The Making of Middle-earth

December 1, 2013
J. R. R. Tolkien's reputation has varied but certainly has increased in the last few years (to some degree because of the popularity of Peter Jackson's films). Snyder, a professor at Mississippi State University, teachers seminars about Tolkien and has written several books on historic Britain and its literature. This informational book deals with Tolkien's scholarly and writing life, the mythical and medieval influences on his works, and his legacy. Part 1 traces Tolkien's life, from his birth in South Africa to his studies and teaching to his relatively obscure death. His association with the Inklings and C. S. Lewis echoes throughout the book. Part 2 examines his source material: Greek and Roman mythology, the Celtic isles, Anglo-Saxons and Nordic traditions, Arthurian legends, and the medievalism of Victorian England. Part 3 describes the characters and mythology of Middle Earth. Part 4 summarizes the Lord of the Rings trilogy plotlines and draws connections with myths and themes from other eras. Part 5 summarizes and analyzes his less well-known Song of Iluvatar writings, which draw from Finnish mythology. The book itself is a visual delight, from its medieval-door-photo endpapers to its textured sepia pages, several laced with lined designs on the wide margins. The uncial font headings and scripted quotations further reinforce the mood of the book's content. Several framed sidebars provide fun facts. Most of the double-page layouts include an image (all of which are captioned and cited at the end of the book). Three appendixes address reactions to Tolkien, from contemporaneous criticisms to media and Tolkienana frenzy. A fourth appendix proposes the moral virtues of Middle Earth, reflecting almost a medieval courtly sensibility. The volume finishes with a two-page time line, endnotes, a bibliography, and an index. The writing is clear, with some parts being more engaging than others (the detailed recounting of the stories sometimes slogs along). Though not strictly a reference book (its style being more narrative than factual), this volume gives readers plenty of interesting details and fills a nice niche by combining author, source, and literary discussions without being neither too scholarly or too commercial.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)