Set a thief to catch a thief. Better still, set a philologist to catch a philologist. That is exactly what we get in Professor Tom Shippey's J.R.R. Tolkien: Author of the Century.
Shippey, like Tolkien, has taught English Language at both Oxford and Leeds universities. As such, he is very qualified to write an extended study of Tolkien's literary output, and of the popular and professional criticism it has attracted.
This book contains chapters which deal with The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings (three chapters, naturally), The Silmarillion, and his shorter works.
Shippey approaches each work differently so that the reader is introduced incrementally and gently to the complexity of the cultural heritage, scholarship and religious thought that underlies Tolkien's work. And we couldn't ask for a better guide. Shippey knows his terrain, and he takes the reader through this literary and philological landscape by a most illuminating and varied route.
Shippey's prose is plain but never boring. In fact, it is so entertaining, witty and congenial that the reader can easily forget the depth and scope of the learning that lies behind it. I am reminded of a passage in The Lord of the Rings. Saruman, trapped in the tower of Orthanc, has just spoken to Gandalf, Theoden and those who accompanied them to Isengard. We are told:
Mostly they remembered only that it was a delight to hear the voice speaking, all that it said seemed wise and reasonable, and desire awoke in them by swift agreement to seem wise themselves.
I mean it kindly. Having read this book, I do feel just that little bit wiser and certainly a lot more informed about Tolkien and his works.
I read the 2001 edition published by HarperCollins
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