning of The Silmarillion and read until the founding of Númenor.

If you want to read about history of Númenor and Middle-earth during the Second Age, start with "Akallabêth" in The Silmarillion and read until Númenor is no more. The part of Tolkien's saga is often overlooked – especially the first thousand years, when the Dwarves of Moria and the Elves of Eregion were good friends, when wild and primitive men roamed the heavily-forested lands of Middle-earth, and no one suspected that the Shadow might rise again....

If you want to read about the history of the Third Age, start with section CE in "Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age" in The Silmarillion.

If you want to read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings with all the extra stuff added in, begin with section LB of "The Quest for Erebor" in Unfinished Tales.

If you just want to read the events that take place after the end of The Lord of the Rings, begin with "The Grey Havens" (the final chapter of Return of the King) and read until the end of the whole chronological ordering!



Should I use Chronological Tolkien if this is my first time reading The Lord of the Rings?

No! If you have never read The Lord of the Rings, you should read it first. Don't start by trying to read all of Tolkien's Middle-earth stories in chronological order.

Many of the passages in Unfinished Tales and the appendices to Return of the King assume that you are already familiar with the basic story of The Lord of the Rings – even though they are earlier stories, chronologically. This means that you might run into "spoilers" that would give away things you don't yet know about!

Moreover, there are a lot of references that simply make more sense when you are already familiar with the story of Lord of the Rings. For example, Tolkien might say that someone is "the ancestor of King Elessar", or mention that Oropher is the father of Thranduil and grandfather of Legolas. These references are really cool for readers who already know who these people are....

What if you haven't read the books, but have seen the movies? I would have to again answer "No". The movies omit too many names and details. Reading all of Tolkien's opus in chronological order takes time. If you've seen the movie, I highly recommend you delve immediately into Lord of the Rings (or if you prefer, begin with The Hobbit). If you finish the book and want more, then you might want to do the chronological reading then! Yes, this means you will have to read LotR more than once in your lifetime. If this sounds like a burden, then Chronological Tolkien is certainly not for you!

On the other hand, if you have read Lord of the Rings but haven't yet read The Silmarillion or Unfinished Tales, you certainly can use the Chronological Tolkien ordering!

Answer 2

My personal opinion is to start with the Hobbit because it will provide a back story that is helpful in understanding the Lord of the Rings. Then I would read the Lord of the Rings. Although the Silmarillion is also a back story for both LOR and the Hobbit, it is a very confusing and complicated work and is unnecessary to understanding the others. Basically, there are no hobbits in the Silmarillion to help you understand what's going on and reading it first may put you off trying to read the others. I would then read the Silmarillion and the others at your leisure.

Answer 3

Read The Hobbit first, as that was sort of an introduction to the world of Middle-Earth. Then proceed with the LOTR trilogy. The other were not attached to the LOTR story, though they add a little to the history of Middle-Earth.

Answer 4

You need to read them in an order.

1. The Hobbit
2. Fellowship
3. Two Towers
4. Return of the King
5. The Silmarilon

Although "The Hobbit" is a bit of a Children's Book, that is what it was based for when it was written. Even when Tolkien wrote LOTR, he was asked to simply write a follow to the Hobbit.

The Silmarilon was in the Works when Tolkien Died and his Son finished it. It is actually and excellent book, but it is a prequel to all the others, literally hundreds of years prior to the other stories.

Answer 5

DO NOT READ HOBBIT FIRST! I read the hobbit in 4th grade and it turned me off from LOTR. I didn't read those until 7th because I hated the hobbit so much. I found that the LOTR series was AWESOME compared to the Hobbit. I reread the Hobbit and since then have become more accepting of it, however, LOTR is the best to read. I did read The Simrilon but it was basically a collection of tales that were over all confusing. However, I truly enjoyed it because it tells you how Middle Earth came to be. It should be read after LOTR. I didn't read the book of lost tales or the history of middle earth but I know they are like the simrilon so I would read them after Simrilon. Goodluck! You're in for a treat!

Answer 6

If you really want to read in order...go with the Silmarillion first...if you want to enjoy the books and get interested..start with the Hobbit, the LOR, then come back to the Silmarillion. Timelinewise it's the first..but it's not as enjoyable a read. The rest of the books are just fillers or short stories...and you'll enjoy them more if you read the big four first.

Answer 7

I don't think it matters whether or not you read The Hobbit first - it's very much a childrens book and may put you off. You can read the Lord of the Rings without it.

HOWEVER, do not read the Silmarillion first - it is a huge disappointment, turgid and dull. Worth reading once to flesh out the reading of the LotR but not worth reading on its own account.