Letters of J R R Tolkien: A Selection - Softcover

Carpenter, Humphrey

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0261102656 ISBN 13: 9780261102651

Publisher: Firebird Distributing, 2005

Synopsis

A comprehensive collection of letters spanning the adult life (1914-1973) of one of the world’s most famous storytellers.

‘It is not possible even at great length to "pot" The Lord of the Rings in a paragraph or two. It was begun in 1936, and every part has been written many times… the labour has been colossal; and it must stand or fall, practically as it is.’

J.R.R. Tolkien was one of the most prolific letter writers of this century. Over the years he wrote to his publishers, his family, to friends (including C.S. Lewis, W.H. Auden and Naomi Mitchison) and to fans of his books. The letters present a fascinating and highly detailed portrait of the man in many of his aspects: as storyteller, scholar, Catholic, parent and observer of the world around him. They also shed much light on his creative genius and grand design for the creation of a whole new world – Middle-earth.
This collection will appeal not only to the legions of Tolkien fans, but will entertain anyone who appreciates the art of letter-writing, of which Tolkien was a master.

‘I am nearly always written to as Tolkein (not by you): I do not know why, since it is pronounced by me always -keen.’

J.R.R. Tolkien's book 'The Fall of Númenor' was a Sunday Times bestseller w/c 2022-11-07.

About this title

About the Authors

J.R.R.Tolkien (1892-1973) was a distinguished academic, though he is best known for writing The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion, plus other stories and essays. His books have been translated into over 80 languages and have sold many millions of copies worldwide.

Humphrey Carpenter was born in Oxford in 1946 and has spent most of his life in that city. He read English Language and Literature at Keble College, Oxford, and met Professor J.R.R. Tolkien on a number of occasions. For some years he worked for the BBC as a radio producer and broadcaster and has won acclaim as a top biographer, including the recent and controversial biography of Robert Runcie.

Christopher Tolkien, born on 24 November 1924, was the third son of J.R.R. Tolkien. As his father’s literary executor, he devoted over forty years to the publication of his father’s unpublished works, from The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales to Beren and Lúthien and The Fall of Gondolin, and within 'The History of Middle-earth' series, and was awarded the Bodley Medal for his services to literature in 2016. He died in January 2020 at the age of 95.

Edition details

• Publisher: Firebird Distributing
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 0261102656
• ISBN 13: 9780261102651
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 514