The Two Towers (The Lord of the Rings, #2)

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The Two Towers (The Lord of the Rings #2)

4.36 of 5 stars 4.36 · rating details · 264,466 ratings · 3,334 reviews

The Fellowship was scattered. Some were bracing hopelessly for war against the ancient evil of Sauron. Some were contending with the treachery of the wizard Saruman. Only Frodo and Sam were left to take the accursed Ring of Power to be destroyed in Mordor–the dark Kingdom where Sauron was supreme. Their guide was Gollum, deceitful and lust-filled, slave to the corruption o...more

Paperback, 322 pages

Published September 5th 2003 by Mariner Books (first published 1954)

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Jun 07, 2012 K.D. Oliveros rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to K.D. by: Time 100, 501 Must Read Books, Modern Library, Metalist, 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (2006-2010)

Shelves: 1001-core, 501, action, adventure, book-club, british, drama, environment, epic, fantasy, with-movie, war

Tolkien did not design The Lord of the Rings to be read as three separate books. However, since the book is flawless, there is just no boring moment. Even if you chop it further to 6, 12 or 24 books, I think all of them deserve 5 stars. I am not a big fan of fantasy genre but this one is just over the top. It is about good vs. evil and the nature of evil. With a universal theme like that, the non-stop action, the memorable characters, the extricate design of the fictional world, Middle-Earth and...more Tolkien did not design The Lord of the Rings to be read as three separate books. However, since the book is flawless, there is just no boring moment. Even if you chop it further to 6, 12 or 24 books, I think all of them deserve 5 stars. I am not a big fan of fantasy genre but this one is just over the top. It is about good vs. evil and the nature of evil. With a universal theme like that, the non-stop action, the memorable characters, the extricate design of the fictional world, Middle-Earth and the lyrical prose, Tolkien wrote a book that will outlive all of us here on earth.

The story begins with the four hobbits separated into two, Frodo and Sam who will later meet Gollum on their way to Mordor and Merry and Pippin lost in Fangorn and later meeting the Treebeard and the rest of the Ents. This is after the death of Boromir who is one of the members of the Fellowship (Book 1). He is killed by the Orcs after his attempt to steal the ring from Frodo and Sam. If Book 1 was mostly about the four hobbits, in this Book 2, Tolkien put them on a sideline and the focus here is the Fellowship fighting the Orcs. For most of the story in this book, the hobbits are at the sideline. They only came into action when the Ents with Merry and Frodo on top of Treebeard are destroying the first tower where Saruman resides: ORTHANC. Then the other two, Frodo and Sam battle with Shelob on their way to the second tower, CIRITH UNGOL where the other villainous wizard, the ultimate evil, Sauron lives.

So, the two bad wizards stay in those two towers overlooking the Middle-Earth. Some crazy people say that the title "Two Towers" is a metaphor for two penises and there is a homosexual relationship between Frodo and Sam. Go to hell, I tell them. The book is so good and the movie is at par so please spare these works of art from your shallowness. I pity these people for not being able to appreciate good literature.

On to Book 3. I am hoping that the third and final book will be as exciting as the two. Tolkien, sir, you are just so brilliant I'd like to open your grave and kiss your hands as a sign of my admiration and respect for you sir. There is just no other fantasy writer like you. Although I enjoyed The Game of Thrones and has a plan of reading the series where it belongs, A Song of Ice and Fire, I am sure that despite George Martin having the hindsight advantage, still your LOTR is better. I will not even say that yours is original. That could mean that his is better and yours are just the original. All of their works will not be able to top yours. Yours is simply incomparable and will always be better than all of their works. LOTR cannot be outranked. It will always be THE BEST epic high fantasy. Ever.(less)

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Mar 20, 2013 Elizabeth rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: reviewed, 2013, fantasy-sci-fi, fey, gods-myths-heroes, hi-ho-hi-ho-it-s-on-a-quest-we-go, in-by-of-england

Middle books are hard. They have neither the glory of first discovery or the satisfaction of the conclusion. There's just there, in the middle, bridging rivers, climbing mountains, riding across the plains. Writers usually fall apart somewhere in the middle. They forget that the book has to inspire, not tire, the reader. The characters may be slogging along, doom may be surrounding them, all hope may feel lost, but the reader shouldn't feel this way. The reader should be energized, excited, and...more Middle books are hard. They have neither the glory of first discovery or the satisfaction of the conclusion. There's just there, in the middle, bridging rivers, climbing mountains, riding across the plains. Writers usually fall apart somewhere in the middle. They forget that the book has to inspire, not tire, the reader. The characters may be slogging along, doom may be surrounding them, all hope may feel lost, but the reader shouldn't feel this way. The reader should be energized, excited, and primed for the next book; not because they'll soon be finished, but because they loved the current book.

I don't know a lot of books that can do this. Thinking of my favorite series, only a couple have strong books somewhere in the middle. And the best among them is The Two Towers. The Two Towers is The Empire Strikes Back of fiction. Between them, they created the playbook on what to do right in the middle. To me, both are actually the best of their series. They don't stand alone, they can't, and one of the reasons they're so good is because they aren't intended to. Their strength is that they don't have to waste time establishing the characters and, added bonus, they cannot be judged by the (successful or not) conclusion of the story. That's not their job; the job is to deliver on the action and the expanded character develop and inventive plotting and, if they're really good, a cliff-hanger that will leave you clawing at the shelves to get to the next volume.

Not everyone is going to agree with me on this but The Two Towers is my favorite of the series. The Fellowship of the Ring, for me is everything I don't like about quest stories. It takes nearly two hundred pages just to leave the Shire. Some of the most interesting action is re-counted to us by Gandalf instead of shown to us in the story. They seem to talk A LOT in this book. There's a lot of hand-wringing and wrestling with ones conscious. But The Two Towers, now we've got some action going on. People are fully committed now. They spent all that time planning, which totally fell apart once they started executing it, as most plans do, and we get an engaging book about how people handle change; how they react to the unexpected; how they learn to extend themselves beyond what they thought they would ever do.

Pippin and Merry, for example, become real characters in this book. They step out of the shadow of Frodo and Sam, and emerge as more than just comic relief. They free themselves from Orcs, they spur strong allies into action, and they also remain very much themselves. the balance Tolkien finds for the characters in this book is great. That moment when Merry and Pippin stop and just enjoy the feeling of healthy grass under their feet; that's a moment I love because it comes back to their hobbit essence with a gentleness that makes you smile. They don't have to be the butt of a joke.

I also love that we're finally to Rohan. Before, I felt a lot of the challenge to the fellowship was caused by the geography. They were struggling on mountain peaks, crossing rivers, or in the dark mines. Here, we're in the open (either woods or plains), almost the whole time. The action is enemy against hero and in some ways that's a lot more straightforward, which I think helps the book. Tolkien, an ever so clever man, balances it with different types of battles though. It is not just the battle at Helm's Deep (as the movie would have us think); there is an entire theme in this book about the manipulation of good people through the power of language, how they can be manipulated by a strong orator and a strong will. It is about having the strength to see clearly, and the symbolism of the light in this volume is particularly strong (and interesting).

My favorite thing about this book though is the people of Rohan. Erowyn, for me, like most girls who looked for identifiable heros in these stories, is the only option. And here she is. Sure, there's that boring Elf that Aragon is in love with back in book one, but *yawn*, there's nothing to her. Erowyn, though, is a Valkyrie! That image of her on the balcony, having been invested with the guardianship of her people, and knowing that she had the strength to fight off the invasive and subtle dangers of Wormtongue, while living with him in too-close-quarters for far too long, is something that rang true for me. The disappointment is, of course, how little time we have with her. Still, she seems very real to me (and nothing like that girl they got to play her in the movie).

That's what a good middle book does; it introduces us to successful new characters. Faramir also comes into this book and he's great, possibly because from the first there is no hand-wringing with him. He knows what he must do and he is open about it. He shows himself, quickly, to be someone we can invest in. It took a lot longer to do that with the characters in the first book. Tolkien doesn't waste time here and I think it's a better book for it.

Now, if you'd excuse me, I have to see what happens with Frodo!(less)

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Feb 09, 2011 Jonathan Cullen rated it 5 of 5 stars

A review of Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers by Sauron

After my review of the Fellowship of the Ring, my agent BBMed me and said that people still thought I was a bitter a-hole. He suggested that I learn to deal with my situation by talking with some likeminded people who have faced similar frustration. So he signed me up for Dark Lords and Villains Anonymous. At least that’s what it's called on the website. When I send out a FB invite to my peeps I usually use the subject line "Hatas Beware". B...more

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Jul 24, 2010 Caris rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010

It took little Johnny Tolkien thirty-four years to write The Lord of the Rings.* By my count, it has taken this reader at least twice as long to make it through the first two volumes of his trilogy. But it’s starting to get exciting. Sam has laid his head upon Frodo’s bosom. Gandalf has changed colors. Gollum's found some fish. It has been, all things considered, a rather nice segment of the journey.

But, really, it shouldn’t have been. The characters have been through some shit. Peeps have died,...more

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Mar 20, 2012 Jason Koivu rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, sci-fi-fantasy

The Two Towers suffers from the Jan syndrome. It's the middle child, and one that wasn't even meant to exist. Tolkien didn't intend The Lord of the Rings to be a trilogy, but rather one whole book, so inevitably the second volume was doomed to have no true beginning nor a satisfying finish. When I first read it as a teen I didn't enjoy it much at all, and it's still not my favorite of the three, but having read it again recently I warmed to it. It provides an admirably strong bridge between the...more

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Dec 11, 2012 Chris rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: jrrt, favorites, lit-english, fantasy-high

The Two Towers is the second part of LOTR. In this installment, the Fellowship is rent and struggles to survive. This book is made up for mirrors and doubling. In the first section, you follow closely the Three Hunters as they hunt their prey across the landscape. With Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli, Tolkien presents a group in chase. It feels like a hunt, and it is a hunt of the sagas.
There second trinity is made up of Frodo, Sam, and Gollum. This second threesome echoes in a way the first. They t...more The Two Towers is the second part of LOTR. In this installment, the Fellowship is rent and struggles to survive. This book is made up for mirrors and doubling. In the first section, you follow closely the Three Hunters as they hunt their prey across the landscape. With Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli, Tolkien presents a group in chase. It feels like a hunt, and it is a hunt of the sagas.
There second trinity is made up of Frodo, Sam, and Gollum. This second threesome echoes in a way the first. They two are on a quest, not to just save two lives, but to save anyone. It is this trinity; however, who faces the most general and is in some ways a false trinity, for Gollum is a reluctant main.

Other doubling occurs in the novel. The reader is introduced to Faramir, brother to Boromir, and a worthy and true he is. The character of Faramir is also doubled to a degree by the character of Eomer. Both young men serve in dark and dangerous times, both show the worthiness of men, both protect their country. They represent the new order that will come after the War of the Ring.

The sense of change that began in the Fellowship is continued here. There is a sense that Theoden will son give place to his sister-son, Eomer. That he has grown too blind to be an effective leader for much longer. This is not due surely to the influence of Grima Wormtongue (who has the coolest bad guy name ever), but is revealed also in his own character. Look at his treatment, his forgetfulness of Eowyn. When to leave on his war path, he acknowledges Eomer, but is confused when Hama says the people wish to be protected by the House of Eorl. Hama must point Eowyn to her uncle. Shades of Queen Elizabeth II in WWII, perhaps? This theme of disregarding worthiness will also be picked up in The Return of the King.

Eowyn is not the only female in the story, and in this installment, she doesn’t have a very big part to play. The other female in the story is Shelob, perhaps the most controversial female character in Tolkien’s work. After all, she is a deadly female spider and that must mean that Tolkien has issues.

Unless, he is just afraid of spiders and knows that the female is the deadlier of the species.

Joking aside, Towers contains one of the most moving passages anywhere in Tolkien. This passage concerns the character of Gollum. During their trek, Sam and Frodo finally succumb to tiredness, and Frodo falls asleep with his head resting in Sam’s lap. Gollum returns and sees them. Tolkien then writes, “Gollum looked at them. A strange expression passed over his lean hungry face. The gleam faded from his eyes, and they went dim and grey, old and tired. A spasm of pain seemed to twist him, and he turned away, peering back up towards the pass, shaking his head, as if engaged in some interior debate. Then he came back, and slowly putting out a trembling hand, very cautiously he touched Frodo’s knee – but almost the touch was a caress. For a fleeting moment, could one of the sleepers have seen him, they would have thought that they beheld an old weary hobbit, shrunken by the years that had carried him far beyond his time, beyond friends and kin, and the fields and streams of youth, an old starved pitiable thing.”

And then Sam wakes and ruins the spell. What makes the passage so moving, what the reader knows here but Samwise doesn’t, is Gollum could have been saved there. If Sam had not been Sam, if he had spoken softly, Gollum would have turned from evil. The passage speaks of loss and missed opportunity so poignantly.

Added 12/11/12 - Is just me or is Wormtongue somewhat like Shakespeare's Richard III? It's strange, each time I re-read this series, at least after the release of the Jackson movies, I gain a more respect for the Jackson adaptions, even with the changes in regards to Faramir.

The TTs is the fastest paced of the books because it starts with a hunt. But it is also very emotional because of the father/son relationships that appear as well as those of the brothers in all forms.(less)

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Apr 23, 2012 Jeannette rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011-read, classics, fantasy, mythology, favorites, books-i-own, 2012-read

I really enjoy the character development in the second book of the trilogy. We get to see how faithful and steadfast Sam and Frodo are to the quest, and to each other. And, I always enjoy seeing the friendship grow between Legolas and Gimli. This may be my favorite of the three.

re-read April 2012

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Apr 09, 2013 midnightfaerie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: classics

The second installment of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien, was more exciting than the first. For some reason, The Two Towers was a much bigger page turner for me than Fellowship of the Ring. I'm not sure why, perhaps because there were more action scenes. The Battle at the Two Towers was fascinating to me, and not at all like I remembered. I really enjoyed it, even though Tolkien seems to have a minimalist way of writing. He's a good writer, but I find the climati...more The second installment of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien, was more exciting than the first. For some reason, The Two Towers was a much bigger page turner for me than Fellowship of the Ring. I'm not sure why, perhaps because there were more action scenes. The Battle at the Two Towers was fascinating to me, and not at all like I remembered. I really enjoyed it, even though Tolkien seems to have a minimalist way of writing. He's a good writer, but I find the climatic scenes diminished, and not as "climatic" as I would have liked. For instance, when he brings in the Ents, they're just there as if they'd been there all along, instead of having them charge over the hill at a great time of perilous need. Perhaps he thought that was creepier, and I suppose in a way it was, but after all the build up of their relationship with Pippin and Merry, and having been dormant so many years, I thought somehow it would be a bigger entrance. But I see this happening a lot with Tolkien and think it's more his style of writing. Maybe it's my love of obsessive cheese in stories that's makes me unable to better appreciate his more subtle style. His imagery is beautiful, but because of the let down in the big scenes, these aren't a part of my list of favorite books.

Even though they aren't my favorites, that doesn't take away from the fact that these should be considered classic literature. For all the same reasons I stated in my review of The Fellowship of the Ring, the same holds true for this book as well.

Another aspect of this book I like was Tolkien's was of incorporating various story telling techniques into the plot. Besides the poetry and songs, there were a few times that the actual dialogue accomplished this. One example I particularly enjoyed was towards the end, when Frodo and Sam are walking up the stairs, they discuss how their story will be told to children years from now. Sam even goes so far as to make up speech that the would be children might say, "Yes, that's one of my favourite stories. Frodo was very brave, wasn't he, dad?" And Frodo responds in kind, but showing that the kids might be more interested in hearing about his loyal and true companion, Samwise the stouthearted. Then they go on to discuss aspects of their story, such as where they're stuck right now in it and if the reader might not consider closing the book at this point because they don't want to read anymore. In this way, Tolkien is adding more depth to the multiple layers of storylines, and talking directly to the reader as well. It's done in a brilliant way that doesn't make it too obvious or corny. It's one of the things I love about Tolkien. In this passage they also discuss whether or not this is even a good story and whether Gollum would think himself the hero or the villain. It was rather clever.

One other thing I'd like to note that bothered me, or rather that bothers me often about stories such as these, and it's a small thing really, but the fact that the characters disburse of potentially helpful items so easily. I know it's a sense of honor and a show of how important a person is and all that to send them off in their funeral with important items, but really, if you're on a life or death mission, don't you think said dead person would rather you kept the things you might need? When they ship off Boromir's body in the boat and send with him the things of value, all I could think of was how stupid it was, what if they could use that stuff later? Granted, it came into play later, when his brother had the vision and noted these things, but still, was it that important he still have them in the boat? If I had been the one that died, I would've wanted my friends to use what they could to further their quest if possible. You never know what you might need. Small point in any case.

Overall, I finished this book quickly and found it quite suspenseful. The spider creature at the end was nice too, totally creeped me out. It's been awhile since a creature has disgusted me that much. I really don't remember anything much about these books so I wasn't expecting it, along with Gollum's betrayal. Looking forward to finding out what happens in the final book, Return of the King.

ClassicsDefined.com (less)

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Jan 06, 2012 Filipa rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, library, not-own, portuguese-books, classics, 2012-reads

Muito bom! CONTÉM SPOILERS

As Duas Torres é o segundo livro da trilogia do Senhor dos Anéis. Para quem não teve oportunidade de ler ainda o primeiro volume, aconselho lerem primeiro este post . Já há muito se sabe que Tolkien e as suas obras sobre a Terra Média, foram, são e continuarão a ser motivo para muito falatório, seja ele bom ou mau. Este escritor é um génio para muitos e a herança que ele deixa é rica em muitos aspectos.

Para quem leu A Irmandade do Anel, sabe que o grupo de nove elemento...more

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Aug 04, 2011 Anzu The Great Destroyer rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: el-clasico, d-oh, reviewed-2011, them-epics, bbc-100, 1001-books

Since this is LOTR and I guess I’m supposed to be nice in this review I’ll start by posting a character sheet or whatever this is. It’s been a while since I wanted to find one and luckily I did using our wonderful friend, Google. So here are the most popular characters:

Some don’t look as I imagine they would be but let’s appreciate the people who did the casting for the movie. They did a pretty good job.

Now back to my main problem about this book. Why can’t I make a funny review for Lord of the...more

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Jul 23, 2011 Maud rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: special-place-in-my-heart

(regarding entire series)

What could I possibly say about the Lord of the Rings? When it comes down to it, I've never really been in the position to dislike it. It has always been in my life; I have this vivid memory of sitting by the fireplace in our old house, my dad reading to my brother and me out of his ancient, dirt-green 1970 version. (It's still floating around in the house somewhere. The cover has almost fallen off and the papers are so thin I'm too scared to turn them.) Old friends of h...more (regarding entire series)

What could I possibly say about the Lord of the Rings? When it comes down to it, I've never really been in the position to dislike it. It has always been in my life; I have this vivid memory of sitting by the fireplace in our old house, my dad reading to my brother and me out of his ancient, dirt-green 1970 version. (It's still floating around in the house somewhere. The cover has almost fallen off and the papers are so thin I'm too scared to turn them.) Old friends of his have told me that it was his bible when he was younger. Well, he passed on his love.

I watched the movies before I read the books, because I was too young to understand the archaic Dutch and too inexperienced to read them in their original language. I loved and still love the movies fiercely, though the first one did scare me a little at the time! The world Tolkien created is unbelievably well-thought out and complete. It's so detailed that it could easily be the history of our world. And in a way it's the way I feel our world was supposed to be. It's so pure, especially the Hobbits with their love of "all things that grow", and the Elves. Even when the Ring clouds all the beauty with darkness and doubt, the underlying beauty never fails to shine through: the beauty of friendship, loyalty, courage; of perseverance, of hope.

I am very fond of Tolkien's writing. It's obvious that he crafted his sentences very carefully, and thought hard about structure as well as word choice. His writing is very rich and descriptive, which makes the reading process slow and demanding a high level of concentration. But in my opinion, it's worth it.
I remember reading the Fellowship of the Ring on a Greyhound in Australia. It was an overnight journey, probably from Adelaide to Alice Springs. It was long past midnight but not yet day; it was so dark outside, and I was reading, huddled into myself to hold as much warmth as possible. My eyes were still heavy with sleep and prickly from the dry recycled air. From time to time I looked out the window at the many stars dotted above the near-invisible landscape that passed and passed by, to ruminate the passage I'd just read and think about it all. All of it. I remember thinking, this is it. This is the life.

One aspect in which I think the movies triumph the books is characterization. In the books, the characters are more static. I feel as though they are more interchangeable than the characters are in the movies, and experience less personal development. However, I'm not quite sure whether this is a flaw of the books or an extraordinary achievement of the movies.

The Lord of the Rings made me cry and smile. They made my chest ache and my heart sing. I know that sounds ridiculously soppy, but fact remains that if I had to teach the most important aspects of this world to an intelligent new species, I'd make them read these books (and/or watch the movies). They contain the most valuable life lessons and evoke every feeling that everyone should have experienced.(less)

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May 31, 2008 Jesse rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Larpers.

"Gimli! Get me more arrows!!!" Thus continues the second book of the Lord of The Ring Trilogy. Like the first one this book is filled with high adventure, deception, and suspense.

The Fellowship has been scattered and three new journeys begin for our band of merry folk. Sam and Frodo begin a quasi-homo erotic jaunt through the land of Mordor with their tricksy companion Gollum. Pippin and Merry help 60 foot talking trees shatter the power of the White Wizard Saruman. And Aragorn begins to lead t...more

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May 18, 2008 Brandon Pearce rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: inkling

For a review of TLOR in general read my review of The Silmarillion. These are some additional thoughts on issues taht come up on the books.
On page 277 Tolkien recounts the reforging of Narsil, Aragorn’s sword, which he renames Andruil, Flame of the West. The sword is made by elvish smiths who alone have the skill to remake the sword and pour into it the magic that it needs to accomplish its mission. Elvish swords are mentioned throughout the book as being imbued with special powers. Elvish blad...more For a review of TLOR in general read my review of The Silmarillion. These are some additional thoughts on issues taht come up on the books.
On page 277 Tolkien recounts the reforging of Narsil, Aragorn’s sword, which he renames Andruil, Flame of the West. The sword is made by elvish smiths who alone have the skill to remake the sword and pour into it the magic that it needs to accomplish its mission. Elvish swords are mentioned throughout the book as being imbued with special powers. Elvish blades are able to effect creatures that regular blades cannot, for example: when the troll attacks the fellowship in Moria, Boromir slashes him with all his might but his sword just glances off the trolls skin. The significantly smaller Frodo then stabs the troll and cuts him with his elvish blade. Later Sting will again cut Shelob, a powerful creature that only can be threatened by elvish blades. The idea of magical swords made by magical smiths comes from a rich tradition in Medieval literature.
Regin, the blacksmith from Vulsunga saga, was the brother of a dragon, and learned how to forge magic swords from the dwarfs. Regin takes the shards of Sigurd’s father Sigmund’s sword and reforges a sword for him called Gram which is the only one that can kill the dragon Farnir. This story is very close to the story behind Aragorn’s Narsil-Andruil. There is also Hrunting, from Beowulf, which is given to Beowulf by Unferth to slay the mother of Grendel. Hrunting had a hilt with the names of its lineage inscribed upon it. When it melts in the battle Beowulf finds a sword made by giants of old that does the job. There is Roland’s Durendal from the Song of Roland, Ogier the Dane’s sword Curtana was said to be reforged from the steel of Durendal, Fergus mac Roich’s blade Caladbolg, Waldere’s Mimming was made by the legendary smith Weyland (who also made Beowulf‘s armor); and Arthur’s Excalibur given to him by the Lady of the Lake.
Tolkien’s use of swords in LOTR is in perfect harmony with the mythic literature of the Middle Ages and the special importance people put on well forged swords.
(less)

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Dec 13, 2011 Nikki rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audio, fantasy

I always thought the casting was pretty much perfect, for this radio adaptation of Lord of the Rings. I only have one I seriously quibble with, and that's Denethor -- everyone else sounds just about perfect. I thought I'd have more trouble with comparing it to the movie, but it's a totally different experience, and just as good as I remember. It surprises me how little abridgement was needed, and how much of the detail of Tolkien's world remains. Gollum had my housemates knocking on my door to f...more

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Mar 21, 2012 Kim rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

For someone who's always been so sure that she didn't like fantasy, I've really surprised myself in recent times. Last year was the year of Harry Potter. This is the year of The Lord of the Rings. I realise now that I probably should have read Tolkien before Rowling. That way I would have understood where Rowling got some of her ideas from. (Trees that swallow people ... Giant spiders ...). I suppose if you pretty much invent a genre, lots of writers are going to pay tribute to you.

Anyway, afte...more
For someone who's always been so sure that she didn't like fantasy, I've really surprised myself in recent times. Last year was the year of Harry Potter. This is the year of The Lord of the Rings. I realise now that I probably should have read Tolkien before Rowling. That way I would have understood where Rowling got some of her ideas from. (Trees that swallow people ... Giant spiders ...). I suppose if you pretty much invent a genre, lots of writers are going to pay tribute to you.

Anyway, after a slightly shakey start with The Fellowship of the Ring, which I felt suffered from too much talking and not enough action - and I say that as someone who has no problem with long books and lots of description - the second installment in the trilogy is pretty great. I like that there is plenty of action and not quite so much speech-making about it. I like how the characters and the relationships between them develop and I like how the narrative shifts from one group of characters to another.

In relation to the characters, I particularly like the warmth of the connection between Frodo and Sam and the way in which they both grow as they engage with each other and with their quest. In addition, I find Gollum fascinating, with the overtones of schizophrenia or some type of personality disorder in his behaviour. (I suspect that whole articles have been written about this particular issue.)

There are a few aspects of the novel I find less successful. Tolkien's prose is not always elegant: I'm not sure about this, but I seem to recall something being described as "lit by light" (or words to that effect). Also, I found myself contemplating a Freudian analysis of the Frodo / Sam / Shelob episode. That was a bit distracting, I must admit, and I had to tell myself quite firmly that a spider might just be a spider, a tunnel might just be a tunnel and a sword might just be a sword! I appreciate that this probably says more about me than it does about Tolkien. I also got a little distracted in the battle scenes. I always have difficulty following what's happening in battle scenes, whether in books or in films. But again, that's more about me than it is about Tolkien.

Overall, there was plenty of excitement and suspense, some very moving scenes and a couple of real surprises, not to mention a great cliffhanger of an ending. While Rob Inglis' narration annoyed me a little in The Fellowship of the Ring, I had no problem with it as I listened to this book. His voices for Frodo, Sam and Gollum are particularly well done.

I move on to The Return of the King tomorrow and I'm very much looking forward to it. I'm enjoying this as a buddy read with GR friends. (less)

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Jun 13, 2013 Rebecca rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 50-books-to-read-before-you-die, favorites

"I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend."

(view spoiler)...more "I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend."

(view spoiler)[PLOT

At the end of The Fellowship of the Ring, the Fellowship suffered a great loss. After the death of Gandalf, the eight remaining members had to continue without him. The Fellowship take another blow at the start of this book, with the death of Boromir. Now the remaining seven are split up, after an attack by a band of Uruk-hai. This book is split into two Volumes, the first following the quest of Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli, and the ordeals of Merry and Pippin, after they were taken captive by the Uruk-hai. The second Volume follows the quest of Frodo and Sam, who are the only ones left to take the ring to Mordor.

VOLUME 1

After learning that Merry and Pippin have been taken captive, Aragorn and his companions say their farewells to Boromir, and track the Uruk-hai. On their travels, they meet The Riders of Rohan, who inform them that they slaughtered a band of Uruk-hai in the night, and left no survivors. Convinced that the Hobbits survived, Aragorn tracks them into the forest of Fanghorn, where they meet an expected ally. The ally assures Aragorn that the Hobbits are safe, and the four companions travel to Rohan, where the King is under an evil spell. They must free him, in order to save his Kingdom.

Meanwhile, Merry and Pippin have befriended an Ent named Treebeard, a large treelike creature. Opposed to going to war, the Hobbits must convince Treebeard, and the other Ents, that their help is needed in this war. They need the help of the Ents to destroy the evil of Saruman, while Frodo and Sam take on the evil of Sauron.

VOLUME 2

In the second Volume, we catch up with Frodo and Sam on their quest to Mordor. For some days now, they have been followed by the creature Gollum, and eventually they capture him. From now on, Gollum is their guide, but can he be trusted? The Hobbits are captured by a band of men, led by Faramir of Gondor, Boromir's brother. Can they convince Faramir to let them go, and continue their quest, or will he take the ring for himself, and gain glory from his Father, the Steward of Gondor?

Frodo and Sam face a multitude of dangers in this book. Will Gollum lead them to their deaths, and take the ring for himself? Can Frodo and Sam's friendship survive the control the ring has over Frodo? In order to complete their quest, they must overcome these dangers, and save the whole world from the evil of Sauron. (hide spoiler)]

MY OPINION

I've seen quite a few reviews, where people thought that this book didn't amount to much, since it was an 'in between' book. But I enjoyed this book even more so, because of that. After reading all three books of the trilogy, I think that this one does a fantastic role of connecting the other two. The individual stories of each set of companions are full of danger, adventure, and suspense. It's also packed full of surprises, with the appearance of the unexpected ally. I genuinely feared for the lives of every character in this book, connecting to each and every one, after I grew to love them all in the first book.

The characters that Tolkien has created are incredible. They're so diverse, each of them having their own very unique character. You even start to notice differences between the characters of Merry and Pippin in this book, although they appear very similar in the first book. The characters grow in the face of danger, their bravery shows more and more through each chapter, and each obstacle they face. I love Frodo, he keeps pushing through, despite the pain inflicted on him by the power of the ring. He carries the weight of the world on his shoulders, being pressured from all sides, especially with Gollum as his guide. There is always a threat to Frodo's life, be it from lack of food and water, the strength the ring is taking from him, or the ever present dangers of Sauron. Frodo is very lucky that Sam followed him, he would never have got so far without him. Sam is a fiercely loyal friend, despite the fact that he's not very brave at the start of the trilogy, he stays by Frodo's side, and is not afraid to die to keep him safe. Their friendship is one of the most beautiful in all the books I've read.

THE AUTHOR

J.R.R Tolkien was born in 1892, and died in 1973. After writing The Hobbit for his children, which was hugely successful, Tolkien started to write The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, to meet the demands of the public. The Trilogy is one of the most loved in the world, and people will continue to enjoy them for many years to come.(less)

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Jun 15, 2013 Theresa Flores rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: owned, favorites, with-review

(Click See Review to see the images :D)

Extraordinary. 5 stars, of course! Couldn't have given it any other rating. Also, on a side note, my review for the first book, The Fellowship of the Ring can be read here. :) Anyway. Among the 3 films, I've always preferred the first and the last one to the second one. Similarly, I thought the first book was stronger than the second one, although like the second film in The Lord of the Rings series, this book, is still very worthwhile.

The Two Towers is ba...more

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May 28, 2009 Keely rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, reviewed, uk-and-ireland

Writers who inspire a genre are usually misunderstood. Tolkien's reasons for writing were completely unlike those of the authors he inspired. He didn't have an audience, a genre, and scores of contemporaries. There was a tradition of high adventure fairy tales, as represented by Eddison, Dunsany, Morris, MacDonald, Haggard, and Kipling, but this was only part of what inspired Tolkien.

His writing was chiefly influenced by his familiarity with the mythological traditions of the Norse and Welsh cul...more

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Jan 07, 2009 Kyaru.chan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Now this one was MUCH better than the first! The action is fast paced, and there's three different stories going at once, so it's much more interesting than the first one.

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Jan 26, 2012 Karen rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: absolute-gems, action-packed, awesome-fantasy, looking-forward-to, read-along, vivid-imagination, enjoyed-it, i-ll-be-having-nightmares-tonight

The Precious Ringwraith read along!

At the urges of my dear read along partner, Cillian, I have posted the link below as a treat for all of you!

http://www.mediafire.com/?lj7oolbypkayswv

Don't get creeped out guys, I don't sound like that in real life ~~obviously~~.

This book was definitely better than the last one. Review to come!

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Apr 23, 2008 Jann rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was my favorite book of The Lord of the Rings, which is unusual because, as the middle section, it has really no beginning and no end. I think that's what made it so strong. You're really just following the journey, which it intense enough in itself without having to worry about the backstory or the future. You're just living in the moment with the characters. Plus, who can forget the literary version of the battle at Helm's Deep?

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Jan 04, 2011 Thomas rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classic, sci-fi-fanasty-dystopian

The Two Towers is the second to last book in the Lord of the Rings series and I would have to say it ranks right up there with The Hobbit and The fellowship of the Ring. It brings in new major charecters and places while expanding on older ones. A bit shorter than The Fellowship of the Ring I read abot 2 chapters a day and had it done in a week and a half. Overall a good book and I will sometime be reading the final the Return of the King to bring an end to one of the greatest trilogies that I h...more

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Feb 07, 2013 Al rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The first ever illustrated paperback of part two of Tolkien’s epic masterpiece, The Lord of the Rings, featuring 16 colour paintings by Alan Lee.Frodo and the Companions of the Ring have been beset by danger during their quest to prevent the Ruling Ring from falling into the hands of the Dark Lord by destroying it in the Cracks of Doom. They have lost the wizard, Gandalf, in the battle with an evil spirit in the Mines of Moria; and at the Falls of Rauros, Boromir, seduced by the power of the Rin...more

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Mar 13, 2011 Peter added it · review of another edition

Some (mild) reservations: I agree with some of the reservations out there.
It is great to pick up the story of the Fellowship where we left it but the book suffers from one big problem, which is its structure. The division in two separate stories (Merry/Pippin/Legolas/Gimli/Aragorn on the one hand, then Frodo/Sam on the other hand)is quite tedious and sometimes the sense of purpose of the first story is not that clear. Don't get me wrong, there are some cracking bits of litterature in this book:...more

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Jun 13, 2013 Jane B. rated it 3 of 5 stars

My first comment about this book is that it is LONG. Much longer then was strictly necessary for sure.

I did feel that this book was an improvement over Fellowship in regards to the needless songs that I found distracting. There are much fewer songs in Two Towers (or maybe they just seemed less invasive).

This book developed most of the characters further and I did enjoy that. I think Sam is my favorite character. We should all have a friend as devoted as Sam is to Frodo.

One of the things I had a...more

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Jun 10, 2013 Cheryl rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed

The big surprise for me here (after seeing the movie) was how divided this book is. It’s really two separate novels–-the first half focuses on Merry and Pippin with the Ents (tree shepherds), and Legolas, Gimli, Aragorn and Gandalf fighting against Saruman’s forces, most notably in the Battle of Helm’s Deep. The other surprise was that Helm’s Deep was Chapter Seven of Twenty-one, instead of the big, final, epic battle!

It was still pretty epic, though. I’m not one for war novels, and I can’t say...more The big surprise for me here (after seeing the movie) was how divided this book is. It’s really two separate novels–-the first half focuses on Merry and Pippin with the Ents (tree shepherds), and Legolas, Gimli, Aragorn and Gandalf fighting against Saruman’s forces, most notably in the Battle of Helm’s Deep. The other surprise was that Helm’s Deep was Chapter Seven of Twenty-one, instead of the big, final, epic battle!

It was still pretty epic, though. I’m not one for war novels, and I can’t say that I normally enjoy a major battle (swordfighting is different). However, Tolkien (and Peter Jackson) pulls it off very nicely. He sounds some interesting notes here. Helm’s Deep emphasizes the bravery and glory of the defenders, fighting off mindlessly evil Orcs. But then we get a different side in the second half, in a battle between Men. Sam sees an enemy soldier killed, and wonders who he is and what his story is and whether he believed in his cause too. It brings much more humanity and realism to the warfare. I’ve heard Tolkien was a soldier in World War I, so I imagine he knew of what he wrote.

After that somewhat heavy observation, the other big surprise for me was that Legolas and Gimli actually have a competition in the book over how many Orcs each can kill at Helm’s Deep. By this point, I was assuming that anything funny in the movie would not be in the book…

This first section of the book also introduced us to Eowyn, and I was happy to see another female character. She didn’t have much more screen time (page time?) then Arwen, but slightly more, and I thought Tolkien did a better job of painting her character even in a short time. From Tolkien, that’s about all I can hope for with a female character…

I loved Merry and Pippin and the Ents. That was much funnier in the movie (of course) but was pretty fascinating in the book too. In typical Tolkien-fashion, we got the whole history of the Ents, these incredibly long-lived creatures. It was (of course) a divergence from the main plot, but I found their history very interesting too.

The second half of the book brings us over to Frodo and Sam, on their quest to get into Mordor to destroy the One Ring. They’re guided for much of the book by Gollum, and he is such a wonderful character. He’s so distinct, so weird and strange, so interesting to read. Maybe it was the focus on a smaller number of characters, but I felt like Frodo, Sam and Gollum all emerged much more strongly in this second book. I was especially happy to see a lot of it from Sam’s point of view. Because Sam is, I found, the most engaging and relatable of characters.

Between the Ents, the hobbits, the dramatic battle and the journey with Frodo, Sam and Gollum, this one was my favorite of the trilogy.(less)

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Jun 09, 2013 Beth rated it 4 of 5 stars

"The Two Towers" picks up immediately where "The Fellowship of the Ring" left off, with the exception that it switches the main focus from Frodo to his traveling companions. As "the company" struggles to decide which course to take - to follow after the runaway Frodo, or turn to take part in a great War in the west - they fall into a string of unfortunate adventures which lead them more or less towards the latter. Tolkein begins to explain his world of Middle Earth in a more tangible way, intro...more

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Jun 03, 2013 Ryan Walsh rated it 5 of 5 stars

This second installment in J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy is a book filled with much excitement and adventure. Right from the book’s beginning it took hold of me as the reader and I was unable to put it down until its end. The book’s main focus is on the hobbit Frodo Baggins who, along with Samwise Gamgee, are traveling to Mordor to destroy the ring of power. Along the way there are other minor conflicts that include, run-ins with Orcs, people attempting to take the ring, and the r...more This second installment in J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy is a book filled with much excitement and adventure. Right from the book’s beginning it took hold of me as the reader and I was unable to put it down until its end. The book’s main focus is on the hobbit Frodo Baggins who, along with Samwise Gamgee, are traveling to Mordor to destroy the ring of power. Along the way there are other minor conflicts that include, run-ins with Orcs, people attempting to take the ring, and the ring overcoming Frodo. Throughout the story Tolkien does a great job of character development as we learn more about mysterious characters such as Aragorn and Legolas. He also does a good job of portraying the tension between Frodo and Sam as their time together grows; at the same time he shows the dependency both have on each other. The detailed battle scenes come to life through his words, imagining the terrifying Orcs and the misfit Fellowship comes with ease. For me it seemed as though the plot moved a bit too slow, it was all a little dragged out. The chase of the Orcs by Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas seemed endless through the first part of the book. Tolkien also reminds me a bit of Charles Dickens in the way that he feels as though he needs to describe every last piece of plot and setting there is in his head. I feel like some of this takes away from the story as a whole, it can be distracting. I think this book relates to today’s world very well, the concepts and themes within it are eternal. The struggle between good and evil and how they try to conquer one and other is something that’s relevant in everyone’s life. Even if it’s only choosing the right thing versus doing something bad, the theme still overlies. There is also a theme of friendship and loyalty within the book seen when Samwise and Frodo get into fights but overcome them because of the love they share for one and other. Neither would leave the other alone because they know the quest is something they need to accomplish together. I think everyone has people like this in their life whom they know they couldn’t survive without. Even with some of the slow pace and other negative factors this is a must read for anyone who is a fan of fantasy fiction. Even if you have already seen the film the book holds much more detail and you will enjoy it nonetheless.

(less)

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May 22, 2013 Angelica rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 20th-century, awesome, adventure, books-that-were-turned-into-movies, classic, fantasy, inspirational, series

Dear Lord of the Rings,
I'm sorry people call you boring. I'm sorry they don't appreciate your beauty. I don't think you're boring. Really. You're awesome.

-Angelica

I would give this book 6 out of 5 stars if I could!!!
I read this a long time ago (like, 4 years ago) so I decided to read it again. I was pretty young when I read this, so when I read this, I felt like I was reading a whole new book. I understood.

So, ahem. On to the story. When Frodo is given a magical ring from his uncle Bilbo,

...more

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May 19, 2013 Kavitha rated it 4 of 5 stars

After reading "The Fellowship of the Ring," I was eager to find out what would happen next in this continuation of The Lord of the Rings series. At the beginning of this book, the Companions of the Ring split up. Frodo and Sam travel on towards the Cracks of Doom and befriend Gollum, Gandalf has been lost, and Boromir is dead. Merry and Pippin have been captured by Orcs and soon befriend Ents. Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas carry on to Rohan. My favorite quote was when Gandalf says, "Behold, I am...more

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About J.R.R. Tolkien

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE, was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the high fantasy classic works The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings .

Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford from 1925 to 1945, and Merton Professor of English language and literature from 1945 to 1959. He was a close friend of C.S. Lewis.

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The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings, #1)

The Return of the King (The Lord of the Rings, #3)

The Lord of the Rings (The Lord of the Rings, #1-3)

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Quotes from The Two Towers

“War must be, while we defend our lives against a destroyer who would devour all; but I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend.” — 2,351 people liked it

“There is some good in this world, and it's worth fighting for.” — 1,988 people liked it

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