The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien Paperback – June 6, 2000

I've never been interested to read an author's personal correspondence. It's always seemed invasive and "prying," and of questionable value in locating and understanding the real sources of an author's muse. In this case though, and on the strength of other reviews, I bought the book, and am delighted to have taken the risk. It's just plain fascinating to follow the development of Tolkien's writings in his own words and thoughts, trials and setbacks, set amid all the same criteria of his larger life. An incredible read, really. Humphrey Carpenter, Tolkien's biographer, compiled this collection of personal correspondence with tact and great sensitivity and respect for J.R.R.T., and also a bulls-eye sensibility for what possible readers might find of interest.On the Kindle version, though, 1 star at best. Typos or scan errors, whichever they are, are everywhere, and egregious. It's obvious that this Kindle text was never proofed by a human editor. To find the word "orc" misspelled as "ore" four times on one page is proof enough that the publishers put very little care into preparing the text. There are many, many other errors just in the first twenty percent of the book. I am very tempted to return this Kindle version for refund and go for the hardcopy, instead.Especially at this time, when publishers and authors are clamoring for higher prices and consideration for their electronic books, I find myself more than ever inclined to just go back to hard-copy reading. It may be that the paper version of "The Letters..." contains the same quantity of really inexcusable errors, but that doesn't justify the glaring lack of editorial care in this Kindle version. These firms are obviously paying much, much less to produce the books, and yet still demanding to be paid even more, unfortunately actualizing Tolkien's own vision of the "machine" and where it was headed in his day.

The first package I received was empty but the seller was great about resending and it got here just in time for my husband's bday! He loves it! Completed his collection

This book holds a lot of insights to the background of JRR Tolkien his thought process and his beliefs, it played a role in our familys decision not to read any of his LOTR books in honor of Jesus, and we are happy that it was the right one for us.

This book confirms some ideas I had about Tolkien, and disconfirms others. I always knew he was enormously protective of "his" country: but if this is a fair selection of his letters, "obsessed" would seem to be the word. One gets the feeling Tolkien would have left this world and gone to that, with maybe a look back, but less sorrow at the leaving, that Bilbo or Frodo. This is entirely unlike his friend C. S. Lewis, a writer who created when the passion was on, then went on to enjoy other activities -- walking or drinking with friends or lecturing -- seemingly every bit as much. (Which is why his letters are much more varied.) Tolkien wrote comparatively fewer books, but remained as passionate about Middle Earth and as ready to defend it as he had the mundane England in the 1st World War.On the other hand, I've often thought that he would never have allowed the Peter Jackson films to be made, if he were alive, but now realize this was wrong. Tolkien seems to have appreciated money even more than I realized, and was in fact prepared to compromise to obtain it.It's interesting to read Tolkien's "take" on other people. His friendship with Lewis was rich and rewarding, but he always felt what they shared was measured and incomplete. His take on Charles Williams, whom he liked personally but whose writings he seemed to despise, was interesting -- affirming William's deep influence on Lewis' That Hideous Strength, which is indeed bad, though in ways that I have made peace with. He also seems to have been as impressed as Lewis at Eddison's invention, with the same qualifications. Several of his interesting and low-key dramatic letters to Auden are also included.Bottom line: you have to be a big fan of Middle Earth to enjoy this book, and even then, no guarantees. I did learn about how Tolkien's religious beliefs related to Middle Earth, which for me as a scholar of religions with an interest in "High Gods," was one of the most fascinating aspects of the book. I didn't learn that much about Tolkien's personal life. He seems, somehow, sad, though he was popular, famous, and intellectually razor sharp to the end of his long life. But I guess you picked up on that, in his sketch of Bilbo in Rivendell, or Frodo after his return to the Shire.Tolkien was, indeed, an odd duck, living so long in a world of his own "sub-creation." (Do read On Fairy Stories, for a more thorough understanding of what he saw himself as doing.) Even if such a life seems a little sad, his devotion to that world was a happy reality for the millions of us whose lives have been enriched by his great invention.

If you want a hardcover edition of this book, this is it. I will take this edition over the lastest paperback edition any day of the week.

If you are a fan of Tolkien, and completed The Hobbit, LOTR and The Silmarillion, but are unsure of where to go next, this ought to be it (but don't ever neglect Roverandom, The Father Christmas Letters, or the myriad of other shorter works, as well as everything put out by his son Christopher). These letters are riveting and include everything from war-time advice to his son to a snarky, passive-aggressive response to an anti-semitic publisher. They are organized chronologically, and the editor's guiding factors for curation were 1) to include only letters that lent insight about his writing process, and 2) to exclude personal family insights as much as possible. So if you're looking for a tell-all reveal into his family life, you aren't getting that. But if you want to a crash-course on "the humanities, embodied" then you've come to the right place. Tolkien lives what he loves, and he loves culture and words and language and history and art and philosophy and faith. All of that is on display here, revealed in the context of his letters to friends and family and fans and publishers.They're readable. Read one a day. They're short. You'll learn a lot of LOTR trivia, and you'll love it. Don't wait, read it now.

I became a fan of Professor Tolkien when I was seven thanks to my mother reading to me her hardcover copy of The Hobbit from the 80s. It took me many years before I could buy The Lord of the Rings, both the books and the extended blu-rays, but upon doing so, I became a fan for life. Since then, I now own deluxe editions of The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion, and the paperback editions of Unfinished Tales, The Children of Húrin, and Tolkien's biography by Humphrey Carpenter. I had heard of the letters for years, but only recently did I consider getting my hands on them and hear his thoughts.And then I heard that Amazon would be making a show based on Tolkien's world.I assumed that it would be The Silmarillion, so I bought that deluxe edition, and made sure that I was well read on the subject. Then we learned Amazon only had the rights to the Appendices of Return of the King, and were using Professor Tolkien's letters to justify the changes they were making.Let us not bury the lead here. I bought this book to hear what this incredible man thought and how he came to create the greatest story ever told. Here, I could see for myself the full context of the letters Amazon was using to validate their absurd changes to his work. Not only did I find it, but I also found many passages that directly counter what Amazon and their shills have said, are saying, and will say. One of which is this quote from Letter 210, written sometime in June 1958:"The canons of narrative art in any medium cannot be wholly different; and the failure of poor films is often precisely in exaggeration, and in the intrusion of unwarranted matter owing to not perceiving where the core of the original lies."—J.R.R. Tolkien.He would know, as these were his words about the people who were trying to adapt his work, and even to those who wanted to translate his work into other languages.I know for certain that I am not the only one who bought this book to counter and fact-check, and given how things have gone since the end of the first season of RoP, you have all shown your quality. Even the smallest person can change the course of the future, so if all of us join together, we can make that change.If you are a true fan of Professor Tolkien's work, you will enjoy this book, as here you can understand him better. His thoughts about life, his frustrations with publishing his books, his faith, his dealing with the world around him, his thoughtful replies to passionate fans, and his mocking of critics that could not understand his work, who continued to see allegory that was never there. How little has changed since then.

Si eres estudioso de la obra de Tolkien es imprescindible leer la cartas para profundizar y llenar huecos en el legendario.

Libro utile per gli appassionati di J.R.R. Tolkien

Great collection of Tolkien's letters informing the constructive process of the creation of Middle-Earth.

Un libro fantástico. Para los fanáticos de la obra de Tolkien, porque cuenta en primera persona cómo se gestaron y desarrollaron sus obras, sus entresijos, curiosidades y procesos de creación. Y para los amantes de la literatura en general, porque la vida de Tolkien contada a través de sus cartas es... ¿cómo decirlo? Divertida, intelectual, acogedora... El genio de vida normal rodeado siempre de familia y de grandes e importantes amigos. Un libro ameno, apasionante y lleno de cultura literaria y lingüística para saborear en un pub con una buena cerveza.