The Silmarillion

By: J. R. R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien - editor

Narrated by: Andy Serkis

The forerunner to The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion tells the earlier history of Middle-earth, recounting the events of the First and Second Ages, and introducing some of the key characters, such as Galadriel, Elrond, Elendil and the Dark Lord, Sauron.

The tales of The Silmarillion are set in an age when Morgoth, the first Dark Lord, dwelt in Middle-earth, and the High Elves made war upon him for the recovery of the Silmarils, the jewels containing the pure light of Valinor.

Included on the recording are several shorter works. The Ainulindalë is a myth of the Creation and in the Valaquenta the nature and powers of each of the gods is described. The Akallabêth recounts the downfall of the great island kingdom of Númenor at the end of the Second Age, and Of the Rings of Power tells of the great events at the end of the Third Age, as narrated in The Lord of the Rings.

This brand-new unabridged recording is read by the acclaimed actor, director and author, Andy Serkis.

©1977 The Tolkien Estate Limited and C.R. Tolkien

Critic reviews

‘How, given little over half a century of work, did one man become the creative equivalent of a people?’
The Guardian

‘Demanding to be compared with English mythologies… at times rises to the greatness of true myth’
Financial Times

‘A creation of singular beauty… magnificent in its best moments’
Washington Post

‘A grim, tragic, brooding and beautiful book, shot through with heroism and hope… its power is almost that of mysticism’
Toronto Globe & Mail

TIPS when reading this book:

This is undoubtedly an incredible book, and is a book I would say is a must read if you’re a fan of Tolkien. However, I do have some tips for you if you’re listening rather then reading. The actually hard copy book comes with a map so it’s fun to be reading and flip back and forth between the pages and map to see where he’s describing. Obviously that’s more difficult if you’re listening to it. I would recommend pulling a map of Beleriand and when he starts describing a place to go look for it. It makes the read more enjoyable and you’re not over whelmed by these random places. My other tip is if you’re wondering who someone is, then look them up online. The further the story goes it’s cool to see who’s connected to who. Lastly, the third age comes and it’s cool to see who Elrond comes from and how old Galadriel really is. It’s freaking awesome! By Andy’s performance was was great as usual! Hope this helps

Andy Serkis doesn't seem to understand Tolkien's Elves

The Silmirillion is one of my favorite stories. The formation of Middle Earth, the early tales of Middle Earth and the origins of Tolkien's world. The story is great and very enjoyable.

The problem with this version is Andy Serkis. He is an excellent reader and his version of LOTR is really great. But, Serkis seems to not understand that Tolkien's Elves are fair in all regards. Serkis reads them like they are Orcs, gruff and grumbling voices. The majority of this story is focused on the Elves of Middle Earth.

For this reason, I cannot recommend this version of the Silmirillion.

Masterpiece, an Oscar Worthy Performance

I have been through 50+ audiobooks at this point and this is far and away the best, by a wide margin.

Andy Serkis lends himself to every single character, perspective, and simply master the poetic nature of the story better than anyone before. This is a man all time performance of an otherwise difficult or inaccessible piece of fantasy told at the level and in the tone of pure myth. Non-fantasy fans will enjoy this as much as avid readers of the genre for the performance alone.

The Silmarillion is a history of middle earth and it’s heavenly origin that was shaped and reshaped over the course of Tolkien’s own life, and put into digestible form by his son. It is not told explicitly as a linear story following several major characters, but over the course different eras, major characters rise and fall, without failing in continuity or prose. It gives the universe that Tolkien imagined a sense of depth and expansiveness still imitated but never accomplished by modern fantasy authors.

Treat yo’self to this reading by Andy Serkis immediately.

Amazing

Andy Serkis is an amazing narrator.
Hundreds of characters in this massive
Middle Earth pre-history each are given a unique voice by Andy’s genius as an actor and narrator. The Silmarillion isn’t written like Tolkien’s Hobbit and Lord of the Rings and can be quite dry at times.
Andy brings the Middle Earth mythology to life and makes it fascinating to listen to.

Wonderful

Wonderful.. Little on the long boring side at times, but has good things too. I found it educational in that it fills in missing parts of the hobbit and lord of the rings. And of course, as always, Andy Serkis does a great job at narrating it!!!