Great resource for uber Tolkien fans. Awesome artwork and wonderful descriptions of the places, inhabitants, beasts and fell creatures of Middle Earth, not to mention important events and histories.

An oversized paperback with a purple cloth "binding", this guide is a great companion piece to many of the worlds Tolkien wrote about. Creatures just mentioned here and there have full definitions and oft times an illustration, albeit most all of the illustrations are in black and white and at times are a bit jumbled with so much going on in the scene.

The glossary of beasts is set up alphabetically. I would advise a reader to use this as a companion piece only as a straight read through is a bit dry and without the central theme of a time period or geographic area to link the subjects, I found myself having to constantly remind myself that things were part of many worlds and not jsut the "here and now" of whatever time period and location from the last entry.

All in all it was a good book that sheds light on some fascinating culture, flora and fauna.

A brilliant insight into Tolkien's world, it's mythology, it's history, it's people & it's places, with some amazing artwork. An Encyclopedia Middle-earthicca

Although there are movies to give visuals, and tons of books about Tolkien's beloved fantasy world, the Tolkien Bestiary stands out to me. It is definitely worth reading. I really love the artwork in this book; no, it's not by Alan Lee or John Howe, but the art is beautiful in its own right and doesn't need to be compared to them. I like the way the creatures are drawn; a bit more "medieval" in style, which I think adds to the overall feel of a fantasy world. The illustration of the "Thousand Caves of Menegroth" I find as lovely as any painting of Lothlorien I ever saw. I bought it for that reason (the artwork) alone, but it's worth reading, too. A brief, but descriptive, history of events from the Silmarillion is included, as well as depictions (both in words and drawings) of the creatures in The Lord of the Rings and other Tolkien works. I've read nearly all of Tolkien's works repeatedly, and am very much a Tolkien enthusiast and "Lord of the Rings geek" and I think this book is wonderful!

Must have for a lover of his World and Mythos. Ian Miller does an amazing Cover and many other illustrators including him are found through out.

It gave some info about some of Tolkien's other writings that didn't make it to the silver screen. I'm going to look for some of them next time I go to the library book store.

I feel this book should have had a different title, especially after reading the introduction. It isn't really about the characters, but is a bestiary of the differrent species, races, plants and animals that are mentioned in Tolkein's great novels. Because of the nature of the book, there is a lot of repetition - different species can have many different names and are often listed individually. The stories of these people are also repeated many times, which can get a bit tiring if reading from cover to cover. However, it is a great reference book and the illustrations throughout are fantastic.

I thumbed through this book for almost two years and finally finished. It’s a pretty good reference book for all living things in the Tolkien universe. There were a few times that the author’s facts differed from my own understanding of legendarium minutiae, but all in all it’s a decent illustrated reference book.

An impressive and comprehensive book for all things Tolkien. A wonderful companion for books and films, alike.

I bought this book many years ago, mostly out of idle interest. I played D&D for a year or two before I read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, so my knowledge of fantasy critters was already well rounded.

This book is a great reference guide to all the creatures Tolkien writes bout in his stories, and the different folklore that inspired him. Some of the artwork is a little abstract for my taste, but it doesn't detract from the book.

Even all these years later, I still enjoy flipping through the pages.

If you've ready The Hobbit & LoTR, this will recap all of that, and introduce you to the entire Tolkien world (all Ages and all of the key players). It's written documentary style, but has all the iconic art you normally associate with Tolkien's work (and incidentally used in the movie). Just does a SUPER job of summarizing everything in terms of beasts and beings.

This is actually what got me more determined to continue reading the Silmarillion--just about the hardest read I've ever encountered in English.

Stupendo tomo dedicato alle razze ed alle specie dell'universo tolkieniano. Purtroppo la copia è leggermente rovinata, ma per quanto mi è costata (0.01£) direi che ne è valsa la pena.