- A Tolkien Bibliography
Since so much has been written about the man who has been credited with reviving 20th Century interest in heroic epic fantasy, the bibliography which follows is, of necessity, a highly selective one, chosen to give readers a manageable number of reference sources. With the exception of The Silmarillion (Houghton Mifflin, 1977; Ballantine, 1979) and The Father Christmas Letters, ed. Baillie Tolkien (Houghton Mifflin, 1976), a bibliography of Tolkien's own writings can be found in Richard West's Checklist (see below). Of special interest to ChLA members is Tolkien's often-cited critical essay, "On Fairy Stories," in which he discusses the author as "sub-creator" of a "secondary world" and the nature of literary belief in fantasy. His essay, "Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics," which discusses the elegiac quality of the folk epic and the symbolism of the dragon, gives insight into Tolkien's own fantasy work as well.
The Father Christmas Letters, edited posthumously by Tolkien's daughter-in-law, consists of illustrated letters written by Tolkien (under the pseudonym "Father Christmas") from 1920 until an undated "Last Letter" written during World War II. Over the years, a continuing narrative evolved along with such characters as Polar Bear, Father Christmas' bumbling chief assistant, and Ilbereth, his Elf secretary. In the later letters, the Red and Green Elves help defend Father Christmas' house and toy storage rooms against the attacks of Goblins. Included in this handsome, full-color edition are examples of Father Christmas' shaky handwriting, the envelopes with hand-drawn stamps, and almost all of the pictures that Tolkien drew to illustrate the letters. Also included is the Goblin alphabet which Polar Bear invented. The book gives early indication of Tolkien's special interest in fantasy, invented languages, and drawing along with the story-telling ability which was to come to full flower in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.
Some recommended critical resources include:
Carpenter, Humphrey. J.R.R. Tolkien: A Biography. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1977. The authorized, and most likely the definitive, biography. Researched with the cooperation of Tolkien's family, this well-written volume strikes a happy balance between factual biographical details and incidents which provide literary insight into Tolkien's work. Of particular interest to ChLA members is its account of the genesis of The Hobbit. (Also relevant to those interested in Tolkien's work is Carpenter's latest book, The Inklings: C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, Charles Williams and Their Friends (Houghton Mifflin, 1979), a biographical study of the 20th Century literary circle centered at Oxford University. The book focuses primarily on C.S. Lewis but also discusses Tolkien's position in this group.)
Foster, Robert. The Complete Guide to Middle-earth: From The Hobbit to The Silmarillion. 2nd ed. rev. New York: Ballantine Books, 1978 (hardcover); 1979 (paper). A complete and indispensible concordance of Tolkien's Middle-earth, recently revised and enlarged to include information and materials presented in Tolkien's posthumous work, The Silmarillion.
Helm, Randel. Tolkien's World. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1974. A major critical study which includes discussion of Tolkien's theory of fantasy, The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, his minor prose works, and The Adventures of Tom Bombadil.
Isaacs, Neil and Rose Zimbardo. Tolkien and the Critics. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1968. A major collection of fifteen critical essays on various aspects of Tolkien's work.
Kocher, Paul. Master of Middle-Earth: The Fiction of J.R.R. Tolkien. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1972. First book-length critical study; examines The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and seven minor prose works.
Lobdell, Jared, ed. A Tolkien Compass. Lasalle, IL: Open Court, 1975. An important collection of essays, especially Bonniejean Christensen's "Gollum's Character Transformation in The Hobbit," a textual comparison of the first and second editions, clearly indicating the significant revisions Tolkien made in the original version in order to achieve continuity with The Lord of the Rings. Since it is difficult to obtain a first edition, Christensen's essay is invaluable. Another essay, Dorothy Matthews' "The Psychological Journey of Bilbo Baggins," offers an excellent psychological analysis of the novel. Also of...