My quick take on a few characteristics that make a fictional character unforgettable.

Jordan joins me again for my last episode in this series. We make some general observations on The Return of the King, share thoughts on LOTR as a whole, and discuss what the trilogy has led to in pop culture and what we predict will be the future of the trilogy's popularity. In the episode, I showed my ignorance when I said I didn't know who Peter S. Beagle was. Turns out he was a perfect person to write a much-reprinted foreword to The Lord of the Rings. Here's his bio: https://beagleverse.com/about/ Also, if you're interested in The Conqueror, where Jordan and I have been doing our LOTR walking challenges, here's where you can get the app: https://www.theconqueror.events/get-the-app/

It's been a long time, but...well, I'm back. Join me as I wrap up my observations on The Two Towers in preparation for an upcoming mega-episode on The Return of the King and all things Tolkien.

Join me as I re-read The Two Towers! In this short episode, I talk about Aragorn's leadership crisis, Merry and Pippin's surprising intelligence, orcs' names and personalities, and more.

Now that I've finished re-reading The Fellowship of the Ring, I pick up on some topics from my first Fellowship episode and identify some themes to watch for as we move on in the trilogy. I also talk about meeting the four hobbit actors at Steel City Con earlier this month!

My quick takes on Tom Bombadil, the strengths and weaknesses of Tolkien's prose, and dreaming about LOTR.

Welcome to the first episode of a new series, in which I re-read J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-Earth saga and talk about how, if at all, my impressions have changed since I entered that world at age 13. Here, I discuss The Hobbit, focusing on Tolkien's descriptions of nature and the change of seasons, as well as Bilbo Baggins' peacemaking and self-reflection skills. And yes, I do a little bit of comparison between the book and the movies. I'd love to have you join me in my re-reading adventure! Next on the list is, of course, The Fellowship of the Ring. 

My husband, Jordan Martinus (from the board game episode!) joins me in a discussion of why we love The Lord of the Rings, why it's been such a cultural phenomenon, and why we especially love a few of the characters. (Believe me, it was hard to get this list down to a few!) Near the end of the episode, I mentioned a quote from Samwise Gamgee and promised I'd put it in the show notes. It turns out that this isn't a direct quote by Sam, but a narration of what goes through his mind when he sees a star through the dark clouds of Mordor: "There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach."

Okay, if you want to get into a grammatical discussion, I suppose it might have been better to have called this episode "Who Are the Jedi?" But I'm sticking with my choice, because in this episode, we try to discover the essence of what it means to be a member of Star Wars' legendary Jedi order--and why it's a good thing for that essence to be questioned and reassessed periodically. Join me as I geek out with returning guest Andy Thigpen (from the Godfather episode!) about Jedi ethics, clone armies, and lightsaber training.

Join the wild rumpus and listen to my conversation with children's book expert (and my sister-in-law) Allison Stockslager. We read and discuss the entire text of Where the Wild Things Are and talk about why nobody is too old for picture books. Links to resources mentioned in the episode: HarperCollins 200th Anniversary Website Author Audio Tour (background on Maurice Sendak and Where the Wild Things Are): http://www.harpercollins200audiotour.com/ (When you get to the site, click on #8 on the map!) New York Times opinion piece by Pamela Paul: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/20/opinion/sunday/picture-books-reading.html