Re: The General Tolkien News Thread

[Eldorion]

Looks like the post got deleted, so perhaps it was indeed an April Fool's that went up too early. Or else they realized that they'd fallen for a false rumor.

I'm sure there are "plans", or at least discussions of plans, at WB. I imagine that process began well before The Hobbit trilogy was complete. Don't see them coming out with any spin-offs until at least a couple of years have passed. Doing that now, after the progressively more middling response to TH, would be a recipe for driving the franchise into the ground.

[malickfan]

http://www.newstatesman.com/culture/books/2016/04/teach-yourself-dwarvish-behind-tolkien-s-invented-languages

New biography of the Inklings, released in paperback:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fellowship-Literary-Inklings-Barfield-Williams/dp/0374536252/


http://www.puppetstate.com/shows/leaf-by-niggle/

[Eldorion]

Garth's review is very encouraging. Oddly enough, it was pointed out to me recently that there doesn't seem to be a physical copy of the new edition of A Secret Vice published in the US yet, though it can and has been imported.

[Eldorion]

Remember that annotated map that Tolkien had given to Pauline Baynes? It was purchased by the Bodleian Library at Oxford (who already own many of Tolkien's papers) and there are some more images of it available online now.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-36191978
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/may/03/jrr-tolkien-annotated-map-middle-earth-bodleian-lord-rings-hobbit

[chris63]

Same thing here. You beat me to it Eldo.

http://epicstream.com/news/Oxford-Acquires-Newly-Discovered-JRR-Tolkien-Annotated-Middle-Earth-Map-from-Lord-of-the-Rings

[Pettytyrant101]

{{{I used to have that map on my bedroom wall in my youth}}}}

[malickfan]

https://johngarth.wordpress.com/2016/05/11/rob-gilson-tcbs-a-documentary/

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Return-Ring-Proceedings-Tolkien-Conference/dp/1911143026/

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Return-Ring-II-Proceedings-Conference/dp/1911143034/

[Eldorion]

That's weird, the Tolkien Society website lists Return of the Ring as a two-volume set for the price of £20 (marked down from £25), whereas the Amazon listing appears to be £25 per volume.

[malickfan]

That's weird, the Tolkien Society website lists Return of the Ring as a two-volume set for the price of £20 (marked down from £25), whereas the Amazon listing appears to be £25 per volume.

Maybe it's just a placeholder price? I'd imagine it has a very limited print run, and those most likely to buy a copy would probably just prefer to order directly from the source, maybe the TS is making Amazon charge more so they can ensure they sell more copies themselves?

[Eldorion]

I wouldn't be surprised if that's why the price is lower, but what I'm confused by is whether there's a single price for both volumes or if they're being sold separately. The Tolkien Society website suggests the former, while Amazon implies the latter.

I agree it will be a very small print run. At least it's being made available as an ebook as well. You can't buy new copies of the 1992 Proceedings anymore cause it only ever went to print the one time.

[malickfan]

http://sswftapa.blogspot.co.uk/2007/01/lord-of-errors-or-who-really-killed.html

(old post, but interesting)

[Eldorion]

That always cracks me up until I imagine what it must have been like to be a Swedish Tolkien fan pre-2007. :/

[malickfan]

That always cracks me up until I imagine what it must have been like to be a Swedish Tolkien fan pre-2007. :/

On the plus side when they finally got access to a more accurate version, it would have been even more exciting

Some of the Swedish artwork for Tolkien I've seen is also very weird...

[chris63]

HarperCollins is set to publish Tolkien’s short story Leaf by Niggle in its own volume for the first time on 28 July 2016.

http://www.tolkiensociety.org/2016/06/leaf-by-niggle-to-be-published-in-its-own-volume/

[azriel]

I thought that book was sad in a way. But I do like reading it, its quite poignant.

[malickfan]

HarperCollins is set to publish Tolkien’s short story Leaf by Niggle in its own volume for the first time on 28 July 2016.

http://www.tolkiensociety.org/2016/06/leaf-by-niggle-to-be-published-in-its-own-volume/

Seems a little pointless to re-release it in its own volume with no commentary etc, it's been nearly continuously in print for over 40 years...

That said, I believe there is a stage show adaptation of Leaf By Niggle touring later this year, so it's a good tie in opportunity...

[malickfan]

Tolkien's The Lay of Aotrou and Itroun is to be re-released later this year in a new (english language) edition edited by Verlyn Flieger:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lay-Aotrou-Itroun-J-Tolkien/dp/0008202133/

http://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/The_Lay_of_Aotrou_and_Itroun

The Serbian-English edition was itself reprinted in an expanded edition last year:

http://lingwe.blogspot.co.uk/2015/08/a-standalone-edition-of-lay-of-aotrou.html

It is one of Tolkien's finest poems and has long merited a reprint i.m.o:

Check it out if you haven't before:

http://ae-lib.org.ua/texts-c/tolkien__the_lay_of_aotrou_and_itroun__en.htm

[RA]

Looks like the post got deleted, so perhaps it was indeed an April Fool's that went up too early. Or else they realized that they'd fallen for a false rumor.

I'm sure there are "plans", or at least discussions of plans, at WB. I imagine that process began well before The Hobbit trilogy was complete. Don't see them coming out with any spin-offs until at least a couple of years have passed. Doing that now, after the progressively more middling response to TH, would be a recipe for driving the franchise into the ground.

I really hope that they're done milking Middle Earth.

[halfwise]

RA's back!  

[Eldorion]

Hi RA!

[RA]

Hey, guys

[halfwise]

One of Tolkien's earliest poems to be published.

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/jul/14/rare-jrr-tolkien-poem-the-lay-of-aotrou-and-itroun-to-be-republished-lord-of-the-rings

They keep claiming this is an early version of Galadriel, but I see no clear evidence for this.

[Eldorion]

By the criteria used in that article most of the female characters in Tolkien's early fiction could be called early versions of Galadriel.

[malickfan]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/proginfo/2016/32/tolkien-the-lost-recordings

[Eldorion]

Sounds interesting. If it's through iPlayer it'll probably be restricted to streaming in the UK though, right? (Aside from proxies ofc.)