Bookish Tuesday

First of all, I have to note that yesterday's post was my 150th!!! Woohoo! It only took me 4 years to get that far, and about half of those posts made within the past 3 months. Anyway, on to today. I'm still working my way through American Gospel (these nonfiction books can't hold my attention for too long, it requires too much thinking), so that's still on the backburner but I can say that I'm really liking it so far.

Instead, let's discuss a book that is fiction, but acts like it's not... a little book called The Silmarillion. Anyone who powered through this book (and there are definitely points that require you to work to get through) knows how much of a life's work Middle Earth was for Tolkien. The man didn't just write stories about the hobbits, instead it's almost like he was picking his favorite stories from history and turning them into a narrative. While The Lord of the Rings is a single focus of the story of Frodo and his quest to destroy the One Ring, The Silmarillion gives you the entire story of Middle Earth, from its creation all the way through the Age of Men (after Aragorn's crowning).

The book also really gives a glimpse into Tolkien's faith and how it influenced his writings, which is a really cool thing. Also, for those of you who haven't already read The Hobbit or The Lord of the Rings (first of all, shame on you), but if you read The Silmarillion first (while not quite recommended) it will give you a great appreciation for the scope of the series and everything that went into the shaping of the world.