Annalisa sends us news from Michael Drout’s corner of the academic world, including the Tolkien Encyclopaedia, and ‘on becoming a Tolkien Scholar.’

“I wrote in previously when Dr. Michael Drout of Wheaton College (“Beowulf and the Critics”) mentioned he was in talks to edit a new Tolkien Encyclopedia. It is now official and on his website he says that “The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia” will be out in 2006, published by Routledge.

“He also mentions that there will be a large article on Tolkien in the November 16th issue of the Boston Globe (he was interviewed).

“And finally, in the October 19th entry of his blog he has some very interesting advice for graduate students interested in becoming Tolkien Scholars. Furthermore, he is also working on publishing the first issue of “Tolkien Studies”, the first academic journal focusing on the works of JRRT.”