Markreads.net: The Lord of the Rings

[Legate of Amon Lanc]

Originally Posted by Lalwendë

I only saw Alien for the first time two years ago. It just didn't appeal. davem made me watch it and I found it funny. Aliens made me feel a bit sick though.

Now that is what I call missing something big in your life

But interesting - I would have expected it to be the other way around...

And I have, for instance, no idea who are the three people you are talking about. Okay, the first name I have vague idea (because of youtube adverts) and the last one sounds like I might have heard it somewhere, but no clue. If you told me they are members of British government, I would have believed you.

But in a way, I think it is nice that one can remain "unspoiled" by stuff in such a way. Because once you then really start, for example, reading LotR, you still have all the plot twists uncovered and you really have no idea what is going to happen. You might not even know the most "basic" things - like what happens to the Ring, who survives (if anyone), etc.

Reminds me of the time when my aunt started reading the books for the first time, she was borrowing them from me (me being around maybe 14-15 at that time), and she was absolutely terrified at the end of the second book, wishing to borrow RotK immediately because she had no idea what was going to happen to Sam or Frodo. (And yet she had to wait for it through the whole Pelennor stuff...)

I think we who have read the books and discussed them through and through sometimes really should confront ourselves with some Mark who will open our eyes again to the "naive reading" of it.

[Galadriel55]

Originally Posted by Legate of Amon Lanc

And I have, for instance, no idea who are the three people you are talking about. Okay, the first name I have vague idea (because of youtube adverts) and the last one sounds like I might have heard it somewhere, but no clue. If you told me they are members of British government, I would have believed you.

I know the first one - Justin Bieber is a singer, from the States (I heard some of his songs, they are horrible - imho). He used to wear his wear his bangs over his eyes, and so did nearly all the boys in my school. Then he cut them, and so did all the boys in my school. Every other girl I met was obsessed with him about a year ago, and that's how I know all this. Oh the useless stuff one learns from fangirls!

*imagines one of her acquaintances saying "that's how I know about this Tolkien guy - oh the useless stuff one learns from fangirls!"*

It's really weird that we're all boasting about being ignorant about the popular things of our times!

Originally Posted by Legate

I think we who have read the books and discussed them through and through sometimes really should confront ourselves with some Mark who will open our eyes again to the "naive reading" of it.

Well said! A story loses its touch once you learn it pretty much by heart. We need to "refresh" our knowledge every once in a while. (And while rereading is awesome, that's not what I mean here - we need to forget our previous Tolkien lore to really be drawn in/surprised by plot twists/etc)


PS: I have no clue what this Alien you're talking about is...

[Legate of Amon Lanc]

Originally Posted by Galadriel55

It's really weird that we're all boasting about being ignorant about the popular things of our times!

Yes. We just shouldn't let it go to our heads

PS: I have no clue what this Alien you're talking about is...

Not the one with Phantom This.

Interesting. First Pitch links you H.P. Lovecraft, now there comes Alien... But yea, I would also add the warning, watch on your own risk. But it's a nice piece of art.

Anyway, we should stay at the topic

[Estelyn Telcontar]

*Esty tackle hugs Maril, whose full name she could still type without resorting to copy and paste! (Well, I think so...) How nice to see you around again! And thanks for this fun reading - it's great to follow Mark's reactions, in such detail too!

[Marileangorifurnimaluim]

Originally Posted by Estelyn Telcontar

*Esty tackle hugs Maril, whose full name she could still type without resorting to copy and paste! (Well, I think so...) How nice to see you around again! And thanks for this fun reading - it's great to follow Mark's reactions, in such detail too!

Hihihihi! I can't believe I still remembered how to spell it. Logging in took a moment of thought.

[Galadriel55]

Originally Posted by Legate of Amon Lanc

Interesting. First Pitch links you H.P. Lovecraft, now there comes Alien...

You Downers are slowly cultivating me... I think I'm past Stone Age already! I think I'm leveling up to civilization...


Back on topic, Mark has the chapter titles posted up to ROTK Book 2 Chap. 6, but only has links until chap. 3. Did he not read/not have time to type up the rest of them? (I'd assume the latter's the case)

[Formendacil]

Originally Posted by Galadriel55

You Downers are slowly cultivating me... I think I'm past Stone Age already! I think I'm leveling up to civilization...


Back on topic, Mark has the chapter titles posted up to ROTK Book 2 Chap. 6, but only has links until chap. 3. Did he not read/not have time to type up the rest of them? (I'd assume the latter's the case)

Click on the titles of the posts--he doesn't always include a blue "read more" link at the bottom.



...yes, I have gone on a Markreads. binge.

[Eönwë]

This is absolutely brilliant. I've just read a ridiculous number of them (i.e. the whole hobbit and about half LOTR). It's interesting to see how someone sees it the first time, especially when their ideas are fully-formed in general (as an adult, I mean). I also approve of his attitude towards Tom Bombadil, which was mine when I first read it, and still is. I am also pretty impressed at the whole uncloaking thing too. He definitely has the makings of a Barrow-Downer!

[Legate of Amon Lanc]

Originally Posted by Eönwë

This is absolutely brilliant. I've just read a ridiculous number of them (i.e. the whole hobbit and about half LOTR). It's interesting to see how someone sees it the first time, especially when their ideas are fully-formed in general (as an adult, I mean). I also approve of his attitude towards Tom Bombadil, which was mine when I first read it, and still is. I am also pretty impressed at the whole uncloaking thing too. He definitely has the makings of a Barrow-Downer!

Now that you brought it up, I also had to read what he thinks about Bombadil and haha, he is just brilliant! Totally freaked out, puzzled and all

I really loved this line:

Originally Posted by mark (obviously, soon to be Downer-name ;))

I’m sorry, I know that it’s nice and kind and I won’t ignore that, but if I showed up at a stranger’s house, and he had four bathtubs perfectly set up for me and my three friends, I would leave immediately.

Great. But very true!

And it's fun as the description and conclusion gradually develops to "no! And he did this! And he did that!" - I started to anticipate that at certain point, the next line would be: "THERE IS NO OTHER WAY! TOM IS A WOLF!!! ++BOMBADIL!!!"

And I also like observations like this:

Originally Posted by mark again

Frodo vision of the dark tower with a man on top of it reminds me of the one he had earlier, so I’m going to assume it’s important to the story.

Makes you want to wink knowingly at your friends while Mark just stands there, confused...

What I really loved, though - and that is in line with what I have said in one of the posts above about "reviving the reading for us" - was the description of how Mark felt about the end of the sixth chapter. Somehow I really started thinking about it again as if I had just read it for the first time. Sort of reminded me of the beauty of the story and, heck, now I want to reread LotR... as if I didn't have many different things I want to read on schedule already...

[Marileangorifurnimaluim]

Originally Posted by Formendacil

...yes, I have gone on a Markreads. binge.

Oh, me too.

I wish he'd done chapter by chapter reviews of Martin's Song of Ice and Fire series, because by the second or third book the violence women against got to me. Yet I still want to know how it turns out for the characters. Alas, he did "whole book" reviews, which left me more confused than before.