Reviews for The Complete Series (Virtual History for Key Stage 2)

The average rating for The Complete Series (Virtual History for Key Stage 2) based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2021-05-14 00:00:00 Jeremy House I'm using this collective edition of the History because I simply don't have time to address each volume separately. When I first learned of this collection, I thought it was for high-end Tolkien fanatics, and never considered myself to be such. A couple of years and re-readings of the Silmarillion later, I found I wanted more, and I bought the first four volumes on sale in a boxed set. I am now finishing up volume 11. These books are a fascinating look at the methods of an author whose most important - as he considered it - work evolved with him throughout his whole life. His insistence that only a complete, fleshed-out mythology could sufficiently provide a backstory for main events led him down paths that produced some of the most exquisite short writings of all - finished or unfinished, and ultimately gave the richness of background to the "interruption" of The Lord Of The Rings. (The volumes dealing with its origin and growth were quite an eye-opener.) In one volume, Christopher Tolkien includes the results of a little writing competition that Prof. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis challenged each other with. Tolkien's portion of this is not only a touching moment in the doomed tale of Numenor, but it offers an amazing glimpse of what I can only assume is a younger version of himself, haunted by a new language (ultimately Quenya) that keeps feeding itself into his head will he or nil he, until he is forced to write it all down and begin organizing it. I have revised my opinion of who might enjoy this book - if you've read LOTR more than four times and wish there were more, I recommend at least reading the three volumes that deal with the writing of The Hobbit and LOTR. However, if you love the Silmarillion, you simply can't afford to pass this collection up. I will add that the final volume is REALLY for hardcore fans only. It deals with the compilation of the Appendices of LOTR. If you skipped these, go back and read them before you tackle "The Peoples of Middle Earth".

Review # 2 was written on 2016-06-10 00:00:00 Constance Feulner This is not an easy read and should not be the first book to read if you're new to Tolkien, in fact, it should probably be last, after you've read The Hobbit, Lord of the Rings, then The Silmarillion and probably Unfinished Tales. It is an in-depth account of the First Age and the conflict between Morgoth and the elves, men and other gods. It is an awe-inspiring epic of stupendous scale, and it is hard to believe that one man and his fantastical fantasy mind created such a world. If only such tales as The Fall of Gondolin, or Turin Turumbar could be made into movies, what a film they would be! The only slight issue I had was it was quite repetitive towards the end, a continual retelling of the same stories, just little tweaks here and there - but that's what makes it interesting to a Tolkien fan, the differences, but towards the end I was skimming pages quite often... yet I didn't mind. Because after you've read about a battle between hundreds of Balrogs, fire drakes and valiant elves you've got your money's worth ten times over. Now onto volumes two and three.