The Two Towers is the second volume of J.R.R. Tolkien's epic saga, The Lord of the Rings.
The Fellowship has been forced to split up. Frodo and Sam must continue alone towards Mount Doom, where the One Ring must be destroyed. Meanwhile, at Helm’s Deep and Isengard, the first great battles of the War of the Ring take shape.
In this splendid, unabridged audio production of Tolkien’s great work, all the inhabitants of a magical universe - hobbits, elves, and wizards - spring to life. Rob Inglis’ narration has been praised as a masterpiece of audio.
©1983 Christopher R. Tolkien, Michael H.R.Tolkien, John F.R. Tolkien, and Priscilla M.A.R.Tolkien (P)1990 Recorded Books
"Thank you, Audible! Tolkien at long last!"
Rob Inglis is an excellent narrator for these books. He performs every song with loving attention, which really elevates this performance compared with reading the words on the printed page. When I read these works, I end up skipping much of the lyrics because they are so lengthy. To hear them performed is a real treat.
I really appreciate that Audible has finally made these available.
"One Book to Rule Them all"
I think the second book is the best. Thanks Audible for making it available, it has taken over my commute.
"Thank goodness - finally"
One of my favourite books read the way I'd like to be able to. Rob Inglis does this story the justice it deserves. This book is the second of three, you'll want the other two.
"One of my favorite books"
The Tolkien series is one of my favorite reads and to narrow down any one piece would be impossible to do. I am delighted to finally find these books performed in an unabridged manner on Audible! Rob Inglis did a wonderful job on the narration, and I found myself once again transported to the wilds of Middle Earth on a great exploration.
The Hobbit, the Fellowship of the Ring, and The Return of the King are all pieces of the same saga.
At first I was doubtful that Rob would be able to overcome the characters that Peter Jackson created in his film renditions of the Lord of the Rings series. I was very pleasantly surprised, however, as I became fascinated with Rob's portrayal of the characters. His singing voice is lovely and he was able to really pull off the characters.
If you love fantasy, you will not regret selecting this series. It will be an annual listening experience for me!
Herb Teas Trees and British Comedies
"The Two Stories."
The second in the series is called 'The Two Towers', and lots of discussion has gone into exactly which two 'towers' that is meant to refer to. While there are many opposing strongholds, and many more than two towers in middle earth, I cannot help but think the reality is more likely that it refers to the two completely seperate stories which this portion of the series contains.
While we're familliar with the breaking of the fellowship at the end of book one, the second in the series almost behaves as if the two stories that follow are all but unrelated... A good book, and exciting in the first tale, the second goes on to be more of a slog, but such is the reality of the story. I suppose ultimately I was just a bit disappointed that Tolkien so seldom has any congruent experiences between the two.
Having read stories of two seperate narratives before, I had expected more interlacing between the events, but Tolkien choses instead to tell one, and then tell another. A technique I found, at first, difficult because the two stories are referenced not only geographically but also chronologically seperated in place AND Time respectively.
The narrative moves between the stories at dates and times unrelated to each other meaning the 'last time' you heard about the characters elsewhere could also now be a time either in the future or the past of the characters who you are now hearing about.
Thankfully, there is little or no singing in this one, but the bleak nature of the latter parts can make one remaniscent of the stupid singsong of Tom Bombadil... for a minute or two...
The performance of Golem is also well done. Once the ear adjusts to the different interpretation, it can be quite evocative and subtextural. Crazy talk can always be a tricky part to perform well, but it is quite well done in the end.
Take a Long Walk through middle earth, and chose between the paths knowing well that they are destined to reconnect in the end... opposing sides of the two faces of war perhaps... The precarious balance before the axe falls, the two forces rise...
"Absolutely Wonderful!"
A timeless classic brought to life. The narration of Rob Inglis brings unexpected warmth and depth to the tale of the battle for Middle Earth. Each character is brought to life through a unique voice. Highly recommended!
I focus on fiction, sci-fi, fantasy, science, history, politics and read a lot. I try to review everything I read.
"Great Story, Good Narration"
The Lord of the Rings is a true classic and if you have not experienced it (or only experienced the movies) this recording should be a wonderful experience. This recording includes the prefix and appendices (both at the end of the recording), which might be dry for some, but is great for LOTR geeks. Having an unabridged Lord of the Rings on Audible has been long awaited and is terrific. If I had not been exposed to the NPR/Minds-Eye production of this series I would have been pretty happy with the narration. The Minds-Eye production was abridged but was a really excellent performance. Rob Ingles’ narration is very good, and he does particularly well presenting the difficult epic poetry sections, but I did not much like his singing and overall a simple narration can’t compete with the Minds-Eye performances. Nevertheless I was very happy to have this excellent unabridged version. I started out a little unhappy with the narration, but as time went on I just became quite immersed in the story.
"Classic!"
I was young when I first read these books so I was excited when I found out they were finally available on Audible.com in the US. If you haven't read them in a while, LISTEN! If you've never read them, LISTEN!
"Classic tale, first-rate performance"
I had not read this trilogy since, well a very long time ago. I have thoroughly enjoyed reading them again. This is truly a classic tale and Rob Inglis is perfect! He is exceptionally easy to listen to, and the characters really came to life with his wonderful voices and magnificant reading style! This series is a treasure in every respect, and well worth a credit if this is a genre you enjoy.
"as always wonderful"
Continuing the saga, this is well read. I really enjoy listening to Tolkien. His language develops into a style fitting of stories of old, and this really comes through in the recorded form.