J.R.R. TOLKIEN
It's hard to believe that a crusty old Oxford professor, born January 3, 1892, could be making a sensation in modern-day America. But, 30 years after his death, the South African born J.R.R. Tolkien has resurged in popularity, in no small part because of Peter Jackson's movies based on Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Not that Tolkien ever went out of style. Commonly hailed as the father of the fantasy genre, Tolkien is one of the most widely read authors in the world. Tolkien lost both his parents at an early age-his father when he was 4, his mother when he was 12. The priest who took him and his brother in sent them to King Edwards School where Tolkien shone as a classics scholar. He went on to become an instructor, eventually landing a seat at Oxford as an Anglo-Saxon professor.
Several works of Tolkien's were published after his death by his son Christopher.
Selected Bibliography
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Pearl and Sir Orfeo |
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The Return of the King |
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Beowulf: The Monster and the Critics |
Letters from Father Christmas |
Smith of Wootton Major and Farmer Giles of Ham |
The Silmarillion |
