Reflection on The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien (also Christopher Tolkien) and Illustrated by Ted Naismith

              The Silmarillion is a tough but worthwhile read for a fan of Tolkien’s other works, in my case The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. The book has five sections: the Ainuindale and the Valaquenta cover the beginning and creation of the world, the Quenta Silmarillion covers the Silmarils, the Akallabeth covers the rise and fall of Numenor, and the section “Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age” gives background story about The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. The problem is that the Quenta Silmarillion, by far the longest section of the book, is also the most difficult by far to get through. Tolkien uses endless names and places that are difficult to decipher and the text does not read like his other novels. That was definitely a negative in reading this. That said, it’s really a must-read book for any serious Tolkien fan.