The Tolkien Road

Our 2025 Silmarillion journey continues with Chapter 7 of Quenta Silmarillion - Of the Silmarils and the Unrest of the Noldor. In Chapter 7, we learn what the Silmarils are, where they came from, and how clouds begin to gather over the blessed realm of Valinor. Over the next several months, we'll be continuing to revisit the entire 30-episode Silmarillion series that Greta and I recorded back in 2...

Our 2025 Silmarillion journey continues with Chapter 6 of Quenta Silmarillion - Of Fëanor and the Unchaining of Melkor. Chapter 6 is really the quiet calm before the storm. All hell is about to break loose. Yet first, we must become acquainted with the great Fëanor, one of the most significant characters in the whole Middle-earth legedarium, and also understand how Melkor escapes bondage and comes...

Our 2025 Silmarillion journey continues with Chapter 5 of Quenta Silmarillion - Of Eldamar and the Princes of the Eldalië. In Chapter 5, we come to find out how the three Elvish peoples (the Vanyar, the Noldor, and the Teleri) came to Aman, the Blessed Realm. We also learn a great deal more about the Noldor and the Teleri, and about the personalities of these groups of Elves. The princes of the No...

Hey there, fellow travelers! Our 2025 Silmarillion journey continues with Chapter 4 of Quenta Silmarillion - Of Thingol and Melian! Over the next several months, we'll be continuing to revisit the entire 30-episode Silmarillion series that Greta and I recorded back in 2022.  And while you're listening, check out  SilmGuide.com for guides to individual chapters. Chapter 4 of The Silmarillion is a s...

Hey there, fellow travelers! Our 2025 Silmarillion journey continues with Chapter 3 of Quenta Silmarillion - Of The Awakening of the Elves and the Captivity of Melkor! Over the next several months, we'll be continuing to revisit the entire 30-episode Silmarillion series that Greta and I recorded back in 2022.  And while you're listening, check out  SilmGuide.com for guides to individual chapters....

Hey there, fellow travellers! Our 2025 Silmarillion journey continues with Chapter 2 of Quenta Silmarillion - Of Aulë and Yavanna! Over the next several months, we'll be continuing to revisit the entire 30-episode Silmarillion series that Greta and I recorded back in 2022.  And while you're listening, check out  SilmGuide.com for guides to individual chapters. In Chapter 2, we're introduced to the...

Hey there, fellow travellers! Our 2025 Silmarillion journey continues with Chapter 1 of Quenta Silmarillion - Of the Beginning of Days, part 2! Yes, Chapter 1 had so much to discuss that we had to break it into two parts, so you're getting the second half right now! Over the next several months, we'll be continuing to revisit the entire 30-episode Silmarillion series that Greta and I recorded back...

Hey there, fellow travellers! Our 2025 Silmarillion journey continues with Chapter 1 of Quenta Silmarillion - Of the Beginning of Days. Just to be clear, "Quenta Silmarillion" means "The History of the Silmarils". While Tolkien intended "Ainulindalë" and "Valaquenta" to be essentially standalone works, Quenta Silmarillion encompasses the next 24 chapters. Over the next several months, we'll be rev...

Hey there, fellow travellers! Our 2025 Silmarillion journey continues with Valaquenta - The Story of the Valar! Over the next several months, we'll be revisiting the entire 30-episode Silmarillion series that Greta and I recorded back in 2022.  And while you're listening, check out  SilmGuide.com for guides to individual chapters. As mentioned, this episode is an overview of Valaquenta - The Story...

Hey there, fellow travellers! Our 2025 Silmarillion journey continues with Ainulindalë - The Music of the Ainur - which, simply put, is the Middle-earth creation story. Over the next several months, we'll be revisiting the 30-episode series that Greta and I recorded back in 2022.  And while you're listening, check out SilmGuide.com for guides to individual chapters. This episode is an overview of...

Hey there, fellow travellers! Right now, I have one major goal for The Tolkien Road: to finish my next book! While I'm doing that, I want to invite you to read through The Silmarillion with The Tolkien Road this year! Over the next several months, we'll be revisiting the 30-episode series that Greta and I recorded back in 2022.  And while you're listening, check out SilmGuide.com for guides to ind...

Hey there fellow travellers! This week we'll be revisiting episode 197, which focused on 6 amazing spiritual insights from Tolkien. Visit TolkienRoad.com/spirit to download these 6 points as a PDF! Also, visit TrueMythsPress.com to for Tolkien Road gear like Two Trees coffee mugs, Tolkien Road t-shirts, and signed copies of my books (which are almost gone!). Finally, if you'd like to support our w...

Listen to the whole episode: https://www.ringspodcast.com/190-why-and-how-the-lord-of-the-rings-is-a-religious-and-catholic-work/ Hey there, fellow travellers! Merry Christmas! I was recently a guest on the Lore of the Rings podcast - that's L-O-R-E - where I joined host Aaron to discuss the ways in which Lord of the Rings is a "fundamentally religous work". We uncovered: - The grace Faramir says...

In The Tolkien Road Episode 396, we review The War of the Rohirrim, the newly released animated Middle-earth film from Executive Producer Peter Jackson! I have to be honest: the first 2 seasons of The Rings of Power were so painfully bad that I was not feeling enthusiastic about The War of the Rohirrim going into seeing it last night. The one spark of hope that I felt was the knowledge that it had...

Hey there fellow travellers! This week we'll be revisiting episode 261, which focused on Tolkien's EPIC Christmas poem NOEL. Visit  TolkienRoad.com/noel for plenty of resources related to it! Also, visit TrueMythsPress.com to for Tolkien Road gear like Two Trees coffee mugs, Tolkien Road t-shirts, and signed copies of my books (which are almost gone!). Use promo code NOEL20 to take 20% off your pu...

I'm done with Season 2 of Amazon's The Rings of Power, but I didn't watch all 8 episodes. I just can't watch anymore... EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: - Kaitlyn of Tea with Tolkien - John R - KG - Eärendil Hope WATCH THE VIDEO » https://youtu.be/4g1ugQfbHFE FOLLOW & SUPPORT THE TOLKIEN ROAD : PATREON » SUPERFANS! TWITTER FACEBOOK INSTAGRAM LINKS & MATHOMS: - take 10% OFF Tolkien Road merch at True M...

Welcome to The Tolkien Road Episode 394! In this bonus MAILBAG episode of DO NOT BE HASTY, we’ll be considering your thoughts on the Foreword and Prologue to The Lord of the Rings! EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: - Kaitlyn of Tea with Tolkien - John R - KG - Eärendil Hope WATCH THE VIDEO » https://youtu.be/Lr_mqGgHwCw WATCH / LISTEN AD-FREE » https://www.patreon.com/tolkienroad FOLLOW & SUPPORT THE TOLKI...

Welcome to The Tolkien Road Episode 393! In this bonus MATHOMS episode of DO NOT BE HASTY, we’ll take a look at some fascinating footnotes to the Foreword and Prologue of The Lord of Rings! TOPICS COVERED: - Lord of the Rings' attraction - The Silmarillion adapted - Negative reviews of Lord of the Rings - Tolkien vs allegory - Sarehole Mill as Hobbiton - The word "Hobbit" - "Dwarrow", Dwarfs, Dwar...

Hey there, fellow travellers! Let's revisit our discussion of Sauron's sack of Eregion and defeat of Celebrimbor from 2023, as Tolkien told it! Episode notes: https://www.tolkienroad.com/e0349/ Video: https://youtu.be/DnI07pSeqXQ Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-tolkien-road--5222755/support .

Hey there, fellow travellers! Let's revisit our 2023 episode on Sauron's seduction of the Elves, which led to the creation of the Rings of Power! Episode notes: https://www.tolkienroad.com/e0345/ Video: https://youtu.be/cY5EmQrBD2k Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-tolkien-road--5222755/support .

Welcome to Episode 22 of DO NOT BE HASTY - I'm calling this one "Sam's Grand Entrance". (This is episode 392 of The Tolkien Road podcast). ‘Well, sir,’ said Sam dithering a little. ‘I heard a deal that I didn’t rightly understand, about an enemy, and rings, and Mr. Bilbo, sir, and dragons, and a fiery mountain, and – and Elves, sir. I listened because I couldn’t help myself, if you know what I mea...

Hey there, fellow travellers! In this REVISITED episode, we're looking at episode 315 from 2022, which was our latest discussion concerning Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age, Tolkien's history of the events from the beginning of the Second Age until the end of the Lord of the Rings. Enjoy! Video: https://youtu.be/oajJtpC8_HA Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcas...

Hey there, fellow travellers! Let's revisit our discussion of "Akallabêth" from 2022, so we can get some solid perspective on what Tolkien intended for the story of Númenor. Join us! https://www.tolkienroad.com/0314-akallabeth-2022/ Video: https://youtu.be/JRqaGOaRkz0 Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-tolkien-road--5222755/support .

Welcome to Episode 21 of DO NOT BE HASTY - I'm calling this one "Frodo, The Chosen One". (This is episode 391 of The Tolkien Road podcast). ""It has been said that dragon-fire could melt and consume the Rings of Power, but there is not now any dragon left on earth in which the old fire is hot enough; nor was there ever any dragon, not even Ancalagon the Black, who could have harmed the One Ring, t...

Who is Tom Bombadil? This is a topic we’ve covered several times on the Tolkien Road, but it’s an undying enigma for Lord of the Rings fans, and we’re always hungry for new insights into the mysterious nature of The Old Forest’s Master. With the inclusion of Tom Bombadil in Season 2 of The Rings of Power, we're in a Tommy kind of mood, and will be revisiting a few episodes we've done on the engima...