J.R.R. Tolkien: A Life Inspired Paperback – November 20, 2014

J.R.R. Tolkien is a fascinating biography of one of the greatest literary minds of the 20th century, written by Wyatt North. The book delves deep into the life and legacy of John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, exploring the experiences and influences that shaped his work.The book starts off by tracing J.R.R. Tolkien's early life, which was marked by the loss of his parents at a young age and his subsequent upbringing by his relatives, including his priestly guardian. The book shows how this early disruption in his life led to a deep sense of isolation, but also helped him develop a rich imagination and a love for storytelling.As the biography progresses, it delves into Tolkien's time at Oxford, where he made lifelong friendships and started to develop the mythology and language that would later become the foundation of his literary works. The book also explores Tolkien's professional career as an academic and his personal life, including his marriage and his relationship with his children.Overall, J.R.R. Tolkien is a highly informative and engaging biography that sheds new light on the man behind some of the most beloved works of fantasy fiction ever written. Whether you're a die-hard fan of The Lord of the Rings or simply interested in the life of one of history's great writers, this book is well worth reading.

To be honest, I’m not entirely certain how I feel about this book. I liked parts of it, but other sections seemed to drag along. Tolkien lost his father at a young age and his mother as well a number of years later. After that, his guardian was a catholic priest who told the boy that he needed to stop seeing the girl he was growing fond of when it became known that she wasn’t Catholic. Tolkien did seek her out again years later and they were able to resume their relationship once she agreed to join the Catholic church.The book seems to skip around somewhat, often focusing on particular themes rather than following a straight timeline. Not much time is spent talking about Tolkien’s relationship with his wife or children. I would have liked to know more about all of them. At the end of the book, it talks about how no one ever doubted that Tolkien and his wife were in love, though I would have preferred to have been given examples of the two of them together rather than just being told how they felt about each other.There also wasn’t much information about his relationship with his children. It was mentioned that one of them joined the priesthood, and that he had a daughter, but not much else was shared about those two. More was said of his son Christopher, who took over his father’s unfinished writing projects to see them through to completion after his father’s death. I really would have liked to know more about Tolkien’s family life.A good deal of time was spent talking about the time J.R.R. Tolkien spent in the military during WW1. After finishing his studies, he trained as a signaler. This meant being able to use flags, pidgeons, or whatever else was necessary to ensure communications didn’t fail. Often that meant the use of runners to carry messages. Tolkien’s training as a signaler also allowed him to become familiar with mapmaking, a skill that would be useful when creating his middle-earth stories and the lands the people existed in.The majority of this book revolved around the time Tolkien spent as a professor at Oxford, his association with the students and other writers, his work with languages, and the creation of the middle-earth mythos and tales. As I mentioned earlier, I’m not entirely sure how I feel about this biography. Admittedly, Tolkien wanted people to focus on his writing rather than himself, but I feel like more could have been said. While it did contain a lot of information about his life, I still wanted to know more about those things that were not really talked about within these pages.

Would love to read this author on Tolkien for double the length. Great detail and facts, but not enough narrative.

Who is the man behind "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings?" This clear and easy to read book reveals the man through the events of his life, the faith that sustained him through times good and bad, and the words he committed to paper for the edification and enrichment of posterity. We are shown a man humble in his self-esteem, meticulous in his scholarship, devoted to family and friends, and rather embarrassed by the extraordinary fame that came to his door late in life. This review of Tolkien's life is a casual account, lacking footnotes, annotations, criticisms and references, but the book is aimed at the general reader who wants to know more about the man than read a tome of literary criticism, revealed in a manner that is anything but ponderous. I knew that Tolkien was a Catholic, but I really had no idea how much those beliefs had shaped the fantasy tales I first read in the 1960s, and the world of Middle-earth which I had long taken to be a realm without religion now seems infused with a natural philosophy that mirrors Christianity without sinking to the level of metaphor, as did the science fiction and fantasy tales of Tolkien's friend, C.S. Lewis. I recommend this book to fans of Middle-earth who want to know about the life behind that mythic realm without having to wade through a scholarly morass.

While I read his books as a young woman, I knew very little about the author. He lead a very interesting life. I may read his books, now that I am older and have some background about J R R Tolkien.

This takes a look at the mind that built the world of the Hobbit and the Rings Trilogy. As such, it pretty much had to be interesting, and it is. North does a good job of exploring Tolkein's combination of genius, fantasy, and opinion. The particular social background that produced Tolkein's work illuminates it. He also gives Tolkein's explanation of how a dedicated Christian could produce such a work without ever discussing Christianity in it. While I do not understand the explanation particularly well, it is nonetheless Tolkein's explanation. There's more than a chance that my non-understanding results from my non-Christian beliefs. I gave this work four rather than five stars because it has such a thoroughly English feel to it that I, as an American, had to read carefully to understand some passages.

Being a fan of The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings, I was curious to read the biography of J.R.R.Tolkien. The book is interesting, but I would have enjoyed more detail about his thought process regarding the most famous works...

I don't normally read biographies, especially on holiday, but this one gave me brief insight into Tolkien's life. I lernt so much about his background and glimpses of his creativity. I've read the hobbit bit Lord of the Rings still has the wrapper on years after I bought it - must now get down to it!

There is so much fascinating information regarding Tolkien and the origins of his excellent work on this book. I particularly liked the late that look at his friendships with other writers and how they helped him.

A good read into one of the forefathers of fantasy. Well structured and interesting information. Would recommend to any one

An interesting life well presented, though disappointing in parts which could have been more fuller expanded in his life story.

Enjoyed