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cesar's review against another edition
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Esse livro pega alguns textos esquecidos e pouco trabalhados de Tolkien sobre idade dos elfos e homens, sobre lugares, e sobre os Valar.
O grande problema desse livro é que ele é muito repetitivo e não chega nem perto das edições feitas pelo Christopher Tolkien, tornando o livro maçante e complexo.
Vale a pena por alguns textos inéditos e só.
O grande problema desse livro é que ele é muito repetitivo e não chega nem perto das edições feitas pelo Christopher Tolkien, tornando o livro maçante e complexo.
Vale a pena por alguns textos inéditos e só.
bearded_wizard's review against another edition
challenging
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.75
This book will not be of any interest to most readers. It is filled with random lore that is somewhat finished at best. Do Tolkien fans really need to understand the math behind aging of the elves or distances on maps? Some chapters are better than others but you finish reading this book with absolutely no sense of accomplissement nor have you really learned much either.
That book should never have been published in a deluxe slipcase edition but like many other who bought it, I will say that the main reason for owning this book is to complete my collection.
That book should never have been published in a deluxe slipcase edition but like many other who bought it, I will say that the main reason for owning this book is to complete my collection.
lenci's review against another edition
challenging
informative
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
Honestly, I thought the book would just be dry and boring, which at some points it defenitively is, but I found myself enjoying it more than I thought. Personally, I love to read about random bits and trivia on (fantasy) worlds and really like the fact that I can "learn" about whether or not eleves had facial hair and what kind of finger games elvish children played. I literally found myself wishing the chapter on elvish economy were longer!
I must say that just skipping or skimming the strictly linguistic and mathematic parts of the book made it more enjoyable - especially since English isn't my first language which made the dictionary-like parts difficult to understand.
I must say that just skipping or skimming the strictly linguistic and mathematic parts of the book made it more enjoyable - especially since English isn't my first language which made the dictionary-like parts difficult to understand.
aerinelf's review against another edition
I wanted to like this so bad but it's just too dry and abstract.
syliu's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Too many maths tables, and I’m not sure why this book exists. I also disagree with a lot of Hostetter's opinions. But his notes were good and the appendices particularly good. I did not expect to see discussion of Aristotelian-Thomistic metaphysics but it was very entertaining to read.
skylacine's review against another edition
3.0
This wasn't really it for me. It's mostly just dry texts with information on various aspects of Middle-Earth. Also I didn't expect to be doing maths in a fantasy book.
Was expecting more of like an encyclopedia-style book rather than texts with various themes with not a lot of cohesion.
Was expecting more of like an encyclopedia-style book rather than texts with various themes with not a lot of cohesion.
mjwatt1's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
gav_ferreira's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
lillanaa's review against another edition
5.0
I had no idea what to expect with this, and I do agree that some parts are rather dry, but this is a trove of background information that I'd highly recommend to anyone as in love with the universe Tolkien has created as I am. This is definitely for the hardcore fans only, not meant in a gatekeeping way, as the first chunk being mostly math can be fairly daunting, but I would absolutely use this as a masterclass in worldbuilding and a fabulous peek into the writing process.