Detroit Free Press. He shows how the deaths of two comrades compelled Tolkien to pursue the dream they had shared, and argues that the young man used his imagination not to escape from reality—but to transform the cataclysm of his generation. All the while, he was hard at work on an original mythology that would become the basis of his literary masterpiece, the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
While tolkien’s contemporaries surrendered to disillusionment, he kept enchantment alive, reshaping an entire literary tradition into a form that resonates to this day. How the first world war influenced the author of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy: “Very much the best book about J. R. R. Tolkien that has yet been written.
A. Wilson as europe plunged into World War I, J. Garth’s fine study should have a major audience among serious students of Tolkien.
J.R.R. Tolkien: A Biography
S. In the decades since his death in september 1973, the lord of the rings, millions have read THE HOBBIT, and THE SILMARILLION and become fascinated about the very private man behind the books. Born in south africa in january 1892, John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was orphaned in childhood and brought up in near-poverty.
Lewis and the other writers known as The Inklings. Then suddenly his life changed dramatically. From these sources he follows the long and painful process of creation that produced THE LORD OF THE RINGS and THE SILMARILLION and offers a wealth of information about the life and work of the twentieth century's most cherished author.
The authorized biography of the creator of Middle-earth. Humphrey carpenter was given unrestricted access to all Tolkien's papers, and interviewed his friends and family. One day while grading essay papers he found himself writing 'In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit' -- and worldwide renown awaited him.
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The Road to Middle-Earth: How J. R. R. Tolkien Created a New Mythology
Now, readers can go deeper into this enchanting lore with a revised edition of Tom Shippey's classic exploration of Middle-earth. At once a celebration of a beloved classic and a revealing literary study, The Road to Middle-earth is required reading for fantasy fans and English literature scholars alike.
From meditations on tolkien's inspiration to analyses of the influences of his professional background, The Road to Middle-earth takes a closer look at the novels that made Tolkien a legend. Uniquely qualified to explicate tolkien’s worldview, ” this journey into the roots of the Lord of the Rings is a classic in its own right Salon.
Com. From beloved epic fantasy classic to record-breaking cinematic success, J. R. R.
The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien
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J.R.R. Tolkien: Author of the Century
In a clear and accessible style, Shippey offers a new approach to Tolkien, to fantasy, and to the importance of language in literature. Tolkien: author of the century is “a triumph” chicago Sun-Times that not only gives readers a deeper understanding of Tolkien and his work, but also serves as an entertaining introduction to some of the most influential novels ever written.
The definitive tolkien companion—an indispensable guide to The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and more, from the author of The Road to Middle-earth. Shippey’s commentary is the best so far in elucidating Tolkien’s lovely myth, ” wrote Harper’s Magazine. Elsewhere, he examines the hobbit’s counterintuitive relationship to the heroic world of Middle-earth; demonstrates the significance of The Silmarillion to Tolkien’s canon; and takes an illuminating look at lesser-known works in connection with Tolkien’s life.
J. R. R.
The History of the Hobbit: Mr Baggins and Return to Bag-End
For the first time in one volume, The History of the Hobbit presents the complete unpublished text of the original manuscript of J. R. R. Tolkien’s the hobbit, accompanied by John Rateliff's lively and informative account of how the book came to be written and published. Like its successor, the lord of the rings, it is a story that "grew in the telling", and many characters and story threads in the published text are completely different from what Tolkien first wrote to read aloud to his young sons as part of their "fireside reads".
As well as reproducing the original version of one of literature's most famous stories, both on its own merits and as the foundation for The Lord of the Rings, this new book includes many little-known illustrations and previously unpublished maps for The Hobbit by Tolkien himself. As well as recording the numerous changes made to the story both before and after publication, it examines – chapter-by-chapter – why those changes were made and how they reflect Tolkien's ever-growing concept of Middle-earth.
The hobbit was first published on 21 September 1937.
A Hobbit, a Wardrobe, and a Great War: How J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis Rediscovered Faith, Friendship, and Heroism in the Cataclysm of 1914-18
Lewis. Had there been no great war, there would have been no Hobbit, no Narnia, no Lord of the Rings, and perhaps no conversion to Christianity by C. Lewis. The first world war laid waste to a continent and brought about the end of innocence—and the end of faith. R. Lewis found that the Great War deepened their spiritual quest.
Tolkien and C. R. R. Giving an unabashedly christian vision of hope in a world tortured by doubt and disillusionment, the two writers created works that changed the course of literature and shaped the faith of millions. Tolkien and C. S. This is the first book to explore their work in light of the spiritual crisis sparked by the conflict.
Stonehenge: A New Understanding: Solving the Mysteries of the Greatest Stone Age Monument
But the stonehenge Riverside Project set out to change that. Immensely rewarding” Publishers Weekly. Stonehenge stands as an enduring link to our prehistoric ancestors, yet the secrets it has guarded for thousands of years have long eluded us. A hugely ambitious, seven-year dig by today’s top archaeologists, the project unearthed a wealth of fresh evidence that had gone untouched since prehistory.
In stonehenge: a new understanding, archaeologist and project director mike Parker Pearson uses that evidence to present a paradigm-shifting theory of the true significance that Stonehenge held for its builders—and mines his field notes to give you an insider’s view of the dirt, drama, and thrilling discoveries of this history-changing archaeological dig.
This is brilliantly written scholarship. The book combines old ideas about the circle with the unexpected revelations of today. It is a triumph. Aubrey burl, author of A Brief History of Stonehenge.
The Phantom Atlas: The Greatest Myths, Lies and Blunders on Maps
Discover the mysteries within ancient maps — Where exploration and mythology meetThis richly illustrated book collects and explores the colorful histories behind a striking range of real antique maps that are all in some way a little too good to be true. Mysteries within ancient maps: The Phantom Atlas is a guide to the world not as it is, but as it was imagined to be.
He lives in a dusty heap of old maps and books in London investigating the places where exploration and mythology meet. Cartography’s greatest phantoms: the phantom Atlas uses gorgeous atlas images as springboards for tales of deranged buccaneers, seafaring monks, swindlers, heroes, and other amazing stories behind cartography's greatest phantoms.
If you are a fan of this popular genre and a reader of books such as Prisoners of Geography, Atlas Obscura, or Thing Explainer, What If, Book of General Ignorance, Atlas of Ancient Rome, your will love The Phantom Atlas.
The Cave and the Light: Plato Versus Aristotle, and the Struggle for the Soul of Western Civilization
Praise for the cave and the Light “A sweeping intellectual history viewed through two ancient Greek lenses. Born to a family of greek physicians, Aristotle had learned early on the value of observation and hands-on experience. Rather than rely on pure contemplation, he insisted that the truest path to knowledge is through empirical discovery and exploration of the world around us.
The definitive sequel to new york times bestseller how the scots invented the Modern World is a magisterial account of how the two greatest thinkers of the ancient world, Plato and Aristotle, laid the foundations of Western culture—and how their rivalry shaped the essential features of our culture down to the present day.
Breezy and enthusiastic but resting on a sturdy rock of research. Kirkus reviews “examining mathematics, politics, and architecture, theology, the book demonstrates the continuing relevance of the ancient world. Publishers weekly “a fabulous way to understand over two millennia of history, all in one book.
Library journal “Entertaining and often illuminating. The wall Street Journal.
Defending Middle-Earth: Tolkien: Myth and Modernity
A scholar explores the ideas within The Lord of the Rings and the world created by J. R. R. This thoughtful book focuses on three main aspects of tolkien’s fiction: the social and political structure of Middle-earth and how the varying cultures within it find common cause in the face of a shared threat; the nature and ecology of Middle-earth and how what we think of as the natural world joins the battle against mindless, mechanized destruction; and the spirituality and ethics of Middle-earth—for which the author provides a particularly insightful and resonant examination.
Tolkien: “a most valuable and timely book” Ursula K. Le guin, los angeles Times–bestselling author of Changing Planes.