Tolkienists.org

№ 142: Alkisti

26 January 2021 | Tolkien Experience ProjectAlkisti

I was going through a bad break-up when I was around 16 and my father bought me the Lord of the Rings books to have something to occupy my mind with. I’m so glad I have editions with pre-movie covers! …


☜ Click for full post text.

This is one in a series of posts where the content is provided by a guest who has graciously answered five questions about their experience as a Tolkien reader. I am very humbled that anyone volunteers to spend time in this busy world to answer questions for my blog, and so I give my sincerest thanks to Alkisti and the other participants for this.

To see the idea behind this project, check out this page

I want to thank Donato Giancola for allowing me to use his stunning portrait of J.R.R Tolkien as the featured image for this project. If you would like to purchase a print of this painting, they are available on his website!

If you would like to contribute your own experience, you can do so by using the form on the contact page, or by emailing me directly.

Now, on to Alkisti’s responses:


1. How were you introduced to Tolkien’s work?

I was going through a bad break-up when I was around 16 and my father bought me the Lord of the Rings books to have something to occupy my mind with. I’m so glad I have editions with pre-movie covers!

2. What is your favorite part of Tolkien’s work?

The invented languages and how a whole world was built around them. The light at the end of the tunnel.

3. What is your fondest experience of Tolkien’s work?

I always go back to how I was first introduced to Tolkien’s work because through the years it has become a very dear experience and one I’m very fond of. The LotR movies are some of the few book adaptations I like and I still cry obsessively when I watch certain scenes – even if it’s isolated ones on YouTube. I sometimes do it on purpose even. I believe it must be the notion of the Sublime some of the scenes evoke. The emotions are so intense and so very rare, even in real life experiences.

4. Has the way you approach Tolkien’s work changed over time?

What started as (just) an epic fantasy story has become one of my favourite stories and worlds of all time that has accompanied me for several years. I’ve become more engaged into the details after these years and I’m also interested to see deeper into the story and its compartments as well as the ways it came to be. I’ve started to read work on Tolkien now, instead of stopping at Tolkien’s work.

5. Would you ever recommend Tolkien’s work? Why/​Why not?

Of course! Although several people find it hard to get into his books because they find the writing overly detailed and intricate, I’d think they miss out from what is perhaps the most wholesome world that has ever been imagined if they do not engage with Tolkien’s work be it via reading or a different way.


You can read more from Alkisti on Twitter!

[Full text is provided here in the event that the original blog post is no longer available. If possible, please read the original post at Tolkien Experience Project – Luke Shelton PhD.]

Authoritative information may be found here.

permalink 🔗︁ https://sam.tolkienists.org/010z/
source URL 🌐Alkisti’s Experience – Tolkien Experience Project (142) – Luke Shelton PhD
date recorded 📅2022-01-13
scribe 🖋worblehat