Wheel of Time Books

[dlsevern]

No alatar, I shouldn't have said that, you made a simple comment about your opinion and I let it get under my skin. I apologize. We just see things differently, that's all.

[dlsevern]

Agreed. Again, my issue, especially with the later books, is that, after 600+ pages, the story then started, something happened, then I had to wait for a year or more for the next book, which followed the same formula.

Yes, the prologue might be a little more extended than what I'd like it to be. 600+ pages is exagerating a bit, but I just looked at the prologue on the one I'm reading now. It is 87 pages long, lol. I just never noticed them being that long I guess. It would probably be a little irritating if you had to wait for each new book of the series. I on the other hand haven't had to wait, so it hasn't bothered me much.

[dlsevern]

Agreed. I suggest that when reading LotR, people skip the first few chapters and start at Bree.

The only problem I see with that is that they would miss the The Old Forest and The Barrow Downs, two of my favorite parts of Fellowship and Bombadil is one of my favorite characters of the entire trilogy. He sings way too much but I love him anyway. LOL

[dlsevern]

Alatar was stating his opinion, and he's welcome to it. Personally, I agree with his sentiment that Jordan often times is tediously meticulous in belaboring a minute (and senseless) point. Referring to his opinion as "ignorant", however, is unacceptable.

I am not picking a fight with you but I just wanted to add that nothing Jordan wrote in any books of the series, that I have read, was tedious or senseless. Everything had its purpose, whether it was character development or foreshadowing. I love meticulous detail, maybe that is why I love Stephen King so much. Many people don't like him because he is too detailed, but me, I love that sh%t. That is not to say that don't like writers who aren't as detail oriented as Tolkien, Jordan, or King. A lot of writers can be just as effective without as much detail. I digress.

[alatar]

Originally Posted by dlsevern

No alatar, I shouldn't have said that, you made a simple comment about your opinion and I let it get under my skin. I apologize.

No offense taken. And if I am writing rudely, please feel free to call me on it.

We just see things differently, that's all.

That's what makes the forum interesting.

I guess the other thing that taints my feelings towards WoT is that it seemed to have so much potential - another LotR perhaps - but, for me, it didn't deliver.

Note that I feel the same about Peter Jackson's film version of LotR.

[dlsevern]

I guess the other thing that taints my feelings towards WoT is that it seemed to have so much potential - another LotR perhaps - but, for me, it didn't deliver.

I realize this is probably going to get a lot of groans and possibly even a few F.U.'s, but I feel that WoT is a superior story to LotR. Okay, you can started flinging the rotten tomatoes at me.

[dlsevern]

Note that I feel the same about Peter Jackson's film version of LotR.

I feel the same way. I appreciate it, but he left many of my favorite parts of the books out. I understand that theatrical releases have to be limited somewhat, but because of the way they wrote the script, they weren't able to add them into the dvd releases. Example: The Old Forest, Tom Bombadil, The Barrow Downs, The Woses, The Battle of the Shire.

[Pitchwife]

Welcome to the Downs, dlsevern! I used to be quite fond of WoT myself up to, say, somewhere between Lord of Chaos and Crown of Swords - I felt Jordan had something interesting and (apart from the nods to LotR in the first book) original going there, but like alatar said, he sort of failed to deliver. In my experience, the last couple of volumes have all more or less been like this:

• Prologue, which hints at some momentous action going to happen soon;
• 100-150 pages of 'reaction shots' referring back to the last vol.;
• Several hundreds of pages containing a tiny amount of dragging development buried under tons of 'skirt-straightening' (more of this later);
• 50 pages of hastily slapped on momentous action;
• Epilogue containing three or four cliffhangers to guarantee the reader buys the next book.

It gets tiring. I haven't tackled any of the posthumous volumes yet - I'm probably going to read them sooner or later, just to satisfy my curiosity how it all ends, but I'm not really ready to spend money on them. (Thank Eru for libraries!)

On the matter of skirt-straightening, braid-tugging and other assorted habits: Yes, they can be a nice element in characterisation if used economically; but when I get Aes Sedai by the score thrown at me and only can tell them apart because of their different compulsive tics, it gets, once again, tiring. Not to mention their annoying habit of bullying everybody who has a Y chromosome and isn't stronger than them; if I want a reverse satire on sexism, I prefer Daughters of Egalia, thank you very much.

Sorry if this comes across as perhaps a tad too dismissive of Jordan; much of my frustration with him is really disappointed love. He had a couple of great ideas, but not quite the ability to work them into a truly great series in my opinion.

[dlsevern]

I certainly don't want you all to think that I don't absolutely love Tolkien because I do. I've only read The Hobbit, LotR, and The Children of Hurin, I tried to read The Silmirilion but couldn't get through half of it. Everyone tells me it's great, but for me it's like reading the appendixes at the end of LotR but more dull.

[Snowdog]

I think I managed a half a book once. Couldn't be @ss'd to put any more time or effort into reading them when I found other more enjoyable books written by less-well known authors to read. Should they ever declare an end to the wheel's movement, I may try and give them a read one day.

[alatar]

Originally Posted by dlsevern

I realize this is probably going to get a lot of groans and possibly even a few F.U.'s, but I feel that WoT is a superior story to LotR. Okay, you can started flinging the rotten tomatoes at me.

To each his or her own, I guess.

There are those that think that the post-Frank Herbert 'Dune' books are better than the originals as well. I disagree.

For me the test has been rereadability. I read LotR at least once a year. WoT; I've read once (though, if you count the extended prologues, I guess, technically, I read every book twice ).

WoT feels 'ad hoc.' LotR, with the Silmarillion as a background, seems to have a plan, a history, and it feels like it ties somehow into our present day. Another difference in WoT and LotR could be the age at which I read each initially. It's hard to get interested as an cynical adult when reading about the 'teenage travails' of Rand al'Thor, or about the 'political intrigues' of the world after having read Dune.

But that might just be me.