[BradyLS]

Whether The Silmarillion is good or bad history, one must keep in mind that it is not Tolkien's Silmarillion.

It was published posthumously by his son, Christopher, who had the unenviable task of trying to weave a coherent narrative out of the most publishable and less inconsistent texts. That's not to knock what Christopher Tolkien did. I doubt anyone else could have done half as well in compiling the uncompilable.

And this means what, exactly, for the upcoming discussions?

[The Iguana]

And this means what, exactly, for the upcoming discussions?

Well...

1. Frankly I was trying to dissuade him - and anyone else - from making The Silmarillion his introduction to Tolkien.

I think it's a poor place to start, really. And I would hate to see anyone so put off by it that they give up on Tolkien altogether.

2. Many people are not aware that The Silmarillion as published is not the one that was floating in Tolkien's head. I think it best to ground one's self in what Tolkine really meant to put out there before delving into the mountains of literature that Tolkien left piled up in his house when he died.

Chris Tolkien has done a wonderful job bringing it all to the public and making some kind of sense of it all.

Due to its nature, however, it's not as accessible at TH or LOTR.