From Amazon.com Blogs: The Author of the Century, of course, needs no help from anyone (least of all a speck like me). No force on earth could undermine either the juggernaut implacability of his sales, nor the world-historic scale of his influence, nor the truly enormous weight of his achievement. The man puts the ‘epic’ in ‘epic win’. However–or, more accurately, because of that–every few years, certain as tides, someone will write a splenetic screed against the Professor, explaining why he’s the devil/ worst things to happen to fantasy/voice of reaction/zomg most boring writer EVER /etc. The Oedipal Resentment motivating many of these attacks may be trivially obvious, especially in those from within fantastic fiction, but it doesn’t follow that the substance of all the criticism is baseless. There are perfectly reasonable arguments to be had about the impact, nature, scale and success of Tolkien’s work. China Mieville Talks Tolkien
Category: J.R.R. Tolkien
Dr. Amy H. Sturgis writes: I wanted to let you know that my recent public lecture “When Harry Met Faërie: The Tolkien Solution to the Rowling Problem” was recorded and is now available for free download and streaming on the latest episode of StarShipSofa: The Science Fiction Audio Magazine here.
The sword, in whatever form, remains an important feature in cultures around the globe. It remains a symbol of the warrior in an age when many of us never need to fight anybody. Daniel McNicoll has directed a documentary, “Reclaiming The Blade,” that explores the sword and its standing in contemporary society and uses many examples from popular culture to do it. Continue reading “TORn exclusive with ‘Reclaiming The Blade,’ director”
LoriGreenleaf writes: A Tolkien Lecture is being held on Wednesday 13th May at Tremough Campus, Falmouth, Cornwall. Lord of the Rings author JRR Tolkien’s popular literature will be explored at the Tremough Campus, Falmouth,UK as part of a special Tolkien Day on Wednesday May 13th. Continue reading “Tolkien Lecture in Cornwall”
Kristin wrotes: A review of The Legend of Siguard & Gudrún by Tom Shippey has been posted on the Times Online website. Long, analytical, and very insightful and informative, it reveals just how important Tolkien’s poems are as literature. Tom Shippey Reviews Siguard & Gudrún
J.R.R. Tolkien’s newest posthumous work lands in retail today. The body of the non Middle-earth tale is told in two narrative poems told in the form of Norse mythology with a Tolkien lecture and an introduction from his son Christopher. Tolkien was a master of the forms of Old Norse and Old Englsih poetry while for most of us, that brilliance is likely to go unappreciated, there is still treasure to be gleaned in understanding the author and the traditions that led him to construct his own cosmology.
The Guardian in the UK published a faxed interview while while reviews are popping up like mushrooms. Read some here, here, and here.