Sign-up for Chapters 4 & 6

[ex-lbilover.livejournal.com]

It's that time again! This round of Reading LOTR Aloud will work a little differently. I've been counting up chapter pages, and Chapter 4 is a very short one at only 12 pages, as are most of the following chapters up until 'The Council of Elrond' (which is a whopping 32 pages long and will present a different challenge!) Tolkien clearly wasn't consistent with his chapter lengths, lol!

Because of the shortness of the upcoming chapters, my fellow mods and I have decided it would make more sense to do two chapters at once rather than severely limit the number of participants or give each person only a few paragraphs to read.

When I did a trial run of this project a while ago, the chapter we read was Chapter 5, A Conspiracy Unmasked. For that reason, we will be skipping over Chapter 5 and instead read Chapters 4 & 6. (I will post links to the previous reading of Chapter 5 when we are done with this month's readings.)

I hope this is as clear as mud! :)

Ideally, it would be great to have 20 readers, 10 for each chapter, without duplication if possible so everyone has a chance to participate. In signing up, if you have a preference for either Chapter 4, A Short Cut to Mushrooms, or Chapter 6, The Old Forest, please let me know. I will do my best to accommodate everyone's requests. If you don't have a preference, I'll randomly assign a section to you.

Additionally, if you are one of those brave souls who doesn't mind reading a bit of poetry or singing a song, let me know! I already have the names of a couple of people who are willing to do this, but it's helpful to know in advance who else is game for the challenge! :)

So, sign-ups will run from today until next Monday, January 19th. You will then have a week to practice and the actual readings will begin on January 26th.

I'm really looking forward to another reading!! Yay! :D

ETA: we have a full complement of readers! Thank you all so much!

Comments

[ex-lbilover.livejournal.com]

Okay, here you go! As promised, no Tom Bombadil. I've given you a section from Chapter 4:

They went into the farmer's kitchen, and sat by the wide fire-place. Mrs. Maggot brought out beer in a huge jug, and filled four large mugs. It was a good brew, and Pippin found himself more than compensated for missing the _Golden Perch._ Sam sipped his beer suspiciously. He had a natural mistrust of the inhabitants of other parts of the Shire; and also he was not disposed to be quick friends with anyone who had beaten his master, however long ago.

After a few remarks about the weather and the agricultural prospects (which were no worse than usual), Farmer Maggot put down his mug and looked at them all in turn.

'Now, Mr. Peregrin,' he said, 'where might you be coming from, and where might you be going to? Were you coming to visit' me? For, if so, you had gone past my gate without my seeing you.'

'Well, no,' answered Pippin. 'To tell you the truth, since you have guessed it, we got into the lane from the other end: we had come over your fields. But that was quite by accident. We lost our way in the woods, back near Woodhall, trying to take a short cut to the Ferry.'

'If you were in a hurry, the road would have served you better,' said the farmer. 'But I wasn't worrying about that. You have leave to walk over my land, if you have a mind, Mr. Peregrin. And you, Mr. Baggins – though I daresay you still like mushrooms.' He laughed. 'Ah yes, I recognized the name. I recollect the time when young Frodo Baggins was one of the worst young rascals of Buckland. But it wasn't mushrooms I was thinking of. I had just heard the name Baggins before you turned up. What do you think that funny customer asked me?'

They waited anxiously for him to go on. 'Well,' the farmer continued, approaching his point with slow relish, 'he came riding on a big black horse in at the gate, which happened to be open, and right up to my door. All black he was himself, too, and cloaked and hooded up, as if he did not want to be known. "Now what in the Shire can he want?" I thought to myself. We don't see many of the Big Folk over the border; and anyway I had never heard of any like this black fellow.

' "Good-day to you!" I says, going out to him. "This lane don't lead anywhere, and wherever you may be going, your quickest way will be back to the road." I didn't like the looks of him; and when Grip came out, he took one sniff and let out a yelp as if he had been slung: he put down his tail and bolted off howling. The black fellow sat quite still.

' "I come from yonder," he said, slow and stiff-like, pointing back west, over _my_ fields, if you please. "Have you seen _Baggins?"_ he asked in a queer voice, and bent down towards me. I could not see any face, for his hood fell down so low; and I felt a sort of shiver down my back. But I did not see why he should come riding over my land so bold.

' "Be off!" I said. "There are no Bagginses here. You're in the wrong part of the Shire. You had better go back west to Hobbiton – but you can go by road this time."

' "Baggins has left," he answered in a whisper. "He is coming. He is not far away. I wish to find him. If he passes will you tell me? I will come back with gold."

' "No you won't," I said. "You'll go back where you belong, double quick. I give you one minute before I call all my dogs."

'He gave a sort of hiss. It might have been laughing, and it might not. Then he spurred his great horse right at me, and I jumped out of the way only just in time. I called the dogs, but he swung off, and rode through the gate and up the lane towards the causeway like a bolt of thunder. What do you think of that?'

[kenazfiction.livejournal.com]

I come to you with hat in hand to warn you that I have bronchitis and all the coughing is having a deleterious effect on my voice! Not only do I sound like a frog, but I can't get more than a couple of sentences out without a coughing jag interfering.

This has been going on for ten days-- I had hoped to be over it by now. Would I be banished forever if I asked to sit this round out?

eta: I know I'm cutting it very close to the wire, and I'm so sorry to leave you in the lurch!!

[ex-lbilover.livejournal.com]

Of course you won't be banished!! I'm just so sorry you're sick and you won't be able to participate this time. And not to worry- a sub will be found! Feel better soon.