Not all that glitters is gold, unless it is from the pen of Peter Kreeft.
I INSTANTLY added this one to my wishlist list and I will promote it here and now – contrary to my usual MO – even though I haven’t yet read it.
That’s how trustworthy Kreeft is. And this is a fascinating premise.
If you want to be one of those who are not lost when they wander, get this one. And it would be a great Christmas gift.
The Two Greatest Novels Ever Written by Peter Kreeft
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoevsky
I can’t think of a lot of great novels, including Crime and Punishment and Don Quixote. But these two… yup.
Gotta love that cover, with the juxtaposition of Cyrilic and Quenya.
PS: Kreeft is pronounced “crayft” (like the color gray) not “creeft” (like the e in creed).
Let’s have a poll. Anyone can vote. Registerd/approved members here can also comment.
Loading ...Let’s have another poll.
Loading ...And one more.
Loading ...
I saw that Word on Fire is publishing their own edition of Brothers K. Good for them! It would be great if they could somehow do LotR as well. I’ve see more editions lately, but I’m not sure of the legal status of the work.
I do take issue with Dr Kreeft though as the greatest novels are not Two but Three: Brothers K, Lord of the Rings, and Moby Dick.
In v2, did you mean TV stuff or movie stuff?
I have read The Hobbit once, and read The Lord of the Rings twice.
Father, you need a third version of this poll. The choices should include:
1. I read The Lord of the Rings and/or The Hobbit BEFORE seeing any video.
2. I read The Lord of the Rings and/or The Hobbit AFTER seeing video of what I read.
3. I watched the movies of The Lord of the Rings either before or after reading the book, but refused to watch the movie of The Hobbit because it was so unfaithful to Tolkien.
4. I watched both the movie of The Lord of the Rings and the movie of The Hobbit either before or after reading the books.
Yeah yeah… I could’ve done it differently. Just vote!
o{]:¬)
While I have seen the TV stuff, I won’t let my kids watch it. I’d rather they grow up with their own vision of Tolkien’s world and characters. If they want to they can always watch the movies when they’re adults and out from under my roof.
I saw the film adaptation of The Fellowship of the Ring first of all, then read (inhaled) all three of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, and then saw the film adaptations of The Two Towers and The Return of the King. I was a pre-teen/teen at the time, while the movie trilogy was still coming out.
More polls!
I read the Constance Garnett Brothers translation (which I see is the one Word on Fire is reprinting), and wonder if you particularly recommend the interesting-looking one you linked – or indeed various translations (though I’m not sure I’ll reread it before I’ve read all of Dostoevsky’s major novels – I still have Demons/Possessed/Devils to go – and Wikipedia lists another 8 – as distinct from novellas!). I enjoyed the 1958 Yul Brynner et al. movie before seeing it.
I would expect to enjoy anything Peter Kreeft wrote.
I’ve variously enjoyed the Bakshi, Russian TV, and Jackson LotR movies – after reading the book. And a lot – if not all – of the posthumously-published stuff, and would highly recommend the various versions of the creation account and the Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth and Tale of Adanel in Morgoth’s Ring.
scrchristensen,
I expect it would be (nearly) impossible for another publisher to publish LotR as well, though Word on Fire could, I suppose, publish a commentary keyed to Book and Chapter numbers (though how much they could quote in doing so is another question – but Holly Ordway got to quote lots of things in her books about Tolkien).
While I didn’t read LOTR until college (for fun not a class) my 8 yo homeschooled daughter read it when she was 8. For awhile LOTR was quite popular in this house.
I’m not much into fiction, but I have read The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings multiple times (probably time for another read-through). However, Brothers Karamazov: I slogged through until the last pages and couldn’t do it anymore. I found it wordy and tedious. Those last 6 pages will stay unread.
One of my daughters memorized practically all the poems in LOTR.
Regarding Dostoyevsky, my three daughters wanted us all to read the same novel one summer and chose Crime and Punishment. I was game, but told them, because of their sensitivity, I did not think they could get through it. I was thinking about the anxiety in Raskolnikov after the murder. So they fussed at me thinking I thought they were not smart enough to read it. (They are all far better at literature than me!) But I had forgotten about the horse being beaten cruelly by its owner in an early chapter. All three stopped at that point. I think Dostoyevsky should get a gold star for capturing the mental torture caused by mortal sin as well as the cruel things people lost in sin can do.
people to do.
Regarding version 2: I have read both The Hobbit and LOTR, I have seen the movies, but not the TV stuff. From what I have read of it, it is not worth paying for.
Also worth mentioning, Hobbit- and Lord of the Rings-wise:
The 13-hour BBC radio dramatization of The Lord of the Rings is to my mind better in many ways than any of the film ones (the BBC radio Hobbit is weird);
the late Rob Inglis’s reading of the complete Hobbit, heard often enough to begin memorizing, almost (I have not caught up with his complete Lord of the Rings, yet);
Andy Serkis’s reading of the complete Lord of the Rings (I have not caught up with his complete Hobbit, yet);
Tolkien’s own readings of parts of The Hobbit and parts of The Lord of the Rings, and reading – and singing – of various of his poems.
I enjoyed the fan-film Hunt for Gollum and wonder with some apprehension if Andy Serkis will make as much of a mess of it as Peter Jackson did of The Hobbit.
I read the Hobbit and LOTR repeatedly back in the 70s and 80s. i composed melodies for some of the songs too. i dragged my late wife to the first LOTR movie. it’s one of the few movies where we left the theater after less than 30 minutes.
I read BK a couple times in the 80s and cajoled my father into reading it, though he generally avoided fiction. even he found it compelling.
It’s been ten or fifteen years since I read The Brothers Karamazov, so I reckon I ought to remedy that soon. I just grabbed the Kindle edition of the new Kreeft this morning. I’ve read The Lord of the Rings probably two dozen times, and the Hobbit not far behind that total.
Only other novel I’ve read close to that many times (four or five, maybe?) is The Winds of War/War and Remembrance by Herman Wouk.
I read a favourable review of the first part of the BBC 1955 radio adaptation of LOTR in a Science Fiction magazine, and immediately started listening. That meant that I came into it through a blast of horns/trumpets as Gandalf led the relief of Helm’s Deep. Despite no knowledge of the of the preceding story, I was immediately hooked.
I then put my name on the waiting list at the public library, which led to me getting The Two Towers after four months wait, and the beginning of the story two or three months after that!
ex seaxe,
How delightful! Sadly, the Tolkien Gateway article about that 12-part version says “No recordings of this series are known to have survived. However, the scripts and some correspondence still exist, as well as some parts of the musical score.”
Apparently the 24-part 1979 American radio adaptation was released commercially – and seems to be on YouTube at this moment (I know not how legally or otherwise!), but I’ve only heard excerpts from it, so far. A friend finds the 1981 BBC one ideal for listening to while driving cross-country on long hauls.
“in foramine terrae habitabat hobbitus”
I still have my first copy of The Hobbit.
I got it at university bookstore in 1977 or 1978.
Cost $1.95.
Reading Tolkien and other great literature is soothing balm to the brain.
I read the Brothers Karamazov back in high school unspecified decades ago. I remember back then that I found the first 100 pages slow and a bit boring, but then it became quite fascinating and interesting. Later, I realized Dostoevsky was setting the context and background of the characters necessary to make the resulting character reactions and events intelligible.
I have read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings several times since I first read it in high school. I found that, when I discussed it was others, they either loved it or hated it; I found very few people in the middle. I have also watched almost all the TV and movie stuff concerning it. I have also listened to the BBC radio play.
I plan on getting Kreeft’s book; it should be an interesting read.
I read the LOTR trilogy right after seeing the first movie in theaters. Incredible detail, poetry, and nobility. About halfway through “The Two Towers” I could hardly put it down. Thank you Tolkien, what a gift it is to have such an enriching, engrossing read!
The Hobbit movies were disappointing; the book was fun, however, like a story a grandfather would tell around a campfire.
One news item to note, the LOTR movies will return to theaters in January 2026 for the 25th anniversary of “The Fellowship” opening.
Macarius,
I still have not attempted Mark Walker’s translation, Hobbitvs Ille (2012) – might a New Year’s Resolution help, I wonder? But, maybe matter for a poll in any case. I have listened to some of the bold amateur reading-aloud on YouTube. (Add that to the poll?)
Speaking of YouTube, the 1979 U.S. Lord of the Rings radio adaptation upload I ran into is incomplete – nor have I yet found any any indication of how long it was (hours-and-minutes).
Have read LOTR and The Hobbit so many times that last year my children gave me the hardbound set because my paperback editions were falling apart. Package was marked “no admittance except on party business.” Have read Brothers Karamazov, also a few times.