Fair play. But a word to the wise. If you're in a place of worship, don't start telling everyone that their Holy Book is unreadable garbage - even if to you it is. You'll find you'll get some backlash. :o)

Edit: wrong sub! 😂

Thanks for engaging, thought you were trolling.

You're in a Tolkien fan group. Of course people are going to disagree with you. I did find the Sil difficult, but didn't find it tedious - I found it heartbreaking, but (spoiler alert!) that's the fate of Arda marred.

Is this how you choose to spend your time? Oh, and allow me to refer you to r/boneappletea.

I see it particularly in the poems of A.E.Houseman - from When I was One and Twenty, lines like:

"no Use to Talk to Me" - capitalisation my own.

Also, try A Shropshire Lad 1 - https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44410/a-shropshire-lad-1-from-clee-to-heaven-the-beacon-burns

I love that. Really speaks to me of the human condition.

AS Byatt - Possession Julian May - The Pliocene Saga (and others) Terry Pratchett - you're kidding, right? :D Susan Cooper - The Dark is Rising Sequence, and its second novel, set in the rural Thames Valley in England. - read it at Christmas though, from the 20th December. Don't forget Alan Garner.

Bone Clocks is brilliant - should be better known. Have you read his other stuff - Black Swan Green, Number9 Dream, Cloud Atlas?

What else have you read that you might recommend?

And thanks. It was 17 years ago now.

Love the Bone Clocks. Re-read loads of books - LotR most regularly. Terry Pratchett, Julian May, AS Byatt... Getting into seasonal re-readings - re-read The Dark is Rising last Christmas, and this Christmas had the BBC World Service podcast. Re-read my Terry Pratchett collection after my sister died - needed something comforting and wise with no unpleasant shocks.

Just scrolled through, and realise yours was the heftily-downvoted comment - understand now. I think you're also irritated by the thread that is now entirely deleted - which I couldn't see. Your first comment is right, though - the chapter, "The Ring goes South" really is tough. It takes a downturn before then - as soon as they leave Tom Bombadil's House, it turns much darker, even, than the darkest parts of the Hobbit. I love the Hobbit and hated what the films tried to do to it, while loving the bits that were true to the story. But The Hobbit was a children's book - Lord of the Rings really isn't.

Happy to discuss this, free of acrimony and downvotes if you want.

Edit: going out for a New Year's Eve walk now. Don't let the bastards grind you down.

Upvote both, if it's well-argued and friendly. Applaud both sides.

Yep - and worth mentioning that both Tolkien and Frodo had survivor's guilt in bucket loads. >!Boromir and especially Gollum - and that Frodo at the last fails, and the agent for the mission's success should be one that also failed, but died.!<

As it should be. If it's friendly and well-argued disagreement, that should be encouraged. Have we not seen enough poisonous polarisation in the world?

The reason for the wilderness is the presence of evil forces - Orcs were still numerous, evil strongholds still held sway over vast tracks of open land and forest, the rule of law had declined. By the end of LotR, Mirkwood becomes Greenwood the Great, the Brown Lands can now be populated, the Kings Road is in use and peace can be made with the Easterlings, the Dunlendings and the former slaves of Mordor. The melancholy comes from the decline and return of the Elves and that Frodo himself can no longer live here - the Shire has been saved, but not for him. He is broken by his loss, his injuries and his survivor's guilt.

Yes! Others have made the point that a lot of what happens in the House mirrors a formal right of passage ceremony, also. Weird - and it is the fulcrum of the book, when it switches from a lighter tone to a darker.

Don't think it's about smart. Try having it read to you - it might get you started. I don't want you to miss out. :o)

That's lovely - you're never too old to be read to, and it's a great bond. I read them to my wife in the same way.

What u/NightlyWry and u/Trick-Two497 said. This. Very wholesome. This is a really good way of letting him know this means a lot. You can both crack a couple of light-touch gags about reading it cover to cover - or not... And if you don't have a favourite insect, ask him to find the bit in the book that describes his. Or ask him to share his favourite bit in the book. There are ways of sharing your appreciation that don't involve pushing your way through a book you aren't going to enjoy - and he'd never want that.

With your dad... - result, dude. :o)

Cheers. I'll have to try it to find out what I think. It seems to be well-loved in here - but few people post about books that they find meh, so maybe that's just how this sub works. If I dislike it as well, I'll have to come back so you can say, "well, you were warned..." :o)

Every now and then this book comes up, and I try to remember what I wrote last time! It was something like: If you haven't seen it, the 1963 black and white classic ("The Haunting") is extraordinary, and regularly makes best of lists - The Guardian ranks it as the 13th best horror films of all time - which if you're a horrow film is better than first place, wouldn't you say? Director Martin Scorsese placed The Haunting first on his list of the 11 scariest horror films of all time. I rank it as the scariest film I've ever seen. It fucking shit me up as a kid - thanks, mum. :o) Never read the book, though. Need to rectify that.

Cheers.

Can you edit your comment now?

Not so graphic - naturally. I read it at about 12-13, read it to my boy at about 10. And yes, there's some difficult stuff in there. Just because it's a cartoon about rabbits doesn't make it easy - but hearing it read to you by a trusted adult over a good few nights is a lot easier. You can stop and discuss... And it's brilliant. A rabbit language, mythology/religion/folklore, political systems, enemies, predators, humour, love, care, bravery, sacrifice... Man. But she's six. So not yet.

I did the Hobbit, 5/6 Narnia and Watership Down with my kids. Hobbit, Silver Chair and WD were the best.

And this from the country that voted in The Don! :D All in love and fun - I can't imagine either of us chose poorly, but unless our citizens get off their fat arses and vote, both countries will be sipping on the foul chalice of fascism, thinking it's the Holy Grail.

Best of luck. I wish we in the UK could choose our next leader.