THE SILMARILLION is the history of the rebellion of Feanor and his kindred against the gods, their exile from Valinor and return to Middle-earth, and their war, hopeless despite all their heroism, against the great Enemy. Thereafter, the unsullied Light of Valinor lived on only in the Silmarils, but they were seized by Morgoth and set in his crown, which was guarded in the impenetrable fortress of Angband in the north of Middle-earth. Within them was imprisoned the Light of the Two Trees of Valinor before the Trees themselves were destroyed by Morgoth, the first Dark Lord. The three Silmarils were jewels created by Feanor, the most gifted of the Elves. This is the story of the creation of the world and the happenings of the First Age, the ancient drama to which the characters in THE LORD OF THE RINGS look back and in whose events some of them, such as Elrond and Galadriel, took part. Tolkien considered THE SILMARILLION his most important work, and, though it was published last and posthumously, this great collection of tales and legends clearly sets the stage for all his other works. But THE HOBBIT was caught up in what Tolkien called “the branching acquisitive theme” he began in THE SILMARILLION, and eventually THE LORD OF THE RINGS emerged from this as well. Its origins stretch back to a time long before THE HOBBIT.

Tolkien’s imaginative writing, a work that he could not publish in his lifetime because it grew with him. It overwhelms the reader.A number-one New York Times bestseller when it was originally published, THE SILMARILLION is the core of J.R.R. Readers of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings will find in The Silmarillion a cosmology to call their own, medieval romances, fierce fairy tales, and fiercer wars that ring with heraldic fury. The Silmarillion is the history of the rebellion of Fëanor and his kindred against the gods, their exile from Valinor and return to Middle-earth, and their war, hopeless despite all their heroism, against the great Enemy. The three Silmarils were jewels created by Fëanor, most gifted of the Elves. The story of the creation of the world and of the First Age, this is the ancient drama to which the characters in The Lord of the Rings look back and in whose events some of them, such as Elrond and Galadriel, took part. This mythopoetic masterpiece is a must-read before you watch The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power on Prime Video. Tolkien's imaginative writing, a work whose origins stretch back to a time long before The Hobbit.

The silmarillion paperback