Space Ninja

I just finished reading the Silmarillion, which is basically J.R.R. Tolkien’s history of Middle Earth. It’s harder to read than the Lord of the Rings. In fact, it reads a lot like a textbook. But now that I finished it, I know so much more about the background of the story. Basically, the quest of the ring is a tiny little footnote that Tolkien decided to expand upon from an epic history he had conceived. It’s very impressive.

The reason I mention this, though, is that afterwards, I was looking up Lord of the Rings stuff online, and I stumbled across The Encyclopedia of Arda, a fantastic cross-referenced encyclopedia of information about Lord of the Rings. While you’re there, make sure you check out the debate on whether or not Balrogs have wings and who Tom Bombadil is.

Especially fun to read are their notes for people who saw the movie, which point out differences between the film and the books, and little details in the movie that you may not have notices.