The Fireside

I am part of the Tolkien Society’s Facebook group. I don’t have an actual Tolkien Society membership (yet… I hope to sign up when it turns 50). As a way of saying thanks, as well as recommending some items to members both newly joined as well as seasoned, I have created this post for them. No, these aren’t “ultimate collector’s items” or anything elite, expensive, etc, but are targeted at some interests and trends I’ve noticed in the group since I’ve joined. With that, check out the items below, which are categorized as best as possible: THE CORE MIDDLE-EARTH BOOKS (or, A Great Place to Start) Of course, the best place to start any Tolkien collection, is what I like to consider “The Main Middle-earth” books. Now these aren’t all of them, but these give you a very great idea, and reading experience of Tolkien’s Middle-earth. The titles (in publication, and my suggested reading order) are: The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings (The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers...

Last night I saw Fantastic Beasts , the new entry into the Wizarding World by J.R. Rowling. This isn't quite a Harry Potter prequel. Well...it is and it isn't. It isn't because it has nothing to do with Harry himself whatsoever. It takes place in 1926, and the Harry Potter films begin in 2001. I know the Potter books take place in the '90s, but how else can you explain the flat screen owned by the Dursleys in Prisoner of Azkaban , or that bridge that collapses in the beginning of Half-Blood Prince ? Anyway, so it takes place decades before Harry's born. Because of that, the film slightly distances itself from Harry and Hogwarts, both by the time period, and the fact that it takes place in New York. This film doesn't 'set up' the main Harry Potter series, though there are some similarities. We are, after all, dealing with the same universe and mythos, so some connections will be there. This is a spoiler-free review, so that's all I'll say for...

I wanted to upload this post pre-Black Friday. As a geeky blogger, I’ve got some ideas to share with you, which may help your shopping. I understand my blog may have been a bit quiet lately, and when I do post, it’s about books. There will be books here, and other things. But all things geeky that most people will probably love. So here are some general geeky things I recommend to gift this season! HARRY POTTER With Fantastic Beasts now out, the 'mania' seems to have taken off again. While Tolkien will always be my #1 fandom, I'm kicking things off with Harry Potter / Wizarding World first, seeing how things in that fandom have been the most 'active' lately. Of course, I need to mention the books first and foremost! Like most other books, they exist in various formats and editions. The editions I am recommending, feature artwork by Jonny Duddle. They are the most recent editions, and therefore, the easiest to find because of that. I myself own the h...

Well, since the holidays are coming up quite quickly, I thought it’d be interesting to do a few posts on gift suggestions or ideas; either for yourself or for gifting. This week, I’m going to focus on the illustrated hardbacks of The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings (as three volumes) and The Silmarillion . There may be a other 'gift posts' under the Tolkien Tuesday banner. These were published by both Harper Collins and Houghton Mifflin. They are ‘mirrored’ in all ways except publisher name, like of the other Tolkien books both publishers print. However, it seems that the ones by Houghton Mifflin are still being printed, easier to find, and less pricey than the exact same ones by Harper Collins. The two best places to get these are Amazon.com , or bookdepository.com. Barnes and Noble should also carry them, and there's always other online booksellers. A box set of all these does not exist. Imagine, though, the cost and weight if it would? Each book is pretty he...

Well the weekend is finally here. Thank God. This week seemed to creep and crawl, taking it’s sweet-ass time to get here. It wasn’t without enjoyment or merit, however. I’ve revised my manuscript thus far, as well as fixed some vocabulary. I’ve added sentence after that so I know where to head to next, or what my parting idea was that I could not fully develop at that time. I’ve done a few blog posts as well, as you might have seen. I’m not intending for this to happen, but it seems every time I do a blog post lately, something about Tolkien pops up! The book I’m reading is also coming along well. I’m finishing off Bernard Cornwell’s Warlord Trilogy, and am on the third book, Excalibur . Once I finish that, I’m not quite sure what I’ll feel like reading. I know what I have that’s unread, it’s just a question of what kind of mood I’ll be in when I finish Excalibur . Will it be Neil Gaiman? Will I finally get around the reading Alice? (I’ve got a sort of collection book ...

Today sees the re-publication of a Tolkien book that has been out of print for around 70 years – The Lay of Aortou and Itroun. The book is edited by Verlyn Flieger, as Christopher Tolkien was likely occupied with Beren and Luthien (which is set to arrive May 2017.) The book will be 128 pages. It is being published in the ebook and hardback formats. At present time, there is no word or listing of a possible deluxe edition coming. My guess is, if one were to exist, it would be published in the deluxe format (slipcased, etc) next year, likely after Beren and Luthien , in the fall or winter (Aug – Dec). I’m going to be wait a bit to get this one. If a deluxe edition comes along, then I shall deem Aotrou & Itroun worthy of owning a physical copy and add it ‘to the shelf’. If no deluxe edition is to exist, then I’ll get the ebook to save space for other books. (Remember, the Tolkien books I have ‘on the shelf’ mirror which titles have a deluxe edition available.) Th...