Review: "The Hobbit" by J.R.R. Tolkien

Let me preface this by saying that if you plan on seeing the movie and haven't read the book yet, I highly suggest you read the book first. They change quite a bit in the movie, and you don't want the images from the movie spoiling what your imagination could produce.

"The Hobbit", first and foremost, is a children's novel. Tolkien did not write the book like he did "The Lord of the Rings", so it doesn't read like it bigger brothers do. It is fairly more complex than what you would imagine a children's book to be, but it is written in a more simple fashion compared adult novels. I don't think this takes away any enjoyment from the reading, though.

This novel is the definition of epic adventure. It has a long journey, wild surprises, narrow escapes, and to top it off a huge fire-breathing dragon. There are gruesome creatures, big battles, people get slaughtered; doesn't sound like the average children's novel, does it?

This book is a quick, fun read. It is a classic, and if you are a fan of fantasy or "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, it is definitely worth a read.

Book Review: "Angels & Demons" by Dan Brown

This was quite an interesting book. I went into this book without knowing a single thing about it. I had never read anything about The DaVinci Code either (being its more popular counterpart), so I was completely in the dark.

The subject matter surprised me, in a good way. The Illuminati, Rome, a huge crisis brewing; this looked like it was going to be a good read. Let me tell you folks: this book is a page turner. I was glued to the pages for hours on end. The story flowed well, and there was always something compelling you to read on (i.e. a cliffhanger). I believe that the entire novel occurred within the period of a day. This doesn't seem like a lot of time to cram in a 500+ page story, but somehow Brown does it. The downside of this is that there is not a lot of character development throughout the book. What I mean by this is that the characters do not change much from beginning to end. Brown sets up the characters and tells their backgrounds just fine, but, of course, twenty-four hours is not sufficient time to see any major character changes occur. 

Now, here is the biggest flaw of the novel: it is fictional. Literally, it is all fiction. Even the parts that you would think would be fact, like the history of Galileo, or the ancient foundations of Rome. Brown made up the majority of this story as he went along. Parts of it read like a very interesting history lesson, but it is important to take everything you read with a grain of salt. My other qualm with this book is that it begins to get a little too far-fetched for me near the end. Besides these problems, it is an enjoyable book.

Do I recommend it? This really depends on the reader's preferences. Do you enjoy an action packed, fast-paced, purely-for-enjoyment read? Then yes, I recommend it. If you prefer something with a little more reserve, something that has a solid foundation, then no, this book is not for you.

Happy reading!

Quick Introduction

Hey everyone, my name is Ben. From here on out I will be posting reviews of different books. Originally I was going to review books and movies on this blog, but thought I should separate the two for clarity. These reviews may be positive, they may be negative, but I will always give you my thorough and honest opinion. If you have read or watched anything that I review, feel free to comment. Your thoughts are greatly appreciated! I look forward to getting to know this blogging community more. Hopefully over the next few months this blog will evolve, and keep on getting better and better.

Happy reading!

Ben