Over at Tor.com wonderfully insightful writer Kate Nepveu is rereading Lord Of The rings and sharing her thoughts on the book as she goes along. she's inspired others to read along as well. Two other artists who are doing similar posts and sharing their incredible work are Eric Braddock and Justin Gerard.
I'll be posting along for the whole book on every second Sunday. It would be a lot of fun if anyone out there wanted to read along as well.
This is pulled right from my comments on Tor.com.
Here are my thoughts on the introduction
I read LOTR in a swamp in northern Newfoundland on a scouting trip when I was 12 and it was the best thing in the world. Funny how different my conception was then Mr. Jackson's. I envisioned the world both far more expressionistic(eg. Gandalf's brows reaching farther than his hat brim)and far bleaker. I've always been interested as to whether my visual understanding of the book's landscapes is based on the rugged,bleak place I live
and here are my thoughts on chapter One, A Long Expected Party
I'm loving hearing the responses young people have had to this book. It's a book that has a really broad audience.
I first read the book as a teenager and haven't read them in a few years so my thoughts are largely in response to the films take on it.
There elements in the book that expressive to the point of being cartoony(to me) like Gandalf's eyebrow's and blue hat. It makes me recall the vividness that is evoked by Tolkien whereas Peter Jackson's take seems much more realistic and starker. The opening tone in both is wildly different. Where Tolkien subtly hints at the gathering shadows Jackson states them boldly.
Knowing what's coming brings a real tinge of sadness to the party and Frodo's life before the quest.
I forgot how much I love the dialogue in the book. Again it seems expressive to me. Maybe it's the up down rhythms you are talking about.
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By: Eric Orchard,
on 12/14/2008
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Blog: Eric Orchard (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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8 Comments on Lord Of The Rings Sundays Part One, last added: 12/23/2008
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I love the Lord of the Rings. It's one of my all time favorites. I've read it so many times over the years. There's more than meets the eye there. I agree at times some of the description can be a bit over the top but the flow is wonderfully weaved together with each story within a story going on. So many of us are hobbits who like our little caves. A few of us whether from want or push, go on adventures. I'm going to have to get a set again.
Thanks Vickie! I tend to read it at this time of year for some reasone. It's a holiday book for me.
Such an awesome little sketch, man! I look forward to reading more of your experiences with the story along with seeing more sketches. Also, thanks for the mention :)
Thanks Eric! I always saw the Hobbits as slightly haunted looking for some reason. I think I perceived all of middle Earth as a bit of a gloomy place.
I'm a bit embarrassed at how much more refined your Gimli drawing is as compared to my doodle...
Heh... don't even compare them like that, your "doodles" have such character to them, I think the Hobbit and the LotR story would fit so good in your style. You have all those little swirls and awesome line work, it'd be perfect.
Peter Jackson's Middle Earth is a very successful translation...but is by no means definitive. I think the success of the films comes from recognizing the relationship between 'selling the concept' through realism and through that realism introducing the fantasy, which in many ways is important in film. The imagination, while reading the book, doesn't have to worry about the adaptation from one medium to another...and I think a gifted artist can maintain the whimsical and fantastical without worrying neccessarily about the literal realism of actors, budgets, and a mass audience. Fewer considerations and demographics to please make for a much purer and honest image.
Thanks Bruce! I didn't mean to imply I don't like the films! I love the films. In fact I feel the things that separates them make them both more enjoyable in their own right. I'm just expressing my shock at just how different they are. I do prefer the books. I like the tone, pace and narrative voice better. And I prefer the movie in my head more. That's the greatest flaw with the film.
I agree. There's a similar discussion going on on Tor, in a thread following Jo Walton's post on [i]The Nine Tailors[/i], concerning the various TV incarnations of Dorothy Sayers' Lord Peter Wimsey. Sometimes, as good as an adaptation is, the one in your head is the first adaptation you "saw" and thus will always be your favorite.
That having been said, thank you for having given me a sixth, wonderful way of seeing a hobbit. You make me want to go back to the text and reimagine your version in motion.