Life of Lydia

Dear readers, Our family has recently finished reading The Two Towers. In this blog post, each member of the family has had the opportunity to answer my interview questions. Each person has answered the questions without knowing the others answers. Enjoy reading!

Caution: this post contains spoilers.

Who was your favorite character? Why? 

Amy: My favorite character is Sam, because he is a gardener and he is a devoted friend.

Lydia: I liked Legolas. I find his elfish qualities quite charming. He can see far away, doesn’t need to sleep, is light footed etc. 

I also liked Merry and Pippin for the opposite reason. They are concerned with rather trivial things, such as eating, smoking, and small talk, which also makes them charming.  

Luke: Gollum. He is creepy and funny and I like his voice. He also has good character development and reminds me of my cat, because he is always kind of around, but a lot of times you don’t know exactly where he is.

Which character(s) did you most relate to? Why? 

Amy: I most related to Aragorn, when King Theoden’s security agents tried (and succeeded) to take away his sword. 

Lydia: I relate to Gollum, not because I’m evil, but because I will sometimes argue with myself and be extremely indecisive. 

I can also relate to Merry and Pippin because I’m really good at hanging out and not doing anything exciting. (Just like M. & P. did during the Ent Moot and in Isengard.)

Luke: Faramir . Funnily enough, I also happen to be the leader of a cult of forest men venturing into dangerous lands.

Which character(s) did you least relate to? Why?

Amy: I least relate to Legolas. I don’t have amazing vision, and I need lots of sleep. However, I am a non-smoker like him. 

Lydia: Legolas because I’ve had a history of sore feet, low energy levels, and poor vision. Also Aragorn, because I’m kind of a wimp and lack self confidence. 

Luke: Aragon. He is way cooler than me and has battle experience. I also do not have women falling for me. 

What were your favorite scenes? 

Amy: Hmm, definitely the chapter with airport security and then the transformation of King Theoden!

I also loved the moment when Sam decided to carry on with the ring, even though it was the wrong decision. 

Lydia: When Wormtounge spit on the ground and it had to be wiped up.

When Merry, Pippin, Aragorn, and Gmli (But not Legolas), all sat around and smoked in the ruins of Isengard.

When Sam thought Frodo had died.

Luke: I kinda liked the parts where Gollum was having internal arguments with himself. The part at the end with shelob was good as well. I liked how Sam was sneaking around and the orcs didn’t know who he was. Oh, and the airport security scene. 

Did you like book 3 or book 4 better?

Amy: Even though Sam is my favorite character and he is only in book four, I didn’t love book four. The swamp, the rugged terrain, the spider. I like book three better, especially since Gandalf rejoined the group. (Christ figure!! Revelation 6:2)

Lydia: Book 4. I found Frodo very inspiring in this book. He knew journeying to Mordor would be hard, but he knew he had to push through and do it. He inspired me to try to take on this attitude when I was having a rough time getting my blood drawn.

Luke: Book 4. The second half felt more important since they were actually working towards getting the ring to mount doom. (And it had gollum!)

What surprised you the most?

Amy: There are two “levels” of trees: the Ents and the Huorns. 

Lydia: That Frodo “died”.

Luke: How incredibly long John Ronald Reuel can take to say something that does not affect the plot much. I didn’t know it was possible for a book to move that slow.

Any final remarks? 

Even though I am understanding this series better than ever, I still feel that I’ve barely dipped my big toe into all things Tolkien. 

Lydia: I wish there was an annotated Two Towers! 

Luke: Gollum is my spirit animal!