I compiled this list from my last three annual read-throughs of The Lord of the Rings. (This post has been stewing in my mind for a few years!) Screen captures (which I spent way too much time searching through and choosing…) are from Movie-Screencaps.com; I took all other photos. Page numbers refer to the single volume 50th anniversary edition of The Lord of the Rings.
A Long Expected Party (Ch. 1, Book 1)
When Mr. Bilbo Baggins of Bag End announced that he would shortly be celebrating his eleventy-first birthday with a party of special magnificence, there was much talk and excitement in Hobbiton.
Pg. 21
Well, what a start, a return to the world of hobbits, but a world that’s grown so much larger since The Hobbit. This is a chapter to remember as the hobbits journey further and further away from home, and the tale moves towards darkness. (I visited New Zealand in 2016 to engage in some Middle-earth site-seeing. You can see more photos and read about my visit to Hobbiton here.)
The Council of Elrond (Ch. 2, Book 2)
No one answered. The noon-bell rang. Still no one spoke. Frodo glanced at all the faces, but they were not turned to him. All the Council sat with downcast eyes, as if in deep thought. A great dread fell on him, as if he was awaiting the pronouncement of some doom he had long foreseen and vainly hoped might after all never be spoken. An overwhelming longing to rest and remain at peace by Bilbo’s side in Rivendell filled his heart. At last with an effort he spoke, and wondered to hear his own words, as if some other will was using his small voice.
‘I will take the Ring,’ he said, ‘though I do not know the way.’
Pg. 270
Tolkien deftly demonstrates his skill as a storyteller in this chapter. He weaves together tales and events from across Middle-Earth to reveal the scope and impact of Sauron’s building power. (You can see some photos and read about my visit to places around Wellington [including Rivendell, the Old Forest and WETA Workshop] here.)
King of the Golden Hall (Ch. 6, Book 3)
Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas approach Edoras 
Theoden wakes up 
Reading atop Mt. Sunday
Arise now, arise, Riders of Theoden!
Dire deeds awake, dark is it eastward.
Let horse be bridled, horn be sounded!
Forth Eorlingas!
Pg. 517
I must use three images for this chapter that I have a particular affinity for, though I can’t say why it strikes me so much more than other chapters. Something about the atmosphere, the setting, and the period of history invoked… I can admit that the film has fueled this affinity in part. Rarely have I felt so transported as I did when I sat atop Mt. Sunday (home of Edoras in the films) and read this chapter while listening to “The King of the Golden Hall”. I felt as though I was visiting a historical landmark. You can see more photos and read about my visit to Mt. Sunday here.
The Road to Isengard (Ch. 8, Book 3)
‘Welcome, my lords, to Isengard!’ he said. ‘We are the doorwardens. Meriadoc, son of Saradoc is my name; and my companion, who, alas! is overcome with weariness’ – here he gave the other a dig with his foot – ‘is Peregrin, son of Paladin, of the house of Took. Far in the North is our home. The Lord Saruman is within; but at the moment he is closeted with one Wormtongue, or doubtless he would be here to welcome such honourable guests.’
Pg. 557
This chapter’s a favourite because of the reunion of Merry and Pippin with Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas, as well as because of the journey made at the start of the chapter from Helm’s Deep, past the strange wood.
The Taming of Smeagol (Ch. 1, Book 4)
‘Very well,’ [Frodo] answered aloud, lowering his sword. ‘But still I am afraid. And yet, as you see, I will not touch the creature. For now that I see him, I do pity him.’
Pg. 615
I picked this chapter primarily because wow, what a title. But as hindsight tells us, the events of this chapter are critically important to how the story will play out. I can only imagine what it would be like to read this chapter not knowing what happens next. I don’t think I would have predicted Gollum becoming involved with Frodo and Sam. Can the hobbits trust Gollum at all? How will he affect their quest?
Of Herbs and Stewed Rabbit and Window to the West (Ch. 4 and 5, Book 4)
Sam cooks rabbit, much to Gollum’s disdain 
Faramir appears!
All about them were small woods of resinous trees, fir and cedar and cypress, and other kinds unknown in the Shire, with wide glades among them; and everywhere there was a wealth of sweet-smelling herbs and shrubs. The long journey from Rivendell had brought them far south of their own land, but not until now in this more sheltered region had the hobbits felt the change of clime. Here Spring was already busy about them: fronds pierced moss and mould, larches were green-fingered, small flowers were opening in the turf, birds were singing. Ithilien, the garden of Gondor now desolate kept still a disheveled dryad loveliness.
Pg. 650
Some chapters blend together in my mind, so I’ve stuck them together in this list. These two chapters I’ve selected because they contain:
- Small but iconic moments, like the cooking of the titular rabbit and an oliphaunt sighting
- Frodo and Sam’s first interaction with Men from Gondor
- Introduction of Faramir 😍
- Ithilien – that calming place despite everything that’s unfolding. I enjoy reading about its refreshing scents of spring
You can see some photos and read about my visit to places around Queenstown (including Ithilien, Lothlorien, and the Dead Marshes) here.
The Stairs of Cirith Ungol (Ch. 8, Book 4)
Still, I wonder if we shall ever be put into songs or tales. We’re in one, of course; but I mean: put into words, you know, told by the fireside, or read out of a great big book with red and black letters, years and years afterwards. And people will say: “Let’s hear about Frodo and the Ring!” And they’ll say: “Yes, that’s one of my favourite stories. Frodo was very brave, wasn’t he, dad?” “Yes, my boy, the famousest of the hobbits, and that’s saying a lot”.
Pg. 712
A lot happens in this chapter, running the gamut from dark to light moments. Frodo’s struggle and Gollum’s sneakiness intensify as they enter bleak lands, but the exchange between Frodo and Sam about storytelling always warms my heart.
Minas Tirith (Ch. 1, Book 5)
Then Pippin cried aloud, for the Tower of Ecthelion, standing high within the topmost wall, shone out against the sky, glimmering like a spike of pearl and silver, tall and fair and shapely, and its pinnacle glittered as if it were wrought of crystals; and white banners broke and fluttered from the battlements in the morning breeze, and high and far he heard a clear ringing of silver trumpets.
Pg. 751
This city which has loomed in the background of the story finally comes to prominence, through the eyes of one young hobbit. The introduction of Denethor and Pippin’s interactions Beregond and Bergil move the story further into the realm of classic epic.
The Muster of Rohan and The Siege of Gondor (Ch. 3 to 4, Book 5)
The muster of Rohan 
The siege of Gondor
And so King Théoden departed from his own realm, and mile by mile the long road wound away, and the beacon hills marched past: Calenhad, Min-Rimmon, Erelas, Nardol. But their fires were quenched. All the lands were grey and still; and ever the shadow deepened before them, and hope waned in every heart.
Pg. 804
Tension and drama builds in these two chapters, fueling an anxious fear for what’s about to unfold. This is what has been boiling all along in the background of the story. Pippin and Merry have traveled a great distance; they find themselves in situations they’d never imagined.
The Steward and the King (Ch. 5, Book 6)
Then the heart of Éowyn changed, or else at last she understood it. And suddenly her winter passed, and the sun shone on her.
‘I stand in Minas Anor, the Tower of the Sun,’ she said; ‘and behold! the Shadow has departed! I will be a shieldmaiden no longer, nor vie with the great Riders, nor take joy only in the songs of slaying. I will be a healer, and love all things that grow and are not barren.’
Pg. 964
I have complex feelings about Eowyn, but: here her sad and tumultuous story comes near a hopeful conclusion. Faramir, now the Steward of Gondor, also shines in this chapter (as does Ioreth, who I consider an underappreciated anomaly).
Having finished this list, I now find myself thinking “But what about this or or other chapter?” The Lord of the Rings is a tale best considered as a whole. This list is comprised of chapters that made me think “Oh, I love this chapter!” while reading the book. But it is not a static list, and I will be curious to see which chapters I consider favourites ten years from now.
- What are your favourite chapters in The Lord of the Rings?
- What are your favourite chapters in another weighty work of fantasy?
- Do you prefer to read chunksters, series, or standalones when it comes to fantasy?
Your favorite chapters are also my favorite chapters. I feel like A Long-expected Party is such a great opening chapter. I also love how you noted that The Lord of the Rings is best considered as a whole. So many people call it a trilogy which annoys me to no end.
Thank-you! I think it’s too easy for people not to realize that The Lord of the Rings is one book, given that it’s so commonly sold as three separate books. But I don’t think it’s like other trilogies, which you can sometimes enjoy even if you only read the first book. (I mean, someone might enjoy reading only The FotR but they’d be completely missing out if they don’t read all three volumes!)
I like the chapters you’ve chosen 🙂 It’s years since I’ve read Lord of the Rings, but I remember liking the bit where Pippin’s in Gondor, anything with Faramir – and Boromir’s last stand although it’s so sad. The end of the second book too, where Frodo’s been taken by the Orcs, and then Sam finds out he’s alive but it’s too late! Made me go straight onto the next one.
Thank-you! Ooh, that last chapter in The Two Towers gets me too. Can you imagine if you were reading the books when they were first published and you had to wait a year for The RotK?! How stressful, haha.
This is the second Tolkien discussion I’ve seen linked up to the challenge this month and the second time I have to cringe and duck with guilt when I tell you that I’ve never read him. I tried once, long ago, but I just couldn’t get into the book. I’m planning to try again via audiobook, though. I think that might be the way to go for me.
I am not an audiobook person, but I would also like to try Tolkien via audio. His work seems well-suited to be read aloud. His three most popular books (The Hobbit, The LotR, The Silmarillion) are quite diverse in terms of narrative. Hopefully one works for you via audiobook 🙂