Back in 2017, I shared how I’d tracked down a set of books with great sentimental weight; a battered but just about intact second edition set of Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings”sequence, which my dad and I had read from the library when I was in my early teens. Although I own my own paperback set, I wanted to revisit them as I’d actually originally encountered them; and at the time I optimistically predicted re-reading them over that summer.

Well, fast forward to 2022 and of course they hadn’t come off the shelf… However, when Simon and I settled on 1954 for our next club it was soon obvious that the first volume in the set, “The Fellowship of The Ring” was published in that year and therefore qualified! Despite the many, many wonderful books jostling for my attention, it just felt that the time was right for me to get reacquainted with Middle Earth; and so finally the sentimental purchase has seen the light of day!

Even if you haven’t read LOTR you possibly know the plot (and this post does discuss certain plot devices, though I don’t know if they can be called spoilers). Anyway, in an earlier story “The Hobbit”, a small furry-footed creature also sometimes called a Halfling stumbled into the world of dragons, dwarves, elves, wizards and treasure. The adventures he had were exciting and sometimes dangerous; but importantly for LOTR, he came into the possession of a magic ring which made the wearer invisible and brought that back to his homeland of The Shire. “The Fellowship of the Ring” opens with a short summary of this story, before going on to return us to The Shire for the start of our quest. Here Bilbo Baggins, the original titular hobbit, has lived in relative peace since his adventures; but he longs to go off on adventures again, despite his increasing age, and plans to leave secretly after celebrating a big birthday along with his nephew, young Frodo. His friend, the wizard Gandalf, turns up to see him off as well as ensuring he passes on the magic ring to Frodo; for Gandalf has learned much about the history of the ring, and has concerns.

The ring, it seems, is not just a magic trinket; in fact it’s a great ring of power and once Bilbo is safely away, Gandalf unburdens himself to Frodo, revealing the very great danger the ring could bring to not only The Shire but also the whole of Middle Earth. Created by an evil power but previously thought lost, that evil eye is now searching for the ring and the world is in peril. Frodo and his good friends Sam, Merry and Pippin are urged to set off on a quest for advice, help and perhaps to even consider destroying the ring. It’s a perilous task which will take him far from The Shire, encountering strange Rangers, Elves, Dwarves, powerful men from the south and all manner of strange creatures. A small peaceable creature is perhaps not the most obvious protagonist for a story this epic, but Hobbits turn out to be stronger and braver than you might imagine…

With a story of this length and complexity I can only really touch on the plot here; but I will say that Tolkien could really come up with, and write, a wonderfully compelling narrative! The rural and countrified Shire, with its tidy and peaceful Hobbit residents, is beautifully realised, and the characters come alive from the start. Yet almost straight away there is darkness; the second chapter, “The Shadows of the Past”, where Gandalf relates the story of the ring, is a marvellous piece of writing which sets out quite clearly the scale of the evil up against which the good characters will come. As the four Hobbits travel on their way, in the first of two books which make up this volume, heading for the House of Elrond, an Elvish haven, they are dogged by chilling foes and there are encounters which make your spine tingle.

The end of the first book ends on a point of high drama – Tolkien was very good at leaving you with a cliffhanger! – and the second book sees the setting up of the titular Fellowship. At this point, we’ve encountered one of my favourite characters, Strider the Ranger, and his development over the books is wonderful to watch. The Elf Legolas and Dwarf Gimli now join the cast and as the group sets off to make its way east they will be beset by danger, not only from Orcs but also from the temptations of the ring. A stop at Lothlorien refreshes them but there are more perils ahead and the Fellowship will be shattered, leaving us on another cliffhanger…

To be honest, I’m not going to be able to give a very rational response to my re-reading of this because it *was* a really emotional experience. I was intensely obssessed by LOTR in my very early twenties, re-reading it over and over, and so many of the events were familiar here; and indeed I felt as if I was encountering long lost friends. However, re-reading is always a time to notice things you haven’t before, and I was struck (as I am with the re-reads of the Narnia books) at just how brilliant a storyteller Tolkien was. His narrative is beautifully paced, his settings magnificiently conjured, and as always I felt as if I was travelling alongside the Hobbits and their friends. It’s the kind of storytelling that completely absorbs you into what’s happening; and I found myself racing through the 400-odd pages in sheer delight.

As the story develops, so do the characters; the peaceful, perhaps slightly funny, little Hobbits soon grow in moral stature, developing bravery and resilience, yet always being realistic – no cardboard cut-out heroes here, Tolkien’s characters can be flawed and full of self-doubt. His world-building was incredibly skilful, and often based on linguistics with whole Elvish languages invented by the authors. He *does* perhaps occasionally overdo it with the lyrics in the volume – I did at one point want to slap Tom Bombadil when he launched into yet another song – but I daresay that’s just me. As I mentioned, Strider makes his debut as a weathered traveller, but as the book progresses he becomes a more powerful figure who is revealed as a warrior of great heritage. The camaraderie which develops between the members of the Fellowship is wonderful to see, and will lead in many cases to unexpected yet firm friendships.

You may not have read the LOTR books, thinking that you don’t like fantasy (and bizarrely I’ve seen the books described as science fiction!!!) But this is world-building at its finest; Tolkien relates this story as if it’s just a section of a greater narrative, and because of his knowledge of myth and legend his story is pitch-perfect, wonderfully rich and completely convincing. I would certainly urge you to have a go and give yourself up to this epic and unforgettable tale; the story is a wonderful read.

So needless to say, I ended the book breathless and was left with a massive book hangover. My brain is telling me that I need to go and read some other books from the TBR, whereas my heart just wants to dive into the next book and follow Frodo, Sam and their friends on the next stage of the adventure. What shall I do?????