The Fantasy Review’s guide to everything you need to know before reading The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien.
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien is one of the greatest fantasy books of all time. Its impact on the genre is unparalleled. Originally planned to be one whole book, it was split into three parts, with The Fellowship of the Ring being the first, then The Two Towers, and finishing with The Return of the King.
Here is everything you need to know before reading The Fellowship of the Ring.
The World of Middle-earth
The Fellowship of the Ring takes place towards the end of the Third Age in Middle-earth, Tolkien’s secondary world. There is a deep history to this world, filled with languages, races, battles, and Gods.
Much of this can be explored in The Silmarillion and other books published posthumously, edited by Christopher Tolkien. You do not need to or want to read these books before finishing The Lord of the Rings!
All you need to know before reading The Fellowship of the Ring is that there is a large world called Middle-earth, inhabited by Men (humans), Elves, Dwarves, and Hobbits. There are, of course, others creatures and monsters, but you can discover those naturally while reading.
The book follows a hobbit called Frodo Baggins, as he leaves the safety of his idyllic home in The Shire on a quest to save Middle-earth from a growing darkness.
The Rings of Power
Central to the story of The Lord of the Rings (and much of the histories during the Second and Third Ages) are the Rings of Power. Nineteen rings were forged: three for the Elves, seven for the Dwarves, nine for Men, and one master ring – the One Ring – created by the Dark Lord Sauron to control all others.
If you watch The Fellowship of the Rings movie, this is what Galadriel tells you in the opening flashback. The One Ring is the only Ring you need to care about in this book, with the others playing minor roles in the lore or plot.
Tolkien’s Writing Style
Many modern audiences try to read these books and stop, because they are not what you might expect, especially after watching the movies or reading newer fantasy books first. This is not a Brandon Sanderson novel – The Lord of the Rings was published in the 1950s…
Despite the old-fashioned language and narrative techniques, I believe that you can become accustomed to Tolkien’s writing style and it even adds more to the atmosphere of the epic tale than a modern style might.
If you struggle with the book, but want to give it another go, I highly recommend the audiobooks narrated by Andy Serkis (the actor who played Gollum in the movies). His narration and voice acting are amazing and will have you ensnared by the story in no time.
