Krista’s Comments (group member since Oct 22, 2019)

Krista’s comments from the Lord of the Readalong 2020 group.

OH boy. I finished. Finally. Think I'll give it 3 stars because the end really did pick up and became interesting again. I did feel like getting the ring to Mordor was a bit anticlimactic since that is what we were building to over 3 books, but it happened. Good ole Gollum.

I loved how Merry and Pippin changed throughout, well starting with the Ents and especially in this book. Love how they became "captains" and took back the Shire.

Overall I'm glad I finally read this series, but I'll just stick to the movies from here on out. Probably won't ever read LOTR. The Hobbit is still a fave and I'll read that over and over, but the other three I can check it off and call them finished! Woohoo!!

Thanks for reading with us.

I'M SO BORED! haha.

If it weren't for this readalong I would just pop in the movie and skip this last book. I am lost most of the time. Hate the battle scenes. SO many names and places that I just don't know what's going on. I want to get back to Sam and Frodo. I want this to be over!! This so far is my least favorite of the three by FAR!

You did it!!

What are your final thoughts?
Who were your favorite characters in this book? Is that different from the rest of the series?
What will you rate this one?
Any quotes or stand out moments from this final section?

Only one more section to go!

What stands out to you from this section?
Which character from this third book has surprised or disappointed you the most?
Any other thoughts, comments or questions from this section?

You're halfway through this final book. What do you think?

Have your thoughts on Merry and Pippin changed throughout this series?
Have any parts ramped up the intensity for you?
What are you thinking of Tolkein's writing at this point?
Any other thoughts, comments or questions from this section?

Hello friends! So sorry for the delay in setting up this last book! Slipped our minds. But both Sarah and I have started reading this one and hope you will join in!

What are you most looking forward to in this last book?
In these chapters what stands out most to you?
Any thoughts, comments or questions about this section?

Evelina wrote: "I honestly really liked this book, perhaps even more than FotR. I think in part it has to do with that I've gotten more used to Tolkiens writingstyle. I liked both parts of the book, I may prefer t..."

I agree. I got lost in the descriptions now and then too. It's amazing the depth of this world that Tolkien created, but sometimes I didn't need every detail! haha.

I just finished the book today, so of course I had to watch the movie. Turns out fight/battle/war scenes are just as boring to me on the screen as they are in the book! haha. It was good to see some of it come to life. I always have a hard time picturing it in the book.

I don't mind the addition of Arwyn/Eowyn love triangle with Aragorn. I don't remember the Elves coming to Helm's deep though. That didn't happen in the book, right?

What I did really appreciate in the movie is the back and forth structure that we didn't get in the book. Instead of focusing on Aragorn and crew for 1/2 the time and then Frodo/Sam the other half, the movie went back and forth, which was WAY better in my mind. Helped keep things moving.

I didn't love that the Faramir storyline was changed so much either, but again it helps give a bigger picture of the world.

If anyone else watches the movie after finishing, please share your thoughts!

Made it this far and am really hoping to fly through the last section today and finish in April. Fingers crossed.

I am really enjoying Frodo and Sam's journey and their interactions with Gollum/Smeagol and then Faromir and his men. I see Frodo's determination and heaviness about his task. He also is quite a bit more introspective and maybe even wise than when he first started. Sam is such a loyal friend and I just love the scenes when he looks out for Frodo and even stands up for him. So lovely.

Just got to this point yesterday. I am still enjoying this book more than I thought. I do have a hard time picturing fight scenes, so the whole chapter about Helm's Deep was a bit dragging for me because I just couldn't picture it all. I think I need to watch the movie again!

I am really enjoying this one, which is a bit of a surprise. For some reason this middle book was the most intimidating in my mind. I think I've heard a few people say it is the slowest. So far, that's not my experience.

I'm loving Treebeard and the whole scene with the Ents. Love how they're on the march now.

Yay for the return of Gandalf!

I do wonder what's up with Frodo and Sam, but I know we will get to them eventually...hopefully!

You did it!! Another one down and just one more to go!

Here are some questions to get you thinking...no need to answer all of them! :)

What are your overall impressions of The Two Towers?
How would you compare it to how you felt about The Fellowship of the Ring?
Which did you like better?
How are you feeling about moving forward?
What did you think about how this one ended? Were you satisfied or left wanting more?
What's something that surprised you in this story?
What will you rate this one?

What are you thinking as we move forward in this story?

What has stood out to you?

What themes have you picked up on?

Any quotes that you have loved so far?

Alright, that wraps up Book 3.

What has stood out to you or surprised you so far?
What do you think of these characters? Which of them is stands out to you? Which do you connect with more?
What do you think of this world Tolkien has created?

Here we go with our next read! This one has Book 3 and Book 4 of the Lord of the Rings saga. I think this is the one I (Krista) am most nervous about, but still excited to get going.

What are your initial impressions of this one?
How does it compare so far to FOTR?
What do you think of Frodo and Sam?
Has the pacing and story worked for you so far in this one?

Has anyone watched the movie now that we've read the book? I am going to watch it today and will share my thoughts here.

Hello all! I realized I never came in here to post my final thoughts of the book. I liked it so much more than I expected based on my intimidation! haha. I'm glad for that. It's an easy 5 star read for me because Tolkein is a genius. Even with the "boring" council of Elrond, it is amazing the depth of this world he created, the connections between characters (and books), and the history that we won't see necessarily, but is there and influences the world for these characters. I love the interaction between members of the Fellowship. I was waiting and waiting for the scene with Baromir because I could remember that so clearly from the movie. I don't remember much from the movie though so I'm going to watch that this weekend. Yay!

I am hoping to push through tonight to finish the whole thing...maybe tomorrow. :)

I am still really enjoying it, but chapter 2 in this section was a slog. It was the council meeting in Rivendell when we get some history of the world. I was lost during most of that discussion and honestly didn't care much. I wanted them to get back on the journey.

I laugh at Pippin. He doesn't have the adventurous part of him like some of the others. We can already see Gandalf starting to lose patience with him now and then.

I love the creativity of the world. A mountain that doesn't want them to cross that way so it gives them some bad weather. The creature that came up out of the water to grab at Frodo. I get excited for parts like those much more than the sit around talking/singing parts.

I am very interested to see how this part of the series ends. With less than 100 pages left I feel like we're not going to solve the ring problem in this one.

Well I am still enjoying this so much more than I expected! Is Tom Bombadill in the movie? Because if so I totally forgot about him.

I guess I'm taking it at surface level because I don't see as many HP similarities, except maybe with the dementors and the black riders. And I'm not thinking about the world at the time of Tolkein's writing. BUT I love those two perspectives and think it adds to the story to think about the possible connections. Thanks, guys!

Paul wrote: "https://youtu.be/BC35cQKHwzg"

Oh . my . word ! Hilarious.