The world is soon going to learn a little more about the man who wrote The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. The Bodleian Library of Oxford University is publishing a biography of Tolkien called Tolkien: The Maker of Middle Earth as well as holding a major exhibit on the man in 2018.
The book is being written by Catherine McIlwaine, the official Tolkien Archivist at the Bodleian. (And I do love that “Tolkien Archivist” is an official title.) In addition to telling readers about Tolkien’s history, the book highlights his manuscript drafts, illustrations, and paintings as well as letters that were sent to him. Since Tolkien was a professor at Oxford for 35 years and donated his personal archives to the Bodleian, McIlwaine has a lot of material to work with.
The most visually impressive items from that collection will appear in the Bodleian’s Tolkien exhibit as well. The exhibit will run June through October 2018 in the Weston Library. It will include photos from Tolkien’s childhood, maps of Middle Earth, drafts of The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion, and dozens of other related materials.
If you are interested in learning more about both the book and the exhibit, the Bodleian recently put up a webpage that describes them in more detail. Now all that lovers of Middle Earth have to do is find their way to Oxford in summer of 2018.
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Image Attribution: The Hobbit dust jacket, MS. Tolkien Drawings 32, © The Tolkien Estate Limited, 1937.
Looks like I need to plan a trip to Oxford 🙂
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I know, right? In my mind, there will be a caravan of Tolkien lovers who make the long journey there. (Which may not be too off the mark.)
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A Tolkien Archivist. What a cool job title. This sounds wonderful. I wish I lived 4,000 miles closer!
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I’m a bit closer, but the 2,000 miles (…and ocean) separating me from it seems vast. Still, I can dream of seeing the collection!
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Another reason to visit Oxford, and soon!
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I’d love to make my why over there someday!
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Reblogged this on WL Hawkin and commented:
A little more Tolkien. Thanks to Kristen Twardowski for this post on a new book and the Tolkien exhibit at the Bodleian Library in Oxford in 2018.
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I think the first time that I read The Hobbit I was a sophomore in high school. I remember feeling as if I were actually there as I read. It prompted me to immediately read The Lord of the Rings, which started me on a need to read Fantasy.
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It really is a great entry point into the worlds of fantasy. Where would the genre be if Tolkien hadn’t written hobbits and Smaug into existence?
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This sounds like it might be worth visiting…
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I can’t wait until it’s a bit closer to exhibit open time. I’m sure they’ll give more info (and more pictures) about the exhibit then.
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Yes! We’ll definitely see if we can get to see it…
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I will be pre-ordering that biography 😊
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I’m super excited to see it! (I suspect it will be a very pretty book.)
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Exciting! Guess I’m so lucky being only 40 miles away, and the book is being published on my birthday.
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What a great present that will be to you. In my head, the university planned it that way. 😉
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Of course they did!
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Reblogged this on Viv Drewa – The Owl Lady.
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