The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Brilliant

I am a 14 year old boy who has never really bothered to read Lord of the Rings before now. I have recently got audible and this was the first audiobook that I brought. I was not disappointed. It was very well read and the story was incredibly gripping. I really loved it and I hope that you will consider buying this book.

114 of 118 people found this review helpful

Superb production

Reviewing these books (the whole trilogy, not just the first volume), a classic work of the twentieth century, would be an impertinence I think. It's unlikely you'd consider buying the whole set if you don't already know and enjoy the story. If you admire it without reservation you're possibly unusual. In such a sweeping and varied epic there will inevitably be elements you respond to less than others; for me these would include characters such as Tom Bombadil, many of the songs, the master-servant relationship between some of the Hobbits and the rather stilted, pseudo-Biblical prose style of some of the later sections of The Return of the King. Those are purely subjective responses though; others may well enjoy those very aspects.

What impressed me most, after buying and listening to the complete work (over 52 hours) was the mastery of the reader, Rob Inglis. Other long stories have been ruined for me by a monotonous or weak reading. In a sense, Inglis is in competition with the BBC radio dramatisation (which I thought excellent and still return to)and more recently the three-film version (which I thought equally brilliant). Given that, his rendition is a delight, a tour de force in fact. He never lost my interest, seeming to command a completely convincing and extensive repertoire of character voices which managed to carry the narrative along with complete authority. Brilliant. Thank you, Mr Inglis..! (Out of curiosity I checked listener reviews of this production on Amazon's website and was astonished to find that some thought it dreadful. Interestingly there were no 'in-between' reviews, either 'superb' or 'awful'. I guess you'll just have to buy the first volume to decide what your own response is...)

89 of 93 people found this review helpful

The joy never fades

I first read the LOTR when I was 13, and on occasion I wish I had never read it. Not because it's a bad story, but because it's a world of wonder that I wish I could enter anew again. The depth of the tale, the breadth of the world created by Tolkien exists as a beautiful overlay for our own, creating a window into what the past might have been like as well as understanding how the present could be changed by the action of those with courage they were unaware they possessed. On top of that, it's a great story for anyone at any time. I read it regularly, with no expectations of seeing anything new but it's always there, waiting to be discovered. Take the time to listen to a tale of courage, betrayal, evil and triumph. And love.

21 of 22 people found this review helpful

The Fellowship

A wonderful atmospheric recording of the first part of The Lord of the Rings. Rob Inglis' narration brings the characters to life. I think Tolkien would be pleased with this version of his book.

39 of 42 people found this review helpful

Oh no! NOT another song...

Would you listen to The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Volume 1 again? Why?

Yes, it is one of my all-time favourites. I had read the book, the full 3 volumes of the actual book, more than 20 times before leaving home to go to music college: I kept count. I'm 55 now and have read it a few more times in the intervening years. The audio-book version is a real godsend now that my eyes are starting to struggle.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Volume 1?

I remember virtually all of it, so I can't answer this question.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

In my opinion as a musician... He should NEVER, NEVER have been asked to 'SING'. I found his singing utterly unlistenable, excruciating, even embarrassing and everywhere they occurred completely ruinous of the otherwise excellent reading. If only he had just read the songs as poems, which is what ALL actual readers have to do, all would have been well. Tolkien's lyrics are, in any case, the weakest part of his work. Moreover, music defines and describes an emotional landscape more precisely than words alone, essentially forcing one particular and narrow context. So in this reading, everyone, even the elves, seem to be from Cecil Sharp's and Vaughan Williams' South/West Country. WHAT A DISASTER! All the songs should be re-recorded with him simply reading the poems. If that were done, the reading would be really excellent: and I mean REALLY excellent.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Yes actually, there are several places, particularly near the end that make me cry.

Any additional comments?

This apples, I am VERY sorry to say, to all three books. The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King.This review is my opinion, so no 'hate' responses please.

16 of 17 people found this review helpful

Superb Narration

I have never understood why the Lord of the Rings is 'difficult to get into' because many friends have complained about trying to wade through the first 100 pages. Rob Inglis does such a superb job reading the entire trilogy that this never becomes an issue. He does a brilliant job at narrating a truly classic tale. Wonderful stuff and well worth all the credits. Get the Hobbit too.

18 of 20 people found this review helpful

Superb narration and very relaxing

As I travel back and forward to work a 35 minute journey each way I found it to be very relaxing and passed the time in a very enjoyable way and made coming home from a stressful day a pleasure to look forward to and shortened the journey . I really enjoyed it

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

One 'Book' To Rule Them All!

WOW!! Absolutely superb! A truly amazing book, from start to finish. The Lord of the Rings movies, really don't even scratch the surface. This is, without doubt, a masterpiece. Excellently written, and narrated with style.

If you've watched the movies, and think you know what Lord of the Rings is about, think again. Get this book, and you will understand what I mean.

Absolutely brilliant!

17 of 19 people found this review helpful

Timeless - and stunning.

As someone else says, it seems an impertinence to review these books - they have to be the most loved novels of the 20thC, across the world.



I originally bought the trilogy on i-Tunes, not realising they don't have a cloud for audiobooks. So when my computer crashed, I lost the lot, as my back up disks were also damaged in the intervening years, meaning I could only retrieve a section of the book. iTunes refused to restore the books for me - upsetting as it was my largest single investment in any audiobook. Hence joining Audible, and making LOTR my main goal for the first year of membership! I'd have joined Audible to buy these books, alone.



My autistic teenager has always struggled with reading, so having these on audiobook has been an absolute boon, to him. He listens to them constantly, and has no problem with the complex language, and subtle emotions.



Rob Inglis's reading is pitch perfect. The producers of the trilogy could not have chosen a better narrator. A faultless rendition of what is, for so many people, a book they return to over and over again, throughout their lives. Having lost them once, ("My precioussss!") I will treasure the Audible LOTR books, and value them as much as my definitive Harper Collins printed version.

16 of 18 people found this review helpful

Opens a new world for lovers of the films

I absolutely loved this audiobook. I've always wanted to get around to reading The Lord of the Rings but I've never been able to set aside the time. I got bored of listening to music in the gym, and podcasts weren't cutting it, so I decided to try an audiobook. The LOTR immediately sprang to mind. I signed up to Audible, downloaded the books to my iphone and I've listened to 30 minutes three times a week during my workout.



The amount of detail in this book can seem overwhelming at first as Tolkien's style of writing is descriptive and thorough, but if you're a fan of the movies you get to know more about the different races; hobbits, elves, dwarfs; the characters, where they come from, family lineage etc; Middle Earth Mythology and history; and this opens up the story into a tale of epic proportions. It's just massive! If it's a fast paced adventure you're after then this might not suit, however the audiobook version is fantastic if you can listen whilst doing something else, like working out in the gym. If you have the patience you won't be disappointed. Rob Inglis does a great job of narrating the story. He's easy to listen to and pitches the story perfectly. This was my first audiobook experience and it was fantastic.

14 of 16 people found this review helpful