The Fellowship of the Ring (1954)

It’s always so interesting to revisit books I first read when I was a little too young for them.  While I pretty much was always able to follow what was going on from a plot angle, I discover all this richness on reread that I never knew was there, and I realize how much I was just skimming the surface of these books I read when I was younger.  Rereading The Fellowship of the Ring was like reading an entirely new book.

Frodo Baggins, unassuming hobbit of the Shire, has his world turned upside-down when he inherits a magic ring from his uncle.  The wizard Gandalf explains to Frodo that it’s the legendary One Ring forged by the dark lord Sauron.  Despite the dark lord’s defeat centuries ago, Sauron’s spirit survives through his connection to the Ring, and evil forces are amassing to steal it so it might restore his power.  Frodo sets off on a quest to destroy the Ring, aided by fellow hobbits, Gandalf, Men, Elves, and Dwarves alike, but the intoxicating lure of the Ring threatens to devour the company from within.

As with any book that I revisit after having gotten used to its film adaptation, I’m surprised by this or that plot point that happened differently, or that was cut from the movie.  Here, I recalled the detour with Tom Bombadill but had forgotten the Barrow Wight, and I was struck by how differently Aragorn approaches his position as Isildur’s heir.  I also didn’t remember most of the songs (pretty sure I just glossed over them when I first read the book,) but after rereading The Hobbit, I was ready for them.

But enough about that.  This is a book that, to be honest, I mildly enjoyed back when I was a bit young to be reading it, but I really loved it this time around.  The interactions between the characters are so great, along with all the little details of their characterizations – Sam is a sentimental favorite, of course, but I also greatly enjoy Legolas and Gimli’s slightly rocky road to friendship.  I like how much agency the Ring is portrayed as having, seeming to change its size and weight at will as it gets its hooks into someone’s heart or chooses a new master for itself.  And there’s just something really cool about Tolkien’s “Middle-earth historian” style of writing.  I dig the matter-of-fact way he references various cultural points or historical events as though he fully expects the reader to already have at least a rudimentary knowledge of them and he’s just sharing his more particular expertise.

You definitely feel the different sense of scope between The Hobbit and this book.  It’s more “historical,” more sprawling, with much bigger stakes and a more epic feel.  Even though it involves a relatively small number of characters and focuses on the more mundane parts of their journey as well as the more exciting/daring parts, you can feel the weight of it, how the fate of the entire world is resting on the actions of these small hobbits and their companions.  It’s all about to go down!

Warnings

Fantasy violence, disturbing images, drinking/smoking, and thematic elements.