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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.912
EAN num: 9780618126989
ISBN number: 0618126988
Label: Houghton Mifflin
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 384
Printing Date: 2001-04
Publishing house: Houghton Mifflin
Sale Popularity Level: 10378
Studio: Houghton Mifflin
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Editor's Notes and Comments:
Product Description:
A number-one New York Times bestseller when it was originally published, THE SILMARILLION is the core of J.R.R. Tolkien's imaginative writing, a work whose origins stretch back to a time long before THE HOBBIT.
Tolkien considered THE SILMARILLION his most important work, and, though it was published last and posthumously, this great collection of tales and legends clearly sets the stage for all his other writing. The story of the creation of the world and of the the First Age, this is the ancient drama to which the characters in THE LORD OF THE RINGS look back and in whose events some of them, such as Elrond and Galadriel, took part. The three Silmarils were jewels created by Feanor, most gifted of the Elves. Within them was imprisoned the Light of the Two Trees of Valinor before the Trees themselves were destroyed by Morgoth, the very first Dark Lord. Thereafter, the unsullied Light of Valinor lived on only in the Silmarils, but they were seized by Morgoth and set in his crown, which was guarded in the impenetrable fortress of Angband in the north of Middle-earth. THE SILMARILLION is the history of the rebellion of Feanor and his kindred against the gods, their exile from Valinor and return to Middle-earth, and their war, hopeless despite all their heroism, against the great Enemy.
This second edition features a letter written by J.R.R. Tolkien describing his intentions for the book, which serves as a brilliant exposition of his conception of the earlier Ages of Middle-earth.
Amazon.com Review:
The Silmarillion is J.R.R. Tolkien's tragic, operatic history of the First Age of Middle-Earth, essential background material for serious readers of the classic Lord of the Rings saga. Tolkien's work sets the standard for fantasy, and this audio version of the 'Bible of Middle-Earth' does The Silmarillion justice. Martin Shaw's reading is grave and resonant, conveying all the powerful events and emotions that shaped elven and human history long before Bilbo, Frodo, Gandalf and all the rest embarked on their quests. Beginning with the Music of the Ainur, The Silmarillion tells a tale of the Elder Days, when Elves and Men became estranged by the Dark Lord Morgoth's lust for the Silmarils, pure and powerful magic jewels. Even the love between a human warrior and the daughter of the Elven king cannot defeat Morgoth, but the War of Wrath finally brings down the Dark Lord. Peace reigns until the evil Sauron recovers the Rings of Power and sets the stage for the events told in the Lord of the Rings. This is epic fantasy at its finest, thrillingly read and gloriously unabridged. (Running time: 14 hours, 6 CDs)
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Rated by buyers 
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I had read the Hobbit and the trilogy of the rings and thought the The Silmarillion would be a worthwhile read. However, I found the book to be unreadable. I am not certain what the author had done differently, but I could not get past the very first 40 pages and those pages required serious work to read. It looked as if the author had some very good ideas but he had put it in a manner that was difficult to understand.
Perhaps you will do better than I did. However, this was one of only a few books that I could not finish because I had a hard time understanding what the author was communicating.
If you are interested in this book, I suggest getting it from a library and trying to read it, before spending money on it.
Rated by buyers 
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This book is tough to read and is more suited to an older audience. I wouldn't hesitate to get it for someone in high school if they have already read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. But the book is probably more suited to college age and above due to some of the vocabulary and themes the Tolkien presents. There are also a lot of names used by Tolkien, so at times it can be a little cumbersome to keep track of who is who, where they are from, what they did, etc. but if you can keep attention to detail it is worth the effort. For me, this book is the clearest "Catholic work" of the works of Tolkien on Middle Earth. The introduction almost feels as if it were taken straight from the Bible. But all in all this is a fantastic book and a must-have for anyone who is a fan of the Lord of the Rings.
Rated by buyers -
The story itself is haunting; the illustrations do more to invoke the readers' imagination than deaden it..
Rated by buyers -
Wasn't my intention, but I read Tolkien's books, in this order, LOTR, Hobbit, Turin, and Silmarillion. I think it has worked out quite well reading them in reverse chonologic order.
The Silmarlillion is a fantastic backdrop and foundation to the entire world Tolkien has created. A Masterpiece.
Rated by buyers 
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This is pretty much the Bible of the world of Middle Earth. It isn't written so much as a story as some of Tolkien's other works, but it has a nearly-documentary style, as if everything in it is real (and it is, for all the detail that goes into the story). Here comes history and mythology, all romantically tied together in ultimate fantasy along with all the proper notest that would attend any other historical work. There is not a lot of detail in the stories, but that does not make them any less wonderful. This is a chance to see thoughts and possibilities and so many other characters that fit into the Lord of the Rings universe. I don't think this is necessary to appreciating Lord of the Rings, but it's still a delightful and worthy addition if one can handle the way it is presented as more history than literature.
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