J.R.R. Tolkien: Architect of Middle Earth

I first read the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings in the early 70s and read it all three or four times, probably the last time was in the early 80s. This biography has inspired me to pick it up and read it again. It portrays Tolkien as a warm, convivial person, kind to his students, his family and friends and devoted to administrative duties connected with this college. I take issue with many of the 1-star reviews written here. Grotta's was the first biography of Tolkien, so he could hardly have "not added much" to what was known about the author. Tolkien is portrayed as not publishing as much as he should have throughout his career, but Grotta makes clear that he instead devoted himself to feeding ideas to his students to run with, building up the departments he worked in, and turning out very occasional papers and addresses that were regarded as pivotal (e.g., his Gawain, his Middle English vocabulary, and "On Fairy Stories") and for which he was eventually recognized within his academic specialty. In fact, the man portrayed is clearly an academic first and a public man second, for which he was undoubtedly respected. This is in strict contrast to C.S. Lewis, C.P. Snow, Richard Dawkins, Carl Sagan, Steven Jay Gould and other academics who strayed into the limelight and were regarded as having "wasted" their talents and time by pursuing popular success. Although he never says it explicitly Grotta (who was writing in the immediate aftermath of the Viet Nam War) suggests that Tolkien suffered from post-traumatic stress syndrome, as did many veterans of the First World War. This he obliquely advances as a possible reason that Tolkien was not more of a "hard charger" in his academic career and chose to withdraw from the wider world whenever possible. Grotta's attempts to link the facts of Tolkien's life with his work are sometimes striking and moving, as when he briefly outlines the romance of Beren and Luthien, and then shows how closely it paralleled the history of Tolkien's relationship with Edith Mary Bratt. In short, this is a biography that uses the information that was available well, takes some chances (which gives the reader something to think about) and is quiet honestly and forthrightly written. That said, it does suffer from lax editing, with some repeated information and some distracting typographical errors. However this very mildly detracts from an overall interesting read that leaves you intrigued by Tolkien the man and by the connections between his life and his works of fantasy.

I'm ordering a second copy for a dear friend. It's an easy read but is perfect for introducing someone who knows little of JRR Tolkien, CS Lewis, others. I paged through the "authorized biography" (Grotta is not the "authorized" Tolkien biographer) at the bookstore and my first impression was that the "authorized"version was a bit verbose and certainly not as elegant; I also appreciate biographies by authors not given special access by the family -- one always wonders where allegiances lie. If you are already quite familiar with "Tolk" this book probably has little to offer; but as a first book for someone who has been caught up in the recent movie trilogy, this is where I would start.

Overall this is a good biography of Tolkien. It is satisfying as it makes no conjecture of Tolkien's thoughts, always referring to his letters or other record. Unlike other biographies, this is no fan inspired applaud-fest. Instead it states facts of Tolkien's life from boyhood to his death. I found an old printing of this book in a local used bookstore, but you can be sure I'm not going to sell it back. --Erich (Aranatur)

It is a shame this wonderful book is out of print (as I write this) as I bought it some years ago and have treasured it ever since.It is a true study of the great writer and gives a detailed insight into his life and the forces that resulted in the world of Middle Earth and its own remarkable histories.From this biography we can see the sprouting of The Shire in the rural England of his youth and we see the ravages of war and time exacting its toll on the coutryside and the people.We uncover his inspirations.And we uncover the man. This is no fawning idolization, but looks at the man as he was. It is honest, but not unkind; personal, but not intrusive.We learn of his friendship (and rivalry) with C.S. Lewis and we learn of his day-to-day work at various universities. We also learn of his home life... that he was always careful with money even after he became wealthy, and generously responded to correspondence until the flood became much too great.In all, this biography is a rare and poignant portrait.I came to this website to find out if this title was available so I could refer my friends to it, and it is a great shame that it is out of print. I strongly urge the publishers to produce it again, particularly in the light of new films and video games of Lord of the Rings in the pipleline for 1999.Stuart Anderson