THIS IS surely one of the most tedious books ever written about JRR Tolkien's fantasy classic - and that's really saying something.
The authors - described on the jacket as "internationally acclaimed scholars" - go through Tolkien's book chapter by chapter, page by page, almost line by line, explaining in turgid detail exactly what the master meant by virtually every phrase he wrote. This book is full of entries like this:
"230 (1: 242). The Hall of Fire - This recalls, in function and in having a fire always burning, the room of logs with the Tale-fire in the Cottage of Lost Play, in The Book of Lost tales."
700 pages of pure tedium. Do yourself a favour and don't buy it.
Updated: 10:17 Saturday, January 21, 2006
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