The Hall of Fire

Find a Grave: J.R.R. Tolkien Thirty-nine years ago on this date passed the former Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford University, a brilliant philologist, and perhaps the greatest writer of fiction of the 20th Century, John Ronald Reuel Tolkien. His works have inspired millions of readers in a most ...

It was announced yesterday morning-- Official Discussion: Riders of Rohan news from Kate Paiz --that the release of the Riders of Rohan expansion has been moved from September 5th to October 15th: Thanks to some great efforts from beta players, we’ve identified issues that we think need to be addres...

Sorry, no, I am not. It appears that plans to attend the banquet were dropped after Voronwë's book wasn't chosen to be a finalist.

I hope you have a wonderful time, though.

A very excellent article, Voronwë. Thank you for sharing it with us. :) He also received his father's papers after the death: 70 boxes of archives, each stuffed with thousands of unpublished pages. Narratives, tales, lectures, poems of 4000 more or less complete lines, letters and more letters, all ...

I had assumed horses were for the Nazgûl, too. :help: But Sauron had lots of other non-Orcish humanoid henchcreatures. Mouth of Sauron was riding a horse, for one. Orcs on horses doesn't seem right to me because I imagine horses would be terrified of them, and of Wargs. But I suppose the Nazgûl are...

eborr wrote:...when I read the books I skip these sections, finding them undifying, yet when I "hear" them, it works so much better...

That's why I recommend reading the poems/songs aloud.

It was a bright sunny day in San Francisco yesterday, if a bit breezy as is not unusual. We enjoyed the exhibit very much. If you haven't viewed the video found at the bottom of the webpage linked above, I recommend you do so. It is a very good representation of the exhibit.

The Cult of Beauty: The Victorian Avant-Garde 1860–1900

I thought that folks in the San Francisco Bay Area might like to know about this exhibit at the Legion of Honor. It runs through June 17th. My wife and I plan to see it this coming Thursday.

The Riders of Rohan expansion is now available for pre-order. The pre-order will be available through September 2nd. The expansion goes live on September 5th.

Click to see the trailer on YouTube.

As one exits my home he/she sees above the front door a wooden plaque that states: North with the wind in the left eye and a blessing on your footsteps! (This is one of the things that Goldberry tells the Hobbits as they leave the House of Tom Bombadil.) Coincidentally enough, my front door opens to...

Hullo, Tom. I might even see you there. :) Frelga, in an effort to save you from fruitlessly combing the stands in search of Tom Bombadil in a green and gold baseball cap, I thought I'd let you know that Tom and his pretty lady will not be in attendance at this afternoon's game. Yes, I have the tic...

The Hobbit, to make it consistent and give it the feeling of "otherworldliness“

Otherworldliness? Don't these guys know that the events depicted in Tolkien's mythology take place on our own planet?

First, a description (and picture!) of a prototype for the key that is used to enter the secret entrance to the Lonely Mountain: http://www.herr-der-ringe-film.de/v3/de/news/tolkienfilme/news_86786.php "Image removed at the request of Warner Bros." :( "Gehen Sie mit mir ins Bibliothe...

I believe the A's signed Señor Cespedes to a four-year deal. I suspect that he'll either be traded during the last year of that contract, or after the four years have expired he'll become a free agent and sign with a large market team for an ungodly sum of money. In any case, eventually he'll probab...

Yes, he makes that point, but he also definitely tries to argue that Tolkien is THE author of the century. Does he? I guess I'll have to go back and read it again. Some day. Of course I have a number of other books I'd like to read first, including your book which still resides on my Amazon Wish Li...

I have to confess that I'm following baseball, or at least the A's, more closely than I have for several years. Of course lacking financial resources to pay for big stars they're relegated to the so-called "second division", just as they were for many years after Connie Mack broke up his t...

Unless he meant to say that Tolkien, though writing high fantasy based on the older sagas, was writing with 20th century sensibilities. Something along those lines. IIRC Shippey makes the point that the work of authors like Tolkien, Vonnegut, et al were informed by their experiences with WWI and WW...

Quite enjoying Author so far. I am also finding myself in agreement with his conclusion, that Tolkien was the author of the 20th century. But I will be the first to admit bias, since he's my favorite author. It's been awhile since I last read it, but doesn't Shippey explain that Tokien is not the a...

One thing I'm not too happy with is the glossy paper. It reflects too much and makes it difficult to read without making a lot of adjustments while reading. Plus the book weighs a ton. I suggest putting the Nasmith illustrated version aside and picking up an inexpensive paperback copy for reading. ...

Mr. Mortensen seems very engaging. His intonation, however, leaves much to be desired.