John Ronald Reuel Tolkien
A brief introduction to the creator of Middle-earth. Contributed by Harper Collins.

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was born on January 3, 1892, at Bloemfontein, Orange Free State Provence, South Africa. At the age of four, he and his brother Hilary were taken back to England by their mother. After his father's death, the family moved to Sarehole, on the south-eastern edge of Birmingham. Tolkien spent a happy childhood in the countryside, and his sensibility to the rural landscape can clearly be seen in his writing and his pictures.

His mother died when he was only twelve, and both he and his brother were made wards of the local priest, and sent to King Edward's School, Birmingham, where Tolkien shone in his classical work. After completing a First in English Language and Literature at Oxford, Tolkien married Edith Bratt. He also was commissioned in the Lancashire Fusiliers, and fought in the battle of the Somme. After the war, he obtained a post on the "New English Dictionary," and began to write the mythological and legendary cycle that he originally called "The Book of Lost Tales," but that eventually became known as "The Silmarillion."

In 1920 Tolkien was appointed Reader in English Language at the University of Leeds, which was the beginning of a distinguished academic career culminating with his election as Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford. Meanwhile Tolkien wrote for his children, and told them the story of "The Hobbit." It was his publisher, Stanley Unwin, who asked for a sequel to "The Hobbit," and gradually Tolkien wrote "The Lord of the Rings," a huge story that took twelve years to complete, and which was not published until Tolkien was approaching retirement. After retirement, Tolkien and his wife lived near Oxford, but then moved to Bournemouth. Tolkien returned to Oxford after his wife's death in 1971.

J.R.R. Tolkien passed away on September 2, 1973, leaving "The Silmarillion" to be edited for publication by his son, Christopher.

Related Books

Many people spend a great deal of time studying Tolkien's Middle-earth, but few sit down to learn more about Tolkien himself. These two books offer the best insight into the man behind Middle-earth. I think learning the man, will help you discover even more about his incredible body of work.

Related Books About J.R.R. Tolkien
• "J.R.R Tolkien: A Biography" By Humphrey Carpenter. The authorized biography of the creator of Middle-earth. In the decades since his death in September 1973, millions have read "The Hobbit," "The Lord of the Rings," and "The Silmarillion," and become fascinated about the very private man behind the books. · Buy Now @ Amazon.com · Buy Now @ Amazon.co.uk	• "The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien" By Humphrey Carpenter. J.R.R. Tolkien, cherished author of "The Hobbit," "The Lord of the Rings," and "The Silmarillion," was one of the twentieth century's most prolific letter writers. Over the years he wrote a mass of letters -- to his publishers, his family, to friends, and to fans of his books -- which record the history and composition of his works and his reaction to subsequent events. · Buy Now @ Amazon.com · Buy Now @ Amazon.co.uk

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