Tolkien Books published in October 2006 - the month of Michael D.C. Drout (08.10.06)

Key Tolkien Books Published in October 2006

While last month the world was talking about the publication of the new Tolkien book, THE CHILDREN OF HÚRIN, it seems this month is dominated by new publications by Michael D.C. Drout. Most people will know him from Beowulf and the Critics, published in December 2002, which was the result of a discovered manuscript for "Beowulf and the Critics" while working on a project in an Oxford library in 1996. Michael D.C. Drout is an associate professor of English at Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts, where he teaches courses in Old and Middle English, medieval literature, fantasy, and science fiction. The author of a number of books on Anglo-Saxon history and literature, he is also a founding editor of the journal Tolkien Studies and the editor of the J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia (Routledge, 2006). He has published articles on Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea books and Susan Cooper's Dark Is Rising series of children's fantasy novels. We see four new books this month of which three Michael D.C. contributed to.

Of Sorcerers and Men: Tolkien and the Roots of Modern Fantasy Literature (Portable Professor Series), by Michael D.C. Drout

From the Lord of the Rings trilogy to the Harry Potter series, fantasy novels have captured the imagination of millions of readers, and figure prominently on any list of best-loved books. The masters of the genre, authors such as J.R.R. Tolkien, Ursula K. Le Guin, Philip Pullman, and J.K. Rowling, have brought to life unforgettable characters who dwell in richly detailed, magical worlds, which run according to their own internal logic. In Of Sorcerers and Men, Professor Michael D.C. Drout leads a fascinating tour of the masterworks that defined the genre, paying particular attention to the books of J.R.R. Tolkien, the godfather of fantasy literature as we know it today. Drout's deft assessment provides deeper insights into these beloved creations, and helps readers gain a better understanding of what makes fantasy literature so special.

Tolkien Studies: An Annual Scholarly Review, Volume III
by Douglas Anderson (Editor), Verlyn Flieger (Editor), D. C. Drout (Editor)

“Essential for any library that serves a population of avid readers, students, and researchers of Tolkien, this is a very important and highly readable addition to Tolkien scholarship.” —Carol A. Leibiger, Journal of the Fantastic Arts

Now in its third year, Tolkien Studies: An Annual Scholarly Review has become a staple in the world of Tolkien Scholarship.

Essays included in this volume:
• Ross Smith, "Fitting Sense to Sound: Linguistic Aesthetics and Phonosemantics in the Work of J.R.R. Tolkien"
• Maria Prozesky, "The Text Tale of Frodo the Nine-fingered: Residual Oral Patterning in The Lord of the Rings"
• Amy M. Amendt-Raduege, "Dream Visions in J.R.R. tolkien's The Lord of the Rings"
• Gergely Nagy, "The ‘Lost’ Subject of Middle-earth: The Constitution of the Subject in the Figure of Gollum in The Lord of the Rings"
• Martin Simonson, "Three is Company: Novel, Fairy Tale, and Romance on the Journey through the Shire"
• Richard W. Fehrenbacher, "Beowulf as Fairy-story: Enchanting the Elegiac in The Two Towers"
• James Obertino, "Barbarians and Imperialism in Tacitus and The Lord of the Rings"

Notes and Documents:
• Karen Wynn Fonstad, "Writing 'TO' the Map"
• Douglas A. Anderson, "R. W. Chambers and The Hobbit"
• Michael D. C. Drout, "A Spliced Old English Quotation in "Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics"
• James I. McNelis III, ""The tree took me up from the ground and carried me off": A Source for tolkien's Ents in Ludvig Holberg's Journey of Niels Klim to the World Underground"

Book Reviews, compiled by Douglas A. Anderson
David Bratman, The Year's Work in Tolkien Studies
Marcel R. Bülles, Michael D. C. Drout, and Rebecca Epstein. Bibliography for 2004

Lord of Elves and Eldils: Fantasy and Philosophy in C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien
by Richard L. Purtill

Lord of the Elves and Eldils is a fascinating look at the fantasy and philosophy of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R Tolkien. The two men were friends and fellow professors at Oxford, renowned Christian thinkers who both "found it necessary to create for the purposes of their fiction other worlds-not utopias or dystopias, but different worlds."

Ignatius Press advance PR says this expanded and revised edition will include Purtill's most famous essays, "Did C.S. Lewis Lose His Faith?" replying to certain implications in the film Shadowlands and elsewhere (Purtill shows Lewis retained his faith); and That Hideous Strength: A Double Story, in which he considers the third book of Lewis' sci-fi trilogy on its own. This book is the third part of his philosophy and fantasy trilogy, the others bring J.R.R. Tolkien: Myth Morality and Religion, and C.S. Lewis' Case for the Christian Faith.

J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia
by Michael Drout, Michael D. Drout (Editor)

A detailed work of reference and scholarship, this one volume Encyclopedia includes discussions of all the fundamental issues in Tolkien scholarship written by the leading scholars in the field.

Coverage not only presents the most recent scholarship on J. R. R. Tolkien, but also introduces and explores the author and scholar's life and work within their historical and cultural contexts. tolkien's fiction and his sources of influence are examined along with his artistic and academic achievements- including his translations of medieval texts- teaching posts, linguistic works, and the languages he created. The 550 alphabetically arranged entries fall within the following categories of topics:
• Adaptations
• Art and illustrations
• Characters in tolkien's work
• Critical history and scholarship
• Influence of Tolkien
• Languages
• Biography
• Literary sources
• Literature
• Creatures and peoples of Middle-earth
• Objects in tolkien's work
• Places in tolkien's work
• Reception of Tolkien
• Medieval scholars
• Scholarship by Tolkien
• Medieval literature
• Stylistic elements
• Themes in tolkien's works
• Theological/ philosophical concepts and philosophers
• tolkien's contemporary history and culture
• Works of literature

The work is edited by Michael D.C. Drout, from Wheaton College, with the participation of Tom Shippey, Verlyn Flieger, Marjorie Burns, and Douglas Anderson.