Robert S. Blackham – författare

This first entry of a series covers the fascinating and enigmatic world of J.R.R. Tolkien, examining his place in literary history, his books and his iconic characters. The reader can explore facts and trivia from Tolkien’s life and works, including his early life in southern Africa and Birmingham, Tolkien on the silver screen, his role in the two world wars and his friendship with C.S. Lewis, as well as the places that inspired his fictional world of Middle-earth. Both light-hearted and highly informative, this book offers an insight for new and old Tolkien fans into one of the great writers of the twentieth century.

J.R.R. Tolkien, creator of the fictional world of Middle Earth and one of the most influential writers of the twentieth century, grew up and spent his formative years in the suburbs of Birmingham. His memories of the area were later to become a valuable source of names, images and settings for his literary creations, now immortalised for millions in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.Robert Blackham, a keen student of the books and member of the Tolkien Society, has brought together a fascinating collection of images, contemporary and modern, of Tolkien-related sites in Birmingham. Some are well known but many are new and original speculations. This new collection of images provides an important look at likely sources for the roots of Middle-eart that arose from the rural and urban suburbs of Birmingham.

J.R.R. Tolkien’s experiences of the Battle of the Somme forever imprinted on his mind, and became a dramatic source of inspiration for The Lord of the Rings. This absorbing book charts Tolkien’s life from 1914 to 1918, using old postcards, maps and photographs to paint a picture of the places and times that relate to one of the leading authors of the twentieth century. Tolkien joined the army in 1915 and trained in Bedford and Brocton Camp on Cannock Chase while his wife lived in the village of Great Haywood, close to the camp. A number of the places in and around Great Haywood were destined to appear in his later works. In 1916 Tolkien learnt of the death of two of his school friends in the bloody Battle of the Somme. He contracted Trench Fever in late October 1916 and returned to Birmingham, his hometown, by hospital ship and train. The final part of the book covers his time in England, an era in which he was blighted by illness. Richly illustrated, this fascinating volume is an essential purchase for Tolkien-lovers everywhere.