You're a bad fan!

[Galadriel55]

...if such a thing as the title suggests can exist at all. But what I am asking has nothing to do with being good or bad or a fan, though it's all related.

Recently I came across the name "Erestor" and had to think for a couple minutes before I recalled who he is. And I thought some. And I discovered that if once I could tell you the names of any person, place, thing, and etc that appear in those books that I have read more than once (LOTR, TH, The Sil, COH. The two HOMEs that I read don't count, since I only skimmed them), now I have to look them up. And once I knew all the genealogies in The Silm by heart, and could give about half a dozen ways a person is related to another person off the top of my head (since cousins and second cousins and cousins x times removed married each other they were all interrelated in multiple ways). Now I can't even trace Hurin's ancestors from memory. I have to look them up.

And I thought some more. When I read Harry Potter I could name you the most minor character. But that was when I was just finished rereading the books and it was fresh in my mind, and I knew I'll forget most of it since that read was a passing fancy. Now I can barely remember the names of the Hogwarts teachers.

When I received the first four books of A Song of Ice and Fire as a gift and read them all in one gulp, I remembered who each character is and where/when s/he is. Then I had to wait a couple months before reading the fifth book. I had to strain my memory to recall who on earth Martin is talking about - and it did not help that the number of characters trippled by that time. But I wasn't bothered really, since ASOIAF is also a passing fancy.

But I thought Tolkien was different! I thought it's not just a passing fancy!

Part of this is because I have not read the books for a couple years. If I reread them I will refresh my memory. But I don't anymore have an urge to read them right now all the time only them. I consult them for information, and once in a blue moon I reread my favourite bits, but rarely and only a few pages at a time.

I think it is because of the Downs that I did not completely forget everything. But I don't go over every single name here that's mentioned in the legendarium that frequently, if at all.

And I feel like I'm a bad fan and should do better.

And then I look at the humungous pile of books that I want to read, and I think I'll leave Tolkien rereads for later.

Does something like that happen to you? Do you ever feel like a bad Tolkien fan?


PS: I wasn't sure which forum to put this under, so apologies if it does not belong here.