Schedule

[Jessica]

Hi Everyone,

We hope you enjoy this chance to dive into all things Tolkien. Here's an overview of the schedule for upcoming discussions, led by moderator Paul Goat Allen.

February - The Hobbit

March - LOTR, The Fellowship of the Ring

April - LOTR, The Two Towers

May - LOTR, The Return of the King

[paulgoatallen]

That's right people – February's featured book is The Hobbit. So in honor of those lovable half-pint Shire dwellers, I'm asking all those with hairy feet to please shave before posting. Thanks!
Paul

[BarbaraN]

---

Jessica wrote:
Hi Everyone,

We hope you enjoy this chance to dive into all things Tolkien. Here's an overview of the schedule for upcoming discussions, led by moderator Paul Goat Allen.

February - The Hobbit

March - LOTR, The Fellowship of the Ring

April - LOTR, The Two Towers

May - LOTR, The Return of the King

---

Our Reading Schedule

Our schedule in Shire Reckoning (Source: Appendix D LOTR). We want to be authentic in this group. Besides some Hobbits in the group might not understand our modern calendar.

Afteryule: Formation of the Tolkien Reading Group
Solmath: The Hobbit
Rethe: LOTR: The Fellowship of the Rings
Astron: LOTR: The Two Towers
Thrimidge: LOTR: Return of the King

[Jessica]

---

BarbaraN wrote:

---

Jessica wrote:
Hi Everyone,

We hope you enjoy this chance to dive into all things Tolkien. Here's an overview of the schedule for upcoming discussions, led by moderator Paul Goat Allen.

February - The Hobbit

March - LOTR, The Fellowship of the Ring

April - LOTR, The Two Towers

May - LOTR, The Return of the King

---

Our Reading Schedule

Our schedule in Shire Reckoning (Source: Appendix D LOTR). We want to be authentic in this group. Besides some Hobbits in the group might not understand our modern calendar.

Afteryule: Formation of the Tolkien Reading Group
Solmath: The Hobbit
Rethe: LOTR: The Fellowship of the Rings
Astron: LOTR: The Two Towers
Thrimidge: LOTR: Return of the King

---

LOL

Hysterical!

[jen04]

What about The Silmarillian?

[BarbaraN]

---

jen04 wrote:
What about The Silmarillian?

---

Welcome Jen. We hope to continue on with the Silmarillian after we finish the LOTR. It depends on how the group goes as a discussion group and the interest among group members in continuing on. If we do, it would probably be in June. Good to get your vote in so the powers that be can see we are interested.

We did start a discussion thread on what we want to do after LOTR. That would be a good place to present some of your own thoughts on the subject:

http://bookclubs.barnesandnoble.com/bn/board/message?board.id=tolkien&thread.id=343&jump=true

Message Edited by BarbaraN on 01-25-2008 03:24 PM

[jen04]

One other question, Are we all trying to read at a certain pace (ie, 1-2 chapters per week then post) or are we going at our own pace? I know it reallly may not matter, but for a group study, it may be fun to be a the same place as everyone else. Just a thought.

Jen
aka Marigold Brockhouse of Loamsdown

[leakybucket]

---

jen04 wrote:
One other question, Are we all trying to read at a certain pace (ie, 1-2 chapters per week then post) or are we going at our own pace? I know it reallly may not matter, but for a group study, it may be fun to be a the same place as everyone else. Just a thought.

Jen
aka Marigold Brockhouse of Loamsdown

---

I agree Jen (or is it Marigold--some people get all the luck with good hobbit names!) and have been thinking along the same lines. Paul and others will be introducing lots of topics as we go along but I think as far as the chapters are concerned, we should keep our reading and discussions associated with each chapter together. They will make for more involved and focused discussions.

So below is my proposed schedule suggestion. It allows us a chapter a day except for the first four chapters (to give people a chance to get their books) and Chapter V. A chapter a day is a pace I think most people can keep up with and it would not be too difficult to catch up to the group again if you fall behind.

Chapter V, of course, is an extremely important chapter especially when we get to LOTR. It is also the one Tolkien made extensive changes in to fit the LOTR. The two version (that Bilbo "told different people") are even brought up again in Book 1 of the LOTR as a topic of conversation and this chapter is mentioned several times later in the other books. So my feeling is that we are going to need at least a few days on this chapter alone. This will also allow the late-comers to catch up with us before we move on to the chapter a day schedule.

What do you more experienced Tolkien people feel about the pacing? Do any other chapters require extra time? We have only two days left at the end to tie things together before we move on to the LOTR.

Hobbit Reading and Discussion Schedule

February 4-8
Chapter I, An Unexpected Party (we started this one a little early)
Chapter II, Roast Mutton
Chapter II, A Short Rest
Chapter IV, Over Hill and Under Hill

February 9-13
Chapter V, Riddles in the Dark

February 14-18
Chapter VI, Out of the Frying-Pan into the Fire
Chapter VII, Queer Lodgings
Chapter VIII, Flies and Spiders
Chapter IX, Barrels Out of Bond
Chapter X, A Warm Welcome

February 19-23
Chapter XI, On the Doorstep
Chapter XII, Inside Information
Chapter XIII, Not at Home
Chapter XIV, The Gathering of Clouds

February 24-27
Chapter XVI, A Thief in the Night
Chapter XVII, A Cloud Burst
Chapter XVIII, The Return Journey
Chapter XIX, The Last Stage

[lmpmn]

---

leakybucket wrote:
Hobbit Reading and Discussion Schedule

February 4-8
Chapter I, An Unexpected Party (we started this one a little early)
Chapter II, Roast Mutton
Chapter II, A Short Rest
Chapter IV, Over Hill and Under Hill

February 9-13
Chapter V, Riddles in the Dark

February 14-18
Chapter VI, Out of the Frying-Pan into the Fire
Chapter VII, Queer Lodgings
Chapter VIII, Flies and Spiders
Chapter IX, Barrels Out of Bond
Chapter X, A Warm Welcome

February 19-23
Chapter XI, On the Doorstep
Chapter XII, Inside Information
Chapter XIII, Not at Home
Chapter XIV, The Gathering of Clouds

February 24-27
Chapter XVI, A Thief in the Night
Chapter XVII, A Cloud Burst
Chapter XVIII, The Return Journey
Chapter XIX, The Last Stage

I'm wondering if this is the official timeline for our club? I'd like to print it out and have it to check off if it is. Thanks!

[BarbaraN]

---

lmpmn wrote:

---

leakybucket wrote:
Hobbit Reading and Discussion Schedule

February 4-8
Chapter I, An Unexpected Party (we started this one a little early)
Chapter II, Roast Mutton
Chapter II, A Short Rest
Chapter IV, Over Hill and Under Hill

February 9-13
Chapter V, Riddles in the Dark

February 14-18
Chapter VI, Out of the Frying-Pan into the Fire
Chapter VII, Queer Lodgings
Chapter VIII, Flies and Spiders
Chapter IX, Barrels Out of Bond
Chapter X, A Warm Welcome

February 19-23
Chapter XI, On the Doorstep
Chapter XII, Inside Information
Chapter XIII, Not at Home
Chapter XIV, The Gathering of Clouds

February 24-27
Chapter XVI, A Thief in the Night
Chapter XVII, A Cloud Burst
Chapter XVIII, The Return Journey
Chapter XIX, The Last Stage

I'm wondering if this is the official timeline for our club? I'd like to print it out and have it to check off if it is. Thanks!

---

If no one has any comments or objections, this is as "official" as anything is in this group. We have been functioning pretty democratically for two months now. See if there are any objections in the next 24 hours and then it is probably official.

I was wondering whether that large a block of time was necessary for Chapter V. I looked through my Annotated Hobbit and there are some very important topics in that chapter that are significant for The Hobbit but especially for LOTR--the two versions of the Riddle story, the nature of Gollum, how Gollum got the Ring, and Bilbo's "pity", and there might be more issues. This is on top of the usual plot advancement features of the chapter. We also have people in the group reading Mr. Baggins, the first volume in The History of the Hobbit and they might have a lot to say. Plus I can see the value of going a little slower at the beginning to let the late comers catch up. So I would vote "it is fine with me."

[lorien]

This is the schedule the group has been working on during January while waiting for the group to form and The Hobbit to start in February. I have no idea where it was originally posted now but here it is if you newcomers want to fill your time before February 4 and have been wondering what in the world we have been talking about:

Pre-Hobbit - January

The Man and His Work: Introduction to the Annotated Hobbit. (This was a bio of Tolkien. You can find plenty of short bios on the Web. This has its own thread.)

Hobbits: Prologue to the Lord of the Rings (at the beginning of the Fellowship of the Ring, LOTR)

The Quest of Erebor: This is in Appendix A of the Annotated Hobbit. You will find it embedded in a shorter form in Durin's Folk and also in the book Unfinished Tales.

Appendix III: Durin's Folk: In Appendix A of Return of the King, LOTR

We also started Chapter 1 of the Hobbit early because so much of this preliminary reading pertained to that chapter.

[JesseBC]

I'm just excited by the length of the schedule for reading the whole series -- for once, it won't matter that I'm always behind! :-D

---

Jessica wrote:
Hi Everyone,

We hope you enjoy this chance to dive into all things Tolkien. Here's an overview of the schedule for upcoming discussions, led by moderator Paul Goat Allen.

February - The Hobbit

March - LOTR, The Fellowship of the Ring

April - LOTR, The Two Towers

May - LOTR, The Return of the King

---

[lmpmn]

Hi, I was wondering if we'll have a schedule of chapters and days (like we did for The Hobbit) for The Fellowship of the Ring?  The schedule that was set up really helped me to keep on track and not get behind.  Whoever did that--thank you!

[BarbaraN]

Fellowship of the Ring

I have no idea of how this is going to work out in the actual discussion but lets set this up as a reading schedule and see how it goes. I have simply divided things according to the time available. If you come in late or fall behind, don't worry about it. This is a perpetual group so the threads will be there waiting for you. You can even go back and continue discussions of The Hobbit if you wish.

March 3-9
Book 1: Chapters I-V

March 10-16
Book 1: Chapters VI-XII

March 17-23
Book 2: Chapters I-V

March 24-30
Book 2: Chapters VI-X
Movie: Fellowship of the Ring

[BarbaraN]

I quit posting the chapters after Book 1 because people hadn't even started posting to the last chapters of Book 1 yet and "FOTR Book 1: Chapters 9-12" was falling toward the bottom of the page! We still have all of Book 2 and the movie to go as well as the last four chapters of Book 1 for the last week of this month since we are supposed to be finishing up the Fellowship and moving on to The Two Towers in April.

How do the rest of you feeling about the pace we have been maintaining? Is it too slow, just right--or even too fast. We have to move forward at some reasonable rate. Should we continue at the rate we have been going and do Book 2 and the movie next month or finish everything up in the next week and move on to The Two Towers in April? This only pertains to the Chapter threads--the Topic threads are whatever.

---

BarbaraN wrote:
Fellowship of the Ring

I have no idea of how this is going to work out in the actual discussion but lets set this up as a reading schedule and see how it goes. I have simply divided things according to the time available. If you come in late or fall behind, don't worry about it. This is a perpetual group so the threads will be there waiting for you. You can even go back and continue discussions of The Hobbit if you wish.

March 3-9
Book 1: Chapters I-V

March 10-16
Book 1: Chapters VI-XII

March 17-23
Book 2: Chapters I-V

March 24-30
Book 2: Chapters VI-X
Movie: Fellowship of the Ring

---

[BarbaraN]

Suggested April Schedule

No one seems to have anything to say about our present pace of reading, so I guess we continue on at our current pace through Book 2 of the Fellowship in April. Late-comers have plenty of time to start the Fellowship and catch up with the group--we are not even halfway through it! Below is a suggested schedule based on our present progress. It is not official--just a guide. The Council of Elrond and the Galadriel chapters may take more than their allotted week, but that is OK. Maybe some of the other chapters may go quicker. If not, we will go with the flow.

First-time Readers: We try to avoid or mark "spoilers" in the Chapter threads but the Topic threads by necessity do have spoilers.

Newcomers to the group: Go ahead and introduce yourself to the group and jump into the discussions wherever you wish. Some people are still on The Hobbit and some are still on Book 1 of The Fellowship of the Ring. Some, hopefully, will be into Book 2 soon.

March 31-April 6
FOTR: Book 2: Chapters 1-2
Chapter 1: Many Meetings
Chapter 2: The Council of Elrond

April 7-13
FOTR: Book 2: Chapters 3-5
Chapter 3: The Ring Goes South
Chapter 4: A Journey in the Dark
Chapter 5: The Bridge of Khazad-dum

April 14-20
FOTR: Book 2: Chapters 6-8
Chapter 6: Lothlorien
Chapter 7: The Mirror of Galadriel
Chapter 8: Farewell to Lorien

April 21-27
FOTR: Book 2: Chapters 9-10
Chapter 9: The Great River
Chapter 10: The Breaking of the Fellowship

April 28-May 3
FOTR: Peter Jackson Movie: Fellowship of the Ring (extended version preferred)

[lmpmn]

Thanks for posting a new "unofficial" schedule, BarbaraN!  I certainly have fallen behind.  I'll be able to start Book 2 as April begins and hope to keep up!

[BarbaraN]

April 28-May 3
FOTR: Peter Jackson Movie: Fellowship of the Ring (extended version preferred)

For our final week of the month we will be talking about the movie. If you don't have it yet, you might want to consider ordering it now. You can get the theatrical version for around $12 but the extended version is so much better and is only around $20. It is a four disk set and that is a real bargain at $5 a disk. Toward the end of our movie week discussion we will talk about the "extras" about the making of the movie. These only come with the extended version.

I don't know how well this link will work since I am using Firefox and so do not have access to the text editor. But Jessica said this code should work and it does shorten the length of the link. If it doesn't I will try something else.

Fellowship of the Ring Extended Version

Click on Scenes at the above link to get a full index.

[BarbaraN]

Hey, it worked! I just became a techie!

[BarbaraN]

Suggested May Read-Along Schedule

This is not official--just a guide. We go with the flow and get side-tract often.

First-time Readers: We try to avoid or mark spoilers in the Read-along Chapter threads but the Topic threads by necessity do have spoilers.

Newcomers to the group: Go ahead and introduce yourself to the group and jump into the discussions wherever you wish. Some people are still on The Fellowship of the Ring (FOTR). In the meantime we will try to forge ahead into Book 3 in The Two Towers (TTT).

Note: We have put aside April 28 - May 5 as a movie week to watch and discuss Peter Jackson's "Fellowship of the Ring" and to compare it with our recent reading of the Book.

For Book 3 in TTT we leave Frodo to continue his journey and now concentrate on what happens to the rest of the Fellowship: Merry and Pippin, and Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli as they go their separate ways.

TTT: Book 3

May 5-11
1. The Departure of Boromir
2. The Riders of Rohan
3. The Uruk-hai
4. Treebeard

May 12-18
5. The White Rider
6. The King of the Golden Hall
7. Helm's Deep

May 19-25
8. The Road to Isengard
9. Flotsam and Jetsam
10. The Voice of Saruman
11. The Palantir

Please speak up if you have any different suggestions. I'm just a volunteer "scheduler" since our group doesn't have any official guidance.

Message Edited by BarbaraN on 04-25-2008 06:03 PM