The Silmarillion (Silmarillion) (Pre-Lord of the Rings) (Lord of the Rings)

by J. R. R. Tolkien

The legendary precursor to The Lord of the Rings

“A creation of singular beauty . . . magnificent in its best moments.”—The Washington Post

Set primarily in the First Age of Middle-earth, The Silmarillion contains the legend of the creation of the world and an account of the Elder Days. It is the ancient drama remembered by Elrond and Galadriel in The Lord of the Rings, and the harrowing origin of the adventure that ends ages later with Frodo and the One Ring.

At the story’s heart are the three Silmarils, jewels that held within them the Light of the Two Trees of Valinor, and Fëanor, the most gifted of elven artificers. When the Two Trees are destroyed, the Silmarils become coveted, setting into motion events that lead to the rebellion of Fëanor and his kindred against the gods, their exile from Valinor, and their hopeless war against the greatest enemy Middle-earth has ever known: Morgoth.

• ISBN10: 0395257301
• ISBN13: 9780395257302
• Publish Date: 1 October 1977
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Houghton Mifflin
• Edition: American ed.
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 365
• Language: English

Reviews

[Ailyn Henbane]

I have a special place in my heart for Tolkien's works. With R.O.P out, I dove back in to one of the books that never fails to give me a headache. This Silmarillion has been with me for 15 years, and is obviously much older than that. It's got my favorite old book smell and is well preserved for the amount of times I've cracked it open. Which is mostly due to the fact that the legends hard to digest in one sitting. I've always had to come back and re-read my favorites to remember small details and even to make sure I'm thinking of the right elf when the Valinor vs Arda name issue comes into play. This is one of my favorite books and my most cherished first edition that has a place of pride/honor on my shelf.

[inlibrisveritas]

I have no words to describe how I feel about this one. It's a tough read, but it's beautiful and worth the effort. We get so much history and lore in a book less than 400 pages and at times my head was reeling from all of it, but I honestly look forward to the day I reread it.

[adamfortuna]

As a standalone book, I don't know why anyone would want to read this. Now, I love Tolkien's world -- I've read LOR multiple times, same with the hobbit. Seen the movies more times than I can count, including midnight releases for each of them. But even armed with this background, and other information gleaned from videos, Tolkien encyclopedias and other sources I couldn't get into this. It's amazing in what it is -- a reference about the world -- but it is not a compelling story. I think of this more as a glossary that goes at the end of LOR to help give background to the world.