Why is it so difficult?

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

It took me a few tries to read the Silm. Each time was difficult for a different reason. First attempt: gave up due to the idea that "Oh Freaking What The? It's like reading a direct rip off of the Bible. And in the beginning there was... Gah!"

Second try I got through Eru and collapsed at the lists of people's children. I didn't want to take notes to keep track of characters. I was supposed to be reading for the fun of it.

Third try I couldn't stomach trying to keep everybody that was running around Belariand in the correct order and location.

Fourth try I managed it, but it was tough.

Now I view it as an unfinished work that vaguely annoys me to try and read as a whole. Basically, if I want to know something, I google it or ask Formendacil. It's, quite frankly, easier.

[narfforc]

The amount of times I have heard people say: I liked LotR, but couldn't get into The Silmarillion. I now tell them that once reading LotR again go straight to the back of The Sil and read Of The Rings of Power and The Third Age. Therein they meet familiar Characters and Places, and also new ones, you can almost read the chapters backwards, like researching your family history. Everyone who has read LotR should have an inkling of what The Downfall of Numenor is about. I think there are three different parts of The Sil, they are:

1. The Beginning: Nearly impossible to take in at first, an alien story.

2. The Middle: The Edges of your mind and memory are touched by the faintest beginnings of recognition.

3. The End: Hey I know that name, I've heard this somewhere before.

I really quite like the old book now.......HOOOOOOOM

[Lalwendë]

Nice idea narfforc!

The 'shock' some people get is from passing from something with such a great plot and narrative right into the Sil that's written in a very different style. Plus as narfforc says, unfamiliar characters!

A tip: photocopy the maps and family trees, use 'em as book marks and then you've a handy reference to refer to when you get confused with all these new names and places that Tolkien throws out at a rate of 100 per page (or it feels like that anyway).

I think that once The Children of Hurin is published there will be a 'bridge' between LotR and the Sil, in terms of a story that takes the unsuspecting reader across that big gap of style.

[Lhunardawen]

This coming from one who had just recently tried to re-read the Silm completely...and failed...

Too many names. At first it was easy, when you could distinguish Olwë and Elwë from Finwë and Ingwë and you were about done, but when Tolkien started expounding on almost everyone's life stories (naturally inevitable) and kept adding new names to the mix it started to get kind of confusing. Especially when those pesky Mortals joined in the fun...

Also, there's something about the different literary style that's not too...captivating. Granted, LotR also tends to be on the boring side, but at least the conversations were a bit closer to home. And not everyone has English as a first language.

Reading Silm, though, was an excellent warm-up to crawling through Leviticus and Numbers and 1 Chronicles.

[Rikae]

I started reading the Silm right after I finished LOTR, at age eight. I was torn between being awestruck by the timespan and magnitude of the events being covered, and bored because the stories simply weren't told in the detailed manner of the LOTR - the style issue you mentioned. It made it very difficult for names to become characters and places I could visualize. I have the same problem with history: I enjoy it when it depicts the details of people's experience, but when it's condensed to the point of a list of names and generalizations, it does get tedious.
As for my Silm reading project, I lost the book halfway through. It's high time I bought another and finished it - it may not seem so difficult anymore!

[Durelin]

Originally Posted by Lal

A tip: photocopy the maps and family trees, use 'em as book marks and then you've a handy reference to refer to when you get confused with all these new names and places that Tolkien throws out at a rate of 100 per page (or it feels like that anyway).

That almost makes it sound like homework.

Actually, I enjoy looking at maps and family trees... I know this book has a bunch of family trees in the back: The Complete Guide to Middle-earth.

And then there's this awesome book for maps (which I know pio especially has suggested many times): The Atlas of Middle-earth.

The problem is, using so many books (okay, so only two, specifically) just to read one book makes one feel less like their reading it for fun, even if it is enjoyable.

In at least my copy of the Sil there is a glossary of names in the back, so at least that helps. Really, though, I find myself completely capable of reading about people even if I forget who they are, or reading about an event even though I have no real idea when it occured in relation to other events. But then when it comes to looking at the big picture, I'm at a complete loss. Is it about the big picture, though? Is there something that the Sil as a whole relates about ME, or is it just a lot of pieces of history, each relating to ME in their own ways? Is it incredibly cohesive, or can you read parts of it separately (then, of course, you're not getting the big picture, but how important is the big picture?)?

Having too many names is a common complaint for not only the Sil but other fantasy books. One fantasy series in particular that I hear people complaining about a lot in the way is The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan, because there are so many different characters...

[Holbytlass]

Why is it so difficult?
It's laziness on my part. Ironically I like history-the whys and hows. But I've been out of school awhile and hate when I have to research or take notes on anything unless I really, really want to.

I read Silm once-and it was a struggle. I read it for entertainment value and because of its choppiness it didn't hold my attention. Don't get me wrong, I came through with a better understanding of the background to LOTR and there were a few good stories within it but to recommend it or read it through again, no thank you!

[TheOrcWithNoName]

Originally Posted by narfforc

The amount of times I have heard people say: I liked LotR, but couldn't get into The Silmarillion. I now tell them that once reading LotR again go straight to the back of The Sil and read Of The Rings of Power and The Third Age. Therein they meet familiar Characters and Places, and also new ones, you can almost read the chapters backwards, like researching your family history. Everyone who has read LotR should have an inkling of what The Downfall of Numenor is about. I think there are three different parts of The Sil, they are:

1. The Beginning: Nearly impossible to take in at first, an alien story.

2. The Middle: The Edges of your mind and memory are touched by the faintest beginnings of recognition.

3. The End: Hey I know that name, I've heard this somewhere before.

I really quite like the old book now.......HOOOOOOOM

My first attempt on The Silm (sounds' like I'm trying to conquer Everest here, and in some respects the analogy is true), was about 30 years ago when I was a teenager with lots of spare time on my hands.

I had just completed & enjoyed both The Hobbit & Lord Of The Rings, so felt in the mood to carry on with Tolkien's adventure and purchase The Silm, rather naively expecting it to be a standard novel either following on from LOTR or some kind of backfil between the two tomes. How very very wrong I was!

I think by about page 30 I just gave up. Clearly this was no story in the typical or logical sense, but just a collection of random ideas, sketches & disorganised ramblings, was my initial critique of the book. And I believe it sat on my bookshelf gathering dust for another 15 years or so before I attempted the same task again.

But even second time around I found it to be quite inaccessible, confusing and generally quite frustrating with even trying to complete a couple of pages! So again I gave up the ghost and moved on.

I consider myself to be of average intelligence and enjoy books of all kinds; I even completed Stephen Hawkins' "A Brief History Of Time" twice and loved every moment. However, The Silm, is just out there on its own as a book I have failed to complete. But then after reading some of the opinions on here, I guess my expectations were set too high and that perhaps this book should not be read in the usual front2back way; but is a book to be dipped in back & forth. It is not a story in the true sense just a collection of historical events portrayed in various time lines and from different points of view.

I feel encouraged to read LOTR again very soon, but on completion I will then continue with The Silm, but this time taking the advice of Narfforc and read the chapters concerning The Third Age and The Rings of Power to begin with, and then more or less read the book backwards, which will hopefully accommplish my ambition if conquering The Silmarillion once and for all.