"Read Lord of the Rings?" Topic

No? Yes? If so, about how many times? When? Where? Why? [And for sake of inclusion, How? Who?]

yes, 45 years ago

Yes. About 6 times. Most recently 2010. I love the story and Tolkien's writing style.

Read the whole series 3 times. Back in high school I decidered the rune letters in the Hobbit and taught myself how to write it, geek or what!

Lots of times, its a regular read.

Twice, once in high school (30 years ago). Once while at army training (25 years ago). Loved it the first time, especially cracking the 'secret' code of the runes. Used the runes to decorate maps for D&D back in the day. Realized I had missed some stuff when I read it the second time.

Yes, when I was a teenager, now I'm 66.

Mind you I was in hospital for a few weeks at the time.

6 times, the first in summer between high school and university

Soon to be seven

Once in college, a long time ago. Then a few years later, and struggled to get through it. Really not a Tolkien writing fan. Long, boring writing punctuated with really good writing. Unfortunately, there were more long and boring passages than really good ones.

Got the box set for Xmas in maybe 1975. Read half the Hobbit and hated it. Tossed the whole thing aside for about a year.

At the incessant urging of a friend I tried again. Fought my way all the way to the end of the Hobbit, then started The Fellowship. By 1/4 in I was hooked. Could not put it, nor TTT or RotK, down til I finished.

I've read it through maybe 3 times since, once aloud to a coworker on night shift. I also have the Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales, 3 LotR atlases, The Beastiary, several compendia and maybe 8 of the Christopher T expansion volumes. I had Bored of the Rings, but I loaned it to a friend and never got it back.

Timeless.

Last time I checked, it was at 15 times (and counting) plus loads of part reads for research purposes.

Also the Hobbit a few times, the Silmarillion several times, Unfinished Tales and the (superb) Children of Hurin a couple of times.

All – except for the very last times – as books* but the last time on my Kindle.

I even managed the films once or twice (not the Hobbit stuff, of course, just the three LotR nonsenses).

John T

* of course – my first time was almost 45 years ago!

Yes. 4-5 times.

I have read The Hobbit and Fellowship, also the opening fight with the Uruks/Death of Boromir in Two Towers. Put the book down during a move cross country, lost the book, and never got around to finishing it.
One day I will read them all… maybe… Plenty of other things to read in the mean time.

I've read it twice. Once when I was in high school and then again in the early 2000s. It isn't bad.

More times than is sane.

Let me see…first read it and The Hobbit when I was still in middle school so when I was in my early teens. I read it again (not the Hobbit this time just the trilogy) when I was in my 30's. At the same time I tried to read The Silmarillion (sp?) but just could not get into it. Read The Hobbit again when my kids came along and we read it together. Read the trilogy again just prior to the movies coming out to refresh my memory.

Yes all of them in the, very, early 70s

I like Bored of the Rings better

Many times, from the Ace paperbacks on, but in recent years I'm more prone to do parts than all three volumes straight. And the most frequently read part is the first half of The Two Towers--Rohan (and the Ents) deciding to make stands and not just go under quietly.

3 times, in my teens and twenties.

Over forty years ago.

Made it through "The Hobbit", "The Fellowship of the Ring", "The Two Towers" and about quarter-way through "The Return of the King". At which point I totally lost interest and never went back.

Saw the three "Ring" movies but never "The Hobbit" movies.

Not only have I read The Hobbit and LOTR, but The Silmarillion, as well! That's the gold standard for obsessive-compulsive slavish devotion to a series -- hundreds of pages of people with too many vowels in their names begetting more people with too many vowels in their names.

1973 in High School at my SciFi/Fantasy Class.

Two times in Croatian/Serbian, once in English.

Late middle school, mid-college, and before the first movie came out. The second two included the Silmarillion.

One and two-thirds and two-thirds times. Two thirds in high school, motivated by my love of The Hobbit. Unfortunately, it did not quite capture me in the same way. All the way through, prior to the release of the first movie, and then two-thirds of the way again, a couple of years ago, after watching the movies consecutively.

3 times since 1977 but alas when I tried for the 4th time the word alas in every other sentence drove me off. Just finished the Hobbit for the 6th time last month

Yes.
About 30 times, give or take.

Not only have I read The Hobbit and LOTR, but The Silmarillion, as well! That's the gold standard for obsessive-compulsive slavish devotion to a series

(Snicker)

Since 1975 I've read:
The Hobbit at least 14 times.
LOTR 6 times.
Unfinished Tales 2 times.
The Silmarillion 3 times.
Lost Tales (12 volumes) 2 times.
The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien 1 time.
The Monsters and the Critics 1 time.
And countless other related books (the Tolkien Reader for example)

Why? Because I love the world. I always find it gives a kick start to my imagination when it's floundering or I just need to get away from the real world.

Yes. I've reread it every few years to keep it fresh.

Yes. I used to read it every year, but it's probably been a decade since my last read. I read it for the first time in 1968. My guess is I've read it well over twenty times.

I loved the world and I loved the writing. Frodo and Atticus Finch are my two favorite literary heroes.

The first time I was around 12 or 13, in the early 80's. Then again in high school and just after college. The fourth time was when the 3 movies came out, in the early 2000's. Loved them more each time. Currently, I am reading them to my nine year old, and we are halfway through the two towers…. He is really enjoying it!

The Hobbit around six times, The Lord of the Rings at least twenty and re-reading parts for research for armies, painting, conversions etc. more times than I can remember.

The hobbit twice. Began LOTR fellowship and realized I could be painting GW LOTR figures than reading that SNOOZEFEST! Nope, never! I wouldn't mind listening to it if it's done by a ttheater group with a foley artist!
Really liked the hobbit, though!

Many times. Also The Hobbit and The Silmarillion.

Every 2-3 years since junior high

Wait! I was supposed to count? I didn't get the e-mail!
First read The Hobbit 51 years ago. Enjoyed it and read it several times before I found out the library had LOTR about two years later, but hid it in the adult section, not in the children's section with Hobbit.
I've read both many, many times in the intervening years, and read them aloud to my son at least twice (perhaps I'm a bit of a ham: I like doing the voices, used Julie Walters' accent from Educating Rita for Sam Gamgee).
Enjoyed The Silmarillion, too.

Grelber

Three times … middle school, college, and again the year before the first movie came out. Wonder if I'll ever feel like doing it again? Not imminent.

Read the Hobbit and LOTR in 1979. Read Fellowship of the Ring in 2001 in preparation for the first film. Did not follow up with two towers or ROTK. Re-read the Hobbit last year or the year before that. Somewhere in the late 90's or 2000's read the Silmarillion, but found it too dry. Kind of how I felt about the Star Wars prequels; too grand in scope, and missing the warmth and intimacy of the original story lines.

Abelp01--Apparently you've never heard of the BBC Radio version,from about 1979. Still the most accurate (and best,IMO) dramatization.

As for number of times, I don't count them. I have read through the fascinating drafts three times,and refer to them fairly often.
I try to acquire critical studies when I can,but given the flood of material in the last 2-3 decades,it's becoming difficult to keep up.

And Timotheous--many people had your reaction to the Silmarillion when it came out. "It's like reading the Old Testament!" was a common cry. To which I say, "It's like the Old Testament,if it had been written by Vikings". But try some of the stories in Unfinished Tales,Gandalf's description of how he came to devise the Quest of Erebor,for instance. As a gamer,you should find "The Battles of the Fords of Isen" of interest.

Edit: forgot "when?"--first time,1967. Most recent,last year.
"Where?"--first time,Study Hall,on the bus,in bed,at the kitchen table,walking,etc. Since then,in bed, in a chair smoking a pipe,sitting under a tree beside a stream,etc, etc. . .

Yes.

at least 4 times. The 1st was as a Freshman in High school. Last time was probably 3-4 years ago. Great read.

Lost count at 11. Or was it 12?

Balin! Yer back!

One half time. I was so tired of the endless dallying, lack of any characterizations, and breaking into song and poetry I had to stop. I recall thinking that if I turned the page and read one more poem I was done. Turned the page, there's the poem, and I was done. Tolkien's style is not for me.

Once, just once.

First read the Hobbit and lotr back in grade 8. Added the silmarillion in high school
Re-read regularly for many years. Lost count. Over 15times I'd guess
Lotr movies were pretty good. Hobbit movies were a betrayal.

Read it six or seven times, started it four or five times.

Started with Ace copy back in the late 1960s perhaps? When discovered it was an IP violation (the index pages numbers were a wrong, they didn't change them it seems) I replaced them.

Twenty times in my teens to thirties including multiple reads through the appendices. Stopped counting when I started spot checking the films.

Nine hardbacks (Hobbit, trilogy, Simarillion, Lost Tales 1&2, Unfinished Tales, A Tolkien Miscellany.

Paperbacks Hobbit and trilogy here in the house for nostalgia more than any other reason.

Writing style was akin to recreating old styles of story telling and not as attractive to those liking more "modern" styles. The man was an academic and WW1 vet. I doubt he ever seriously intended it for the mass market when he started.

Next to my Bible (notes in margins and underling make user specific) these books get rescued after the people and pet.

Movies? LOTR movies were great adventures but they changed or lacked parts (like the ending) that made the story of interest to me. Prefer books.

Yes, a few (three?) times back in the 1970s. In the proper Led Zeppelin era single volume paper back.

Again more recently when the films came out.

I've read it through a couple of times, I'm currently playing the Third Age mod (with Divide and Conquer sub mod) for medieval 2 total war so I'm probably going to read the book (just located my large paperback) and watch the films again soon since its reignited my interest in LOTR…….the hobbit films dampened my interest for a while.

I read The Hobbit and LOTR (and Farmer Giles of Piddling-on-the-Medlar, and the other lesser works) through cover-to-cover just once, as a teenager. That was enough. But I've dipped into Tolkien, over and over again, ever since. He's become part of the culture, like Homer or Monty Python; people quote from LOTR, songs refer to LOTR, designers design games, sculptors sculpt figures, people dress up as hobbits and elf-maidens and, oh, the movies and the comic books and the cartoons…

Oh, what the heck. It's got a good beat, it's easy to dance to, there's a reason it's popular. Come, sing along with me,

I'm Tom Bombadil, I'm a jolly fellow,
Bright blue my jacket is, and my boots are yellow…