Have you ever wondered where the Elves sail when they go westwards? Who was the dark lord of whom Sauron of Mordor was only a servant? Who was Earendil ’’the mariner’’? These were some of the questions in my mind after reading Lord of The Rings. Their answers can be found by reading The Silmarillion. But anyone who thinks this book is like LOTR or The Hobbit is in for a big surprise. For all those who like LOTR or The Hobbit is like a Bible.
I was first introduced to the world of fantasy a few years ago when I read The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien which introduced me to the world of Arda. The result was that I soon bought all the books he had written and by now read each of them at least four times. The best, without any doubt, is Lord Of The Rings, now a major movie. Those who have read any one of the books I have mentioned or seen the movie would be highly recommended to also read The Silmarillion.
The Silmarillion begins with an account of the beginning of days before the world was created. It deals with the first battle between The Valar and Melkor, The Dark Lord and proceeds to the birth of the elves.
The Silmarillion were three jewels made be Feanor, the most gifted of all the elves. The jewels were stolen by the dark lord, Melkor and Feanor in his wrath and anger leads the rest of the Noldor to Middle Earth, against the counsels of The Valar.
The Silmarillion also has an account of the ruin of almost all the strongholds of the elves and my personal favourite tales - Beren and Luthien and Turin Turambar.
The Silmarillion is beautiful piece of work by a great epic writer and should be read not as a gripping page turner but as a deep book which will require a lot of breaks in between for the reader to truly enjoy it.