This and that today.
I’m well into The Two Towers by Tolkien and loving it. It’s completely true when we say the book exceeds the movie. It’s all Tolkien and the man takes his time, people, if you understand my meaning. Every scene is well-done, lots of details, beautiful language. One doesn’t rush through Tolkien. I suspect that’s why some folks just don’t get it. Reading fantasy allows for that pure suspension of belief that lets you leave behind everyday life. This is especially true of Tolkien with all the Middle Earth backstory references he drops in the narrative. What’s your favorite Tolkien book?
Whether it be book or movie, my boys are crazy for fantasy, so to participate with Jennifer’s “Read Together” project, I’m going to read to them My Father’s Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett. I’ve had it on the shelf for a few months and keep forgetting to get going with it. Jen’s given me the incentive to start. Follow the link above to see what other folks are reading to their hobbits.
Poetry Friday. For fantasy-readers, young and old, a poem about dragons:
The Dragons are Singing Tonight
Tonight is the night all the dragons
Awake in their lairs underground,
To sing in cacophonous chorus
And fill the whole world with their sound.
They sing of the days of their glory,
They sing of their exploits of old,
Of maidens and knights, and of fiery fights,
And guarding vast caches of gold.
Some of their voices are treble,
And some of their voices are deep,
But all of their voices are thunderous,
And no one can get any sleep,
I lie in my bed and I listen,
Enchanted and filled with delight,
To songs I can hear only one night a year –
The dragons are singing tonight.
–by Jack Prelutsky
Love it? Memorize it!
Cool, I’m glad you’re going to join in. I’ve heard of that book, but haven’t read it yet.
I’ve always loved the name of your blog.
Thanks, Jen. Bloggers are friends too.
My choice is actually three books in one: My Father’s Dragon, Elmer and the Dragon and Dragons of Blueland. The dragon on the cover is adorable, as far as dragons go.
I fell in love with Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings books after seeing the first movie. The movies are brillantly done (I think) and it was after the first one I knew I had to read the books. I began with the The Hobbit, which I adored, and moved onto the rest. I haven’t yet read any of Tolkien’s other works, but I would like to eventually give them a try. The books definitely are better than the movies–more detailed, more lively, but I still think the movies were fantastic in their own right.
That’s a good point. I think the movies introduced many new readers to Tolkien, a whole new generation of fans. I read Hobbit in high school and never got back to reading the LOTR. They just somehow just slipped through the pile forgotten for far too long.
Have you seen the extended versions of the movies? Excellent.
Love the poem. I’ve copied it so I can do something with it for my 2 boys who, though 9 years apart in age, both love anything to do with dragons.
I am visiting from Snapshot. My son and I enjoyed My Father’s Dragon. We read the entire trilogy. I hope you enjoy it as well!
Being so keen on dragons you may want to check out the Dragons in our Midst series by Bryan Davis.
I’ve only read the first so far, but it was highly intriguing and well-written.