Мрачните сили на Толкин

Tolkien Illustrated Guides

by David Day, Дейвид Дей, Любомир Николов-Нарви (Translator)

Толкиновите произведения са едни от НАЙ-ВЕЛИКИТЕ предания за битката на ДОБРОТО срещу ЗЛОТО, разказвани някога.

Разглеждайки МРАЧНИТЕ СИЛИ, които оформят света на Арда и СЛОЖНИТЕ фигури, които се борят със СВЕТЛИНАТА и мрака в самите себе си, тази книга изследва ТИРАНИЯТА и УНИЩОЖЕНИЕТО в Толкиновия свят и самата същност на злото.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Reference, Mythology, Books About Books, High Fantasy, Art

256 pages, Paperback

First published October 9, 2018

About the author

David Day (b. 14 October 1947 in Victoria, British Columbia) is a Canadian author of over forty books: poetry, natural history, ecology, mythology, fantasy, and children's literature. Internationally he is most notably known for his literary criticism on J. R. R. Tolkien and his works.

After finishing high school in Victoria, British Columbia, Day worked as a logger for five years on Vancouver Island before graduating from the University of Victoria. Subsequently he has travelled widely, most frequently to Greece and Britain.

Day has published six books of poems for adults and ten illustrated children's books of fiction and poetry. His non-fiction books on natural history include The Doomsday Book of Animals, The Whale War, Eco Wars: a Layman Guide to the Environmental Movement, Noah's Choice and most recently Nevermore: A Book of Hours - Meditations on Extinction (2012).

His Doomsday Book was a Time Magazine Book of the Year and became the basis for the 100 part animated-short TV series "Lost Animals of the 20th Century".

David Days best-selling books on the life and works of JRR Tolkien include: A Tolkien Bestiary, Tolkien: the Illustrated Encyclopedia, Tolkien's Ring, The World of Tolkien and The Hobbit Companion.

Day's Tolkien's Ring was illustrated by academy award-winning artist Alan Lee, as was Castles, The Animals Within, Gothic and Quest For King Arthur.

Reviews

[Valentina Markasović · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tolkien: no Nazis
Everyone else, including Christopher Tolkien and David Day: everyone is a Nazi, except for Sam and the Elves

Tolkien's character: *exists*
A randomly generated person in history or mythology who shares one (1) characteristic with Tolkien's character: *exists*
David Day: This historical/mythological person directly influenced Tolkien's writing, but I'm not going to give you any proof about it


I could go on but I mentally gave up around the time when Day equaled Aragorn with Emperor Justinian and the Hill-men of Angmar with the Basque people

Stars for things that Tolkien actually said and the pretty drawings
Read Tolkien fan Wikipedia for better content

[Jocelin Willshaw · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another David Day book another average review, once again I find myself torn between aesthetic and the quality of writing. Whilst The Dark Powers of Tolkien is a visually stunning book adorned with wonderful illustrations and an embossed faux leather cover it isn’t much more than a handheld walk through Middle Earth’s darker landscapes.

It does offer some interesting parallels between Tolkien’s lore and possible inspirations including Norse and Greek mythology but many of the points are quite shallow. If you’re a long time Tolkien fan you won’t learn anything new from this book, it acts more as a summary of events and characters from his Middle Earth saga. As long as you go in with this in mind it can be quite an enjoyable read, or used as a reference when you want to find some information on The Witch King of Angmar or Smaug The Dragon.

I know it sounds like I’m panning the book but the funny thing is I did enjoy it, whether that’s because it’s to do with Tolkien and just reading about his stories brings me joy, I’m not sure. Overall it is a nice reference guide to have and sits nicely with my other similarly reviewed David Day books on the shelf.

[Ryan · Rating 1 out of 5]

The book initially stirred my interest when it promised to focus on the evil characters from the Legendarium. As an avid Tolkien fan and admitted fan of Melkor, I felt this book would be a good read. David Day, however, immediately ignores Tolkien's disdain for allegory as he stretches to draw parallels between Tolkien's mythology and the Judaeo-Christian mythos. Day seemingly cannot wait to re-write the Ainulindalë in a fashion all too similar to the story of Lucifer's fall as he has read in Milton. (Day, pg. 20). The underlying problem with this, besides the blatant ignorance displayed, is that Day, by comparing Melkor to Lucifer, turns Melkor from a being of growing discord (and eventual pure evil) into a tragic anti-hero in vein of Paradise Lost. We also learn that Saruman has a Lucifer tie-in as well in that "His speeches have much in common with the enthralling, deceptive speeches given to Satan in Milton's Paradise Lost." (Day, pg. 218).

Day continues through the book to force Tolkien's work to fit his ideas of other mythologies. This includes Melkor being half Loki- half Odin and Ungoliant having parallels with the Indian goddess Kali- both have eight limbs and are completely evil (according to Day, pg. 32). Day also fancies that the One Ring has biblical ties to the Ring of Solomon. "There can be little doubt that Tolkien was familiar with this ancient biblical tale of a sorcerer-king who, like Sauron, used a magic ring to command all the demons of the Earth and bind them to his purpose. Of all the biblical ring stories, Solomon's Ring most resembles the One Ring." (Day, pg. 96). Coincidence? Not really, just another giant stretch to attain a premeditated outcome. What Day fails to do here is provide any biblical source, instead referring to it as a legend. This Ring legend presented is not mentioned in any scripture but instead in medieval Jewish tradition and in Islamic/Western occultism, both of these seem unlikely for Tolkien to be using as inspiration. It becomes problematic when a simple Google search provides facts which contradict what Day is struggling to make a possible reality. Further, just because something displays similarities to something else doesn't necessarily mean it was inspired by it. Is the entire book filled with this nonsense? Not at all, in fact, some of the alleged parallels are quite thought-provoking- there is just no evidence for them whatsoever.

Many of the potential inspirations are actually rather interesting, especially when they relate to Norse Mythology or Arthurian Legend which Tolkien is known for utilizing as the basis for characters (ie Gandalf). The comparison of Númenor to Atlantis or another lost continent is an interesting take, though one need not read this book to draw that connection.

The Dark Powers of Tolkien has a wonderful redeeming quality and that is the collection of illustrations that are bound within. Many of these I would absolutely love to have to hang around my house and I will no doubt pull the book out to look at them again.

[Lily De Lioncourt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Do quelle stelle solo per alcune illustrazioni piacevoli all'occhio. Il resto è un meh enorme come l'universo inesplorato.
(darei zero stelle solo perché mi chiamano Shelob, Aragne....non aggiungo altro)

[Chiara Elanor Carugati · Rating 3 out of 5]

Comprato per la bella copertina (bisogna essere onesti nella vita) e per le illustrazioni. Interessante e utile. Non sostituisce sicuramente il Silmarillion o la lettura dei lavori di Tolkien, ma è un aiuto per raccapezzarsi nell’universo di LOTR in modo “soft”.

[Evie Cherrington · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s 2.5 stars, I think if you are a massive Middle Earth fan you will love this but I struggled at points to keep interested. It’s basically a long description of how Tolkien was inspired to create all the darkness in his books. It’s a bit like having a hundred history lessons at once. But I liked some facts from it and think it was really interesting. It’s also so beautifully illustrated as well

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Appena ho iniziato I poteri oscuri di Tolkien di David Day, ho avuto la sensazione di tornare nella Terra di Mezzo, ma da una prospettiva completamente nuova. Non attraverso i grandi eroi o le battaglie leggendarie, ma seguendo le ombre che li hanno accompagnati, quelle forze oscure che da sempre minacciano l’equilibrio del mondo creato da Tolkien. David Day ha una capacità straordinaria: riesce a trasformare la sua profonda conoscenza dell’universo tolkieniano in un racconto, dove ogni pagina ti trascina più a fondo nei segreti del male; da Morgoth, il primo Oscuro Signore, fino a Sauron e oltre. Mentre leggevo, avevo la sensazione di esplorare non solo i personaggi, ma anche i simboli, le tentazioni e le paure che Tolkien ha saputo intrecciare con una maestria unica. Quello che ho apprezzato di più è il modo in cui Day non si limita a descrivere il male, ma lo interpreta: mostra come le ombre di Arda non siano solo mostri o poteri magici, ma riflessi delle debolezze umane, della sete di potere, della perdita di speranza. È impossibile non fermarsi a riflettere su quanto queste dinamiche siano ancora attuali, anche fuori dai confini della fantasia. Le illustrazioni, poi, sono splendide: cupe ma eleganti, evocano perfettamente l’atmosfera di mistero e oscurità che avvolge il libro. È una di quelle opere che si sfogliano lentamente, gustandosi ogni dettaglio, ogni riferimento, ogni piccolo frammento di lore tolkieniana. Lo consiglio a chi ama Tolkien, ma anche a chi è affascinato dal modo in cui la letteratura riesce a parlare del bene e del male con la potenza di un mito eterno.

[Livia · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought this book would give me an in-depth description of all the enemies of Middle-Earth, but it was mostly comparing them to mythology and folklore in our world, creating an image of what inspired Tolkien to write these forces the way he did. Half of this wasn't even about Middle-Earth, it was about tales from ancient religions. After about 100 pages I made my peace with it (I mean, i'm also into Norse and Irish mythology etc.) but it definitely didn't live up to my imaginations and didn't teach me anything new about Tolkien's world.
The second star is for the amazing artwork that's included in here! I'll probably scroll through this a few more times just to look at the pictures.

[Declan O'Keeffe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don't read this if you don't want spoilers for future seasons of rings of power.

But seriously, I love these books. I bought this one for mum for Christmas, and I ended up stealing it for my reading goals. I'm only missing 2 from this collection now!!

[Brenda Corral · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick Read, great illustrations but es para Otakus

[m&gs · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

most of the analysis and writing was not about middle earth so as someone who has very little knowledge in those things, i can’t say i really understood a lot of it but as always the illustrations were pretty

[˚༚✧˳⁺⁎davm⁎⁺˳✧༚˚ · Rating 4 out of 5]

*4.5 stars*

Great yet sometimes repetitive info. Not a fan of some of the art.

[Thomas Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting read, comparing Tolkiens love and knowledge of history and myths and how they like to the work of LoTR. Can't wait to read the rest of the books

[Anika · Rating 3 out of 5]

The actual text of the book is mid, it's simply a basic comparative analysis of evil in Tolkien's stories vs real world religions. It's an interesting comparison, but to be fair, this would be too surface-level for any university paper. According to some, the actual information is sometimes also false (I haven't read Tolkien's books so idk myself)

What I do like about it, though, it's that it was a handy simple guide for character-building. As I'm a first-time Dungeon Master for a one-shot it was nice to have a bit of guidance. But I'm mostly here for the art, it's incredible. I've been trying to learn how to render and these are some beautiful examples.

[Mert · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5 Stars (%60/100)

I had a hard time rating this book. The cover is beautiful, the whole design of the book is brilliant and there are dozens of pretty illustrations together with maps, timelines, and so forth. Visually, the book is stunning and can be a great piece for Tolkien lovers. However, I have to admit that the things discussed in the book are not very great. Starting from Melkor and going all the way to the Third Age, Day compares the evil figures in Tolkien's works with figures from Greek and Norse mythology as well as Judeo-Christian images. The biggest problem I had with these is, as many others already pointed out, that there is not enough evidence or it feels a bit of stretch. For example, comparing Ungoliant with Kali the Hindu Goddess because they have eight legs/arms. Also, the comparison between Sauron and Solomon regarding the ring. There are many examples like this and it becomes repetitive after a while. However, it was still interesting to see certain connections and parallels despite the lack of evidence. I think the book would have been better if it only focused on the evil figures in Tolkien's works, like a summary or description of all the bad guys because the illustrations are beautiful and they are great to learn more about these somewhat complicated characters (honestly, that's what I thought the book was about before I've read it). Finally, even though there are some problems, I think rating the book extremely low is a bit harsh as I enjoyed reading it and looking at the pictures.

[Charley Robson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another lovely piece of work by Mr Day! While it won't contain anything that long-standing fans won't already know, the X Of Tolkien series continue to be a gorgeous little companion set, outlining key people, themes, and sources of inspiration for the Professor and his world.

This one is a particular favourite for me, as it covers some of the most contentious - and simultaneously intriguing - parts of Tolkien's mythos; evil, and its manifestations. Everything from orcs to trolls to Morgoth himself, accompanied by some more of the beautiful (and spooky!) illustrations that make this series such a gem.

[Tom Garback · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Critical Score: A-
Personal Score: A-

This is a super fun and (comparitively) light overview of the villains, large and small, in Tolkien’s legendarium. It’s greatly strengthened by an abundance of visual media, from awe-inspiring art to useful charts. We could have used a couple maps, now that I think about it.

I didn’t care much for the discussions of legends, fairytales, and myths that likely inspired Tolkien, and these make up probably half of the text, but I guess they are informative.

This is only an issue in a couple of spots—Day does miss out on opportunities to call out Tolkien’s racism in his assignment of the easterlings and similar groups to evil. But I obviously wasn’t expecting such a criticism in a fun book that’s meant for fans, who are often blindly loyal.

There were a few glaring typos throughout.

Before I close, I’ll note how amusing it is to see devout Tolkien fans so supremely offended by Day’s arguments. It seems they don’t understand what comparative literature is. Besides, Day isn’t trying to make any deep arguments here, which is the right choice, as I found them pleasantly shallow; this is a fun, easy read. Not every Tolkien book has to hit you over the head with lore. I’m happy to have an addition to my Tolkien shelf that feels kind of cute.

So to close, I enjoyed this a lot. It’s a warmly gifty book that serves as a colorful reminder of Tolkien’s genius and obsessive world-building.

[Isabel Tyldesley · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars!

I opened this book because I wanted to know more about the fascinating evils in Tolkien's works. The Dark Powers of Tolkien is less of a comprehensive deep dive into the the dark powers within Middle Earth, and more about David Day's analysis of religion and literature. The book is full of sweeping generalisiations that presents opinions as fact on Day's speculation of Tolkien's inspirations. Whilst there are many parallels and likenesses to be drawn, Day writes that they "must" be Tolkien's basis, but with no strict sources to back this up, all we can really say is that they might be. Due to the nature of the dialogue, half of this book contains explanations of religion, mythology, and other pieces of literature. Though, as a lover of literature, this is interesting, it wasn't how the book itself was promoted to me. That, along with Day's generalisations, really brought the books rating down for me.

Simply, I expected more information about Tolkien's writing, world, and characters. This book would be better described a speculative analysis of Tolkien's work, rather than a canon piece of literature grouping all of Tolkien's 'dark powers' into one easy to read book. Despite these gripes, however, it did remain an easy and interesting to read book. Moreover, it was beautifully put together and the artwork was simply gorgeous. I'd almost recommend buying it just for that fact.

[Dan Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The blurb of this book mentions exploring tyranny and destruction - but its more of a surface level exploration rather than an analytical one.

The art. This is the main standout. Open on any page and you are likely to gawk at its splendour, but the gimmick does begin to fade over time. This book is easily accessible to any Tolkien fan, it's easy to read and honestly, fun. It felt like eating junk food, you know there isn't much to it, but it's just nice, comforting and it's over quickly.
Also, Day, probably unintentionally, gave me plenty of recommendations to read, with his countless, sometimes far fetched comparisons between Tolkien and other authors/stories/myths/legends etc.
This book refuses to dive deep into Middle Earth history and the idea of Evil, instead it only lets the reader stick their feet in the water. However shallow the water may be, I enjoyed it.
Just a little niggle, the amazing art can literally separate the reading as it art is sometimes slammed over two pages whilst reading mid sentence. I stop, stare at the art, then forget what I was reading on the next page.

Overall, this was a fun little book to read as a one off between reading other books, and although I enjoyed it, I don't think I will be reading another one of Day's Middle Earth guides.

[Alain DeWitt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Where's a half-star when you need it?

I liked this book. It was a nice leatherbound volume with stunning illustrations. The text expounded on these characters in a systematic fashion. Some of the parallels with mythology are obvious, but the author isn't condescending. Some readers, especially younger ones, might not be aware of the roots of some of these characters.

He also relates the creation and evolution of the characters to Tolkein's own experiences in a thoughtful way. And, frankly, Tolkein's lore is so dense, and the language - especially the character names - so inaccessible, I am always grateful for a refresher.

[Booksofswarley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Très bonne lecture ! J’ai appris quelques informations quant au processus de créations de Tolkien. David Day s’intéresse beaucoup à l’étymologie et à l’origine des forces du mal rencontrées dans La Terre du Milieu, depuis le Premier Âge jusqu’à la guerre de l’anneau. Il met également en avant les différentes légendes, mythologies et/ou œuvres dont Tolkien a pu s’inspirer afin de créer son univers. Les illustrations sont somptueuses. Seul bémol, certains passages font un peu redites avec d’autres de ses écrits « The Battles of Tolkien » et « The Hobbits of Tolkien » notamment.

[Nathanael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick read with some gorgeous illustrations. I’d recommend this book to anyone who is new to Tolkien’s world, or who has read the books but not delved between the lines too much.

However, for any experienced Tolkien scholar this book may be too basic, and some sections focus more on retelling events than on the powers themselves. Minor spelling mistakes and occasionally questionable connections are minor gripes but regardless the book is highly enjoyable and informative on both Tolkien’s word and in world mythology. I learned a lot from this book!

[Bookteafull (Danny)]

Skim-Read, so no rating.

SUPERB pictures and really informative and engaging work on Tolkien's portrayals of evil and sources of inspiration. Definitely a future pick for the book club I cohost with Mads, @AnUnexpectedRead on insta.

*Picked up and skim-read initially to figure out if the novel would be a good choice for the club next year. Wanted to make sure the content wasn't dry af lol - and it wasn't! Yay!

[J. Jammy May · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 ⭐️

I found this book to be much better than the first few of Day’s in the series. While he has markedly improved, there are still the occasional issue of errors as well as instances of repetition over a few chapters. But certainly better than what some of these books in the series have been, and some of the history elements of what Tolkien drew on from mythologies was new to me so I found very interesting.

[Juan Gallardo · Rating 5 out of 5]

La luz y la oscuridad, David Day, transmite de leyendas mitológicas griegas, nórdicas sobre los acontecimientos q trascienden en la historia de el señor de los anillos, y en sus diferentes obras, tales son el hobbit, el descubrimiento y clasificación de las especies que se nombran, los distintos tipos de dragones, incluso en guerras anteriores a la batalla del anillo entre los hobbits y el señor oscuro, sauron

[Allan Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice place to start if Christopher Tolkien’s explorations are too daunting for you. Not much here for anyone who has already started digging into the old bones of JRR Tolkien’s work. My copy has a very nice leather cover and the book is filled with plenty of delightful art.

[clumsyplankton · Rating 1 out of 5]

I think I’ve been generous with my ratings of David days books just because I love Tolkien so much and I want to like all the stuff related to his works but sadly this just was not good. 1 star for the pretty illustrations

[Salem Zarir · Rating 3 out of 5]

a little bit better than the battles of Tolkien by the same author, but still gets the three stars largely because it has Tolkien content. the book looks good on a shelf and has some wonderful art, but it adds little even to the average Tolkien fan. I'm still happy to read it though.

[Pedro Gowland · Rating 3 out of 5]

El libro es precioso, la encuadernación y las ilustraciones me encantaron.

En contenido? No profundiza en nada, hace leves comparaciones que cualquiera que haya leido a tolkien podria hacer y listo, me gustaria que profundice más.

No es malo, pero le falta mucho tristemente.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating. Traces the conscious and perhaps subconscious inspiration to Tolkien's work.