Frodo has been a prisoner of the Orcs for more than a year in podcast time, but what’s another episode between friends? Before Alan and Don Marshall start our read through of Book VI of The Lord of the Rings, we take a look back at the previous books as we discuss the themes and events of the story so far – maybe with a special eye towards Frodo and Sam, who we’ll spend a great deal of time with during the first half of this season. We discuss the composition of Book VI, thankful that Bingo is no longer Frodo’s name-oh. Also, what would Tolkien do with a Google Drive?
The Return of the King: Being the Third Part of the Lord of the Rings
Tolkien, J. R. R. (Mariner Books, paperback)
The Silmarillion
Tolkien, J. R. R. (Christopher Tolkien, ed.) (Mariner Books, paperback)
The Fellowship of the Ring: Being the First Part of The Lord of the Rings
Tolkien, J. R. R. (Mariner Books, paperback)
The Two Towers: Being the Second Part of The Lord of the Rings
Tolkien, J. R. R. (Mariner Books, paperback)
The Letter of J.R.R. Tolkien
Carpenter, Humphrey ed. (William Morrow, paperback)
Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-earth
Tolkien, J. R. R. (Christopher Tolkien, ed.) (Mariner Books, paperback)
OUR OWN BOOK: Why We Love Middle-earth (pre-orders available now on this link)
Sisto, Alan & Marchese, Shawn (Mango, paperback)
Several times you seem to refer to escape, recovery, and consolation as what happens to the characters. I think it is supposed to refer to the reader. I can recover the ability to see trees as things of beauty and wonder by reading about Lothlorien. A character recovering because of House’s or Doctor Kildare’s (the latter for us old folks) brilliant diagnosis isn’t the same.
That’s a good insight, and you’re right that escape, consolation, and recovery do take place for the reader – at least they certainly *should*. But I also think they happen for the characters – or we experience them *through* the eyes of the characters – and so that’s why we looked at it that way in the episode. Still, well-said and something we should have pointed out!