Trevor N. (trevor) reviewed on 7/28/2009 + 38 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 1

I gave this book four and a half stars, but there was a time when I considered it a five star book. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy is so well known, it has unavoidably drawn its share of criticism. The fact that the entire fantasy genre has become overrun with works that are completely derivative of Tolkien's epic makes it easy to lose perspective on the quality of the work itself, but I'll take a shot anyway.

This is an epic tale in an original world with very well-developed characters that you will grow to love. It has a horrifying, faceless villain that really inspires awe. It's a great underdog story. The magic is really cool. The language is wonderful. I consider this series a must-read for anyone.

On the downside, the books are filled with classist and sometimes racist themes. This is a story mostly about royalty and kings, not regular people. Some races are "better" or "nobler" than others. Books by authors like George R.R. Martin have done a much better job of representing an alien society in all it's complexity, at all levels in the socioeconomic scale. Tolkien's story is more like myth, and his characters read like heroes of legend. But hey, without Tolkien, would we even have authors like George R.R. Martin?

Don't take my word for it, read it for yourself.

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