One of these days... (was?: Re: Who would YOU spend a weekend with? (was: And *I* met...))

[Shirley]

Iggy McSnurd wrote:
> > One of these days, when I have the time between classes and 
taking 
> care of
> > my dughter, I'll actually get to read the LoTR trilogy... 

> then AP said:
> My husband has nagged me ever since I've known him to read the LOTR 
> trilogy --- finally, last January, after seeing "The Two Towers," I 
> gave in.  I finished them all in less than two weeks! -- and that 
> was with a full-time job, two little kids, and traditional division 
> of household duties (meaning I do nearly everything - ha!).  I just 
> couldn't stop reading.  I read at breakfast, I read at lunch, I 
> cooked supper with a book in my hand . . . .

now Shirley:
I had tried to read the Hobbit forever ago, and couldn't get into it 
(I mean, this was high school - *forever* ago!).  Then I saw that the 
movies were coming out and read some about how they had been made and 
were going to be distributed (you know, filmed all at once over 2-3 
years in *New Zealand* (how cool is that?) and then coming out as 3 
movies over 3 years).  I really don't like seeing a movie based on a 
book before I've read the book, so decided to get through that 
trilogy.  I read it in about a month, I think (so you, AP, must be 
one hell of a speed-reader, or I'm just slow ;-)).  Loved it so much 
that I read all of the appendix in the third book (thereby learning a 
*lot* about the Arwen-Aragorn relationship), then read the Hobbit 
(probably should have read it first) and then borrowed the 
Silmarillion from a friend.  The latter is *wonderful*, albeit a bit 
difficult to get into.

Anyway, they're well worth the effort, Iggy, and give you a better 
background for the movies.  My husband hasn't read any of them and 
had a whole year go by between seeing the first and second movies, 
and poor guy was quite lost during the second movie.  I'm going to 
sit down with him before we see the third movie and watch the first 
two so he won't be so lost this time around.

In fact, I'm attempting to read Beowulf right now, because that was a 
big fave of Tolkein's, as well, and I've read that he based a great 
deal of LOTR on it.  Happy reading!

Shirley, who wants more free time to read that pile of books by her 
bed (and in the den and living room....)