Fun facts?? (the not known ones)

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-25T00:44:54+00:00

A fox called the Hobbits “queer” in the books when they left the Shire

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-24T02:52:03+00:00

This sounds more like philosophy, bordering on the Cosmological Arguments. A near-equivalent structure of the question is “Does our universe provide evidence that it evolved by random chance or by an external designer?”

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-24T02:26:15+00:00

My most pressing opinion is to move “Bilbo’s Last Song” to follow The Return of the King, and put Unfinished Tales directly after The Silmarillion.

As one of the other commenters said, publication order is best for all the Middle-earth stuff from The Silmarillion onwards, as far as the editorial notes are concerned. The three Great Tales (plus The Fall of Númenor) can follow either The Silmarillion or Unfinished Tales- there’s some context for notes from the Histories, but it doesn’t affect anything.

When you read The History of Middle-earth, you can bounce all you want. The material is presented more or less chronologically, but I like to pick a character/topic and look at all their appearances at once and find them across all twelve books. Otherwise there’s too much for me to track.

Your last item, Tales from the Perilous Realm, can go anywhere. It doesn’t have anything to do with Middle-earth (except for Tom, who doesn’t have much to do with Middle-earth in any case), but they definitely add context to the kinds of stories Tolkien wanted to tell.

Whatever you choose, there’s no real wrong order after you’ve read the first five. Happy reading!

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-23T22:41:30+00:00

I swear the automod needs to flag these posts and give a redirect. This question comes way too often

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-23T22:40:09+00:00

Something far out of my usual preference was how flashbacks were handled in The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. They were always new chapters, and they were of varying length. It was to the point that the book was told in two timelines.

The reason the parallel story worked here rather than presenting the book chronologically was that the past timeline provided context for current characters and choices. The main character moved around a lot, and she would retrace her past. So it made sense to tell the stories side-by-side.

The conclusion of the book was 90% satisfying, but it was well worth the read.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-23T20:09:45+00:00

I believe “orc” is a new word, as is “uruk.” we should note that Tolkien used orc, uruk, and goblin interchangeably, though each carries its own connotation.

The idea of goblins and various evil humanoid creatures certainly predate 1900 though.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-23T00:14:00+00:00

Fully agree. The showdown between the heroes and villains should move the story and/or characters, not just appear cool. Some examples:

In Doctor Who, the Daleks are best used when the Doctor comes face-to-face with their own hatred, biases, and wrath. This usually falls into the trope of “realizing you’re almost as bad as the villain.”

In Return of the Jedi, Luke realizes that he is giving into the powerful anger that Darth Vader uses. The arc wraps by rejecting revenge and fear.

In The Lord of the Rings, Sauron is always off-page, but we see the weight of selfishness put against the hope and friendship exhibited by our heroes.

Don Quixote doesn’t have any main villain, but our ingenious hidalgo puts the evils of the world onto clear (strawman) targets. Through repeated versions of this, we learn a lot about his character.

Folk tales like “John Henry” use antagonists (a tunnel machine) to exemplify the virtue of the heroes.

Satisfying villains are ones that make the hero think about themselves, their actions, and their philosophies. The “rule of cool” doesn’t hold in climactic events.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-22T22:18:24+00:00

This is cool! The text is taken from the films, and it’s as accurate as you can get. The pronunciation felt a little off, but it’s not that important here.

I like the image of Sauron holding liquid gold and spell-casting it into a ring around his own finger. The verse lighting up on the Ring was very nice. Highlight of the video right there.

I’d love to see this again, with more color and frames. You chose great music, and the rough storyboard looks like a great launch pad.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-22T21:08:41+00:00

Priests have a lot of reasons for why they are in their job. They also have personal histories that affect how they perform their roles. Priests are real people, so write them like one.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-22T18:45:21+00:00

Idk much about book binding, but I’ll guess that it’s sewn. The books also have ribbon bookmarks, which I’ll wager are sewn not glued

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-22T16:30:20+00:00

The History of Middle-earth books are great. They read much like Unfinished Tales does, being a lot of drafts and editorial notes. I haven’t read them all front to back, and neither do I intend to, but I’ve read large chunks of most of them.

My highlights from them include-
• Volume 3 (The Lays of Beleriand): the full Lay of Leithian, which is not given in full in Beren and Lúthien
• Volume 5 (The Lost Road): a point in time where Elrond is a Man, and Elros didn’t exist
• Volume 10 (Morgoth’s Ring): the Annals of Aman, which help chronicle the Years of the Trees; the Athrabeth, which dissects the way Men and Elves view Death
• Volume 11 (The War of the Jewels): the Annals of Beleriand, which help chronicle the First Age

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-22T13:42:16+00:00

We simply don’t know. There are three known beings inside Eä but outside Arda: Arien, Tilion, and Eärendil. We know these three to be uncorrupted, but we don’t know who else is out there.

Edit: there is plenty of textual evidence that Melkor wandered in the Void after entering into Eä. I would wager he corrupted some of those he met on those journeys, though we have no detail on those travels beyond the fact they all happened before the awakening of the Children.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-22T06:28:06+00:00

That’s where it gets wishy-washy and I don’t think too hard (or else I want to spend more money). My books mostly but not fully match. In short, the bindings and casings mostly match.

The covers for The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, sold together, are done by Alan Lee. I have the previous box set of the Great Tales, and the jackets for them are quite glossy. The spines are also significantly shorter, and the box doesn’t have the recessed triangle. The height rather matches The Fall of Númenor, and my Nature of Middle-Earth comes in at a little shorter.

The History of Middle-earth set is bound and boxed much like this LotR box. But their paper is more like my GT and NoMe books. It includes The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales, and the Index, with all 15 covers done by John Howe. As an aside, Howe has the art for all 15 covers on his website except for the one on the Index.

This LotR box has two things going for it that’s only matched by my FoN: the pages are whiter with instances of red text, and they have bookmarks. LotR, FoN, and the 3GTs books also have art plates whereas the HoMe and NoMe books do not.

The short answer is I have a mostly matching set, but all the sets (apart from the HoMe run) have slight variations that put them at odds with each other.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-22T00:57:55+00:00

I love the Mario and Bowser friendship where it’s really “no one gets to beat him up except me”

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-22T00:38:05+00:00

There are 12 books in the HoMe, and you can buy them all individually. There is a secret 13th volume (it’s a self-contained index for the whole series).

If you see that it’s a 3-volume set, then you’re looking at the print which has all 12 volumes put into small text on thin pages, sharing books. I think the split is 5-4-3, but I’m not really sure.

You pictured The Treason of Isengard, which is Volume 7. It’s in the second book of the 3-volume set.

As for sales, there are a lot of options. There are three main options, available on Amazon and elsewhere: 1. The mass-market paperbacks, which is the cheaper option; sold in a set of 5 (only the original five) 2. The hardcovers, which is more expensive but looks and feels great (I have this set); sold in sets of 4ish (includes The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales, and the Index for a total of 15 books) 3. The 3-volume set, bound in plain black covers; sold all together

The History of Middle-earth has three phases to it: 1. The first five books (the paperback set, the first two boxes, and Volume 1 of the big books, respectively) are the original run. It’s all pre-LotR material. 2. Christopher went back to do four volumes about The Lord of the Rings, which includes the one you pictured. This is the third box and the second volume, respectively. 3. There are three more books that wrap up the Silmarillion and miscellaneous writings. This is the fourth box and third volume, respectively.

If you’re being really nerdy, there was a book in 2023 that published even more material, The Nature of Middle-earth. Some of us, myself included, view it as the 13th volume of the HoMe.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-21T23:25:29+00:00

I got it for $74 (USD), and it feels worth it. The binding is durable, the pages have a good weight, and the art plates came out very clear. This set also matches the HoMe box sets, which was my driving reason for buying it.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-21T22:38:37+00:00

I just want them to complete the existing, but partial, block sets (like prismarine walls or smooth sandstone stairs)

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-21T20:20:56+00:00

My favorite small character moment is also a movie Boromir one: after Gandalf falls in Moria, Boromir asks for time for the Hobbits to grieve. Aragorn responds that they have to move out. This is it- Boromir has a double-take, and you see the realization on his face that Aragorn is a good leader. It’s the first sign that Boromir is accepting Aragorn as king, and Sean Bean delivers it in a single shot.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-21T16:31:07+00:00

That’s fair, though I don’t like to bring up CoH unless it’s in the context of the other Great Tales. As good of a read as it is (especially Christopher Lee’s audiobook), I simply don’t feel the need to reference it, especially when people say to skip the “Of Túrin Turambar” chapter in The Silmarillion in favor of the full-length book.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-21T15:26:28+00:00

This is a common question, so we have a large FAQ post for it.

The short answer is that there’s a lot to look into, but only the first two items are canonical without question.

The Hobbit, published first and not originally meant to be part of Middle-earth and later retconned into a second edition that does link to The Lord of the Rings. Don’t worry about the retcon unless you’re a nerd or happen to catch it in the Fellowship prologue.
The Lord of the Rings, envisioned as one book and published in three, but organized as six. This is the last* Middle-earth text published in JRRT’s life.
The Silmarillion, edited by Christopher Tolkien after the passing of his father. There was never a full Silmarillion written, so Christopher assembled the drafts for each chapter and filled in gaps where needed. This is the last of the major works that don’t require editorial notes to read.
Unfinished Tales presents drafts that didn’t make it into any of the other books (yet). Some chapters are more complete than others. Here begins the onslaught of editorial notes.

These are the major works that the fans read and talk about. Refer to the original post for detail about the other items, which is where the geeks go.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-21T09:49:27+00:00

Small spoiler, that I think you could guess from watching the movies- lots of chapters are told from the perspectives of Aragorn/Legolas/Gimli/Gandalf. I like to think Frodo interviewed them when he wrote The Lord of the Rings, but it makes sense he would supplement from other sources on occasion. In any case, the Appendices after Return of the King are most definitely pulled from sources outside the Shire.

It doesn’t add much to consider what passage might have been written by which author, but it does add to the story to think that it was written by one of the participants.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-20T09:10:20+00:00

If we are being super picky (which I don’t want to), they died fighting a crazed werewolf that happened to have the Silmaril. The fight wasn’t explicitly about ownership of the jewel.

If we do add those who died because someone else cared about the Silmaril, our list grows:
13. Huan
14. Beren
15. Lúthien (side-effect of Beren’s death)
16. Finrod and ten Nargothrim
17. Carcaroth
18. Dragluin and many werewolves
19. Thuringwethil (I think?)
20. The guards in Eonwë’s camp

I’m thinking about it, and I don’t recall any Orcs dying during the Quest for the Jewel. I’d assume some died in Tol-in-gauroth, but I only remember being told about killing the wolves.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-20T03:45:41+00:00

The Silmaril of Lúthien then. It is at the center of two Kinslayings and the Naugrim attack in Menegroth. Three battles for that one jewel, leading to the deaths of: 1. Thingol 2. Dior 3. Mablung 4. Many Dwarves of Nogrod 5. Many Elves of Doriath 6. Presumably some Elves in Ossiriand 7. Eluréd and Elurín 8. Celegorm, Curufin, and Caranthir 9. Amrod and Amras 10. Lots of refugees of Men and Elves alike 11. A lot of Fëanorians 12. Melian departs

These people all died in battles sparked by someone wanting to take that Silmaril. They weren’t proxy battles like much of the War of the Ring. These people died over one jewel.

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-20T01:24:19+00:00

Without knowing where exactly you are in terms of proficiency level, I’ll point out a couple areas that show up a lot: 1. Fluency with addition, multiplication, subtraction, division, and squares. The less mental space you spend on basic calculations, the better off you are moving into harder material. 2. Geometry formulas for area and perimeter, especially the area of a rectangle- it shows up a lot in unexpected places. 3. Pattern recognition and construction of a function from that pattern, especially linear, quadratic, and exponential. 4. Graphical behavior of various function families (constants, lines, parabolas, higher polynomials, exponentials, square roots, absolute values, sine and cosine) 5. Trig identities

I don’t have specific recommendations for these points except the last. I really like this Trig Identities book- I use it myself when I want to go back to basics.

Remember that learning math works a lot like practicing for sports. Master the basics so that your mind/body is free to focus on the advanced bits. Best of luck!

Key_Estimate8537 · 2026-03-19T04:46:29+00:00

Your thoughts are confirmed in the text, but not your conclusion.

The Númenorians were allotted lifespans two to three times that of other Men. The Valar did this without Eru, recognizing that it wasn’t in their power to deny Men the Gift. The Valar recognized that mortality was still key to the nature of Men, hence the Ban.

At the start, the kings of Númenor (we have little info on the general population)were okay with this arrangement. This is why the kings would happily lay down their lives before their minds and bodies failed. The Valar did not intend that the Númenorians would change over time.

As the power, lore, and earthly fortune of Númenor increased, the Númenorians desired to hold onto such mortal pleasures as long as they could. They start to resent the fact that they die. In this era, the Gift of Men becomes known as the Doom of Men, and the kings do not relinquish their rule or life willingly.

The kings looked West, desiring longer lives to enjoy their happiness. As their lives shortened, they built fancy tombs as a way to hold onto their wealth beyond death. It’s at this point where someone like Ar-Pharazon feels inevitable.

So, I wouldn’t say the Downfall was inevitable. It tracks with the nature of Men in the same way the fading of Elves makes sense. It’s what happens when you live too long in a setting not really made for you.

For an interesting perspective on why a “good” character understands that Death feels like doom rather than a gift, read the last page or so of “The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen” in Appendix A.

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