Atlas Of Middle-Earth: The Essential Guide to the Geography of the World of The Lord of the Rings

I have been reading the works of Tolkien since the mid-'60's - this is the first really good, complete and accurate maps I have found. The content is chronologically ordered, with the Third Age by far the most complete. That makes sense because the LOTR is also the richest and most complete work by JRRT. The First and Second Age are in the book, but are less complete and detailed. Not to mention that the creation of the world itself was - almost by definition - hard to describe as the first inhabitants were spirits and the world itself was not complete.The table of distances and day-to-day tracking of the characters is very complete and I have to complete the author on her persistence.

Maps are lovely. This book is a treat for diehard Tolkien fans.

In reading the Silmarillion, you need a complete map to follow each chapter. This book is a definite guide and helps immensely.

If you're like me you've spent hours pouring over the very limited maps that are included in the original LOTR series trying to get a better idea of what Middle Earth looks like and have wished for an atlas. A few years ago I attempted to get through "The Children of Hurin" (very difficult) and "The Fall of Gondolin" (almost unreadable). My notes for each were "One finger in the Glossary at all times!" The only way I could get through these stories was with the glossary and a Tolkien dictionary which was in constant use and I really wish I had this atlas at the time.This atlas is FANTASTIC and is exactly what you want as companion especially when going through the 1st, 2nd ages which can be convoluted.The maps are easy to read and plentiful. While there is not a lot of color in the drawings there is enough to distinguish the differences in terrain without being distracting. This atlas was clearly designed for the avid reader and is meant as a reference to be used often and not a pretty coffee table book that's rarely opened. Case in point is the rather flimsy non glossy cover on the paperback edition which gives it a feel like a college text book companion. For about $15 it's an absolute steal! If your looking for a coffee table book, buy the hard cover edition.A few of the other reviewers talked about the font size and the the middle of some of the maps being in between pages. My eyes aren't what they used to be and I had no problem with the font size. There are a few maps that have important info in the crease which is annoying but definitely not a deal breaker.All in all I'm extremely pleased with this atlas and now feel confident in taking on the Silmarillion which I've been putting off for years!

One of the interesting things about Tolkien's Middle-earth is how empty it all is. For all of the thousands of years of history, lore, and background that Tolkien built underneath his world, it's kind of amazing how few people actually live in it. Tolkien only seems to remember this when he needs an army to appear from somewhere, at which point we start hearing about a few thousand men from this location and a few thousand men from that location, but we never connect to any of it. In all four of the main books of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, you could fairly argue that while the biggest city visited was Minas Tirith, the second biggest city was actually Hobbiton!Both the Company and the Fellowship cross thousands of miles of countryside on what major roads exist in Tolkien's world, and yet they never *pass through* a large city or even a farming village. The only cities we hear about are the ones that begin and end the various journeys: Hobbiton and Bree, Dale and Laketown, Minas Tirith and Edoras. And once both journeys set out from the Shire, there is not a single farm to be found in all of Middle-earth. What do the people of Minas Tirith eat, I wonder?So a book like this that at least tries to fill into the gaps is welcome. Here are encapsulated all of the little elements of Tolkien geography. The big showy maps are here of course, laying out the major features, but there are frequent stops all over the terrain to examine more closely the places that the Company and the Fellowship visited, and even some prologue chapters that cover the First and Second Ages and their respective terrains in as much detail as is provided by the Silmarillion.So, all in all, an interesting, quality read even though there are still obvious gaps and holes in the narrative that a sharp reader can identify. Where is Calas Galadorn, for instance? In The Fellowship of the Ring, one looks north from Calas Galadorn to find Dol Goldur. In this atlas, one has to look much more to the northeast. And at the end of the day, you are left with interesting maps but even more questions about Tolkien's geography... ;-)

A very good compendium on the world of JRR Tolkien and gives more insight into his world and stories. It makes it much more real with the times and distances

very good book

The media could not be loaded. He leído de otros autores qué se quieren colgar de la fama o escribir sus teorías de temas inventando o sobre interpretando las cosas (ejem: la filosofía de los hobbits, los simpsons y la filosofía, guía para leer la tierra media etc). En cambio Fonstad hace una construcción geográfica con la información expresamente tomada de lo publicado por Tolkien. No le pone de su cuchara, pero siempre con sentido riguroso el su profesión qué es la cartografía.Es muy entretenido leer la descripción de los mapas, hay mapas para prácticamente todos los eventos qué suceden en el señor de los anillos, hobbit y el silmarillion. Hubiera sido mucho más fácil leer el silmarillion por primera vez con este atlas.Los mapas son hechos a mano y se nota el trabajo, mucho mejor para los mapas del silmarillon qué el del señor de los anillos. Se sienten un poco más simples, tal vez por que estos no representaba un reto tan grande.Obviamente estamos leyendo de situaciones y lugares de ficción pero sin duda un ojo académico al construir y en este caso cartografíar los mapas, enriquece enormemente la calidad del trabajo. Se puede observar en la consistencia de las distancias y elementos cartograficos durante todo el libro.Es una lástima que no trabajen con el sistema internacional de medidas y usen millas y pies pero bueno son costumbres qué van cambiando para bien.

Para aqueles que leem as edições dos livros de Tolkien em Inglês, é um Atlas indispensável. As traduções do Atlas para o português tornam sua consulta muito difícil, sem querer diminuir o seu mérito.

A great resource, especially if your Tolkien interest extends beyond just the Hobbit and LOTR. Covers all three ages and goes into great detail of key locations and journeys. The only small gripe is in the printing - some map detail is lost in the binding crease when it extends over two pages. Highly recommended.

The contents of the book are amazing.Sadly the book arrived with glue residue on the cover as well as a damage cover.