The Complete Tolkien Companion

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The Tolkien Companion
Tolkien companion.jpg
AuthorJ.E.A. Tyler
PublisherGramercy
Released1976
FormatHardcover
Pages544
ISBN517146487

The Tolkien Companion is a reference book by J.E.A. Tyler. It was first published in 1976, before The Silmarillion, and the first edition contained numerous errors that were partly corrected in later editions.

In later editions, it has also been called The New Tolkien Companion (1979, incorporating information from The Silmarillion) and The Complete Tolkien Companion (2002, incorporating also limited information from Unfinished Tales and The History of Middle-earth). In 2000, a re-print of the original, uncorrected edition was reprinted under the original name.

From the Publisher

Between 1932 and 1953, Professor John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, of Oxford, England, translated four volumes compiled by the renowned Hobbits Bilbo and Frodo Baggins, written during the Third Age of Middle Earth (sic), far longer ago than the Celtic, Germanic and Icelandic manuscripts Professor Tolkien was used to deciphering. The result was The Hobbit, and readers have never been the same since.

In 1954, seventeen years after The Hobbit first appeared, its sequel, The Lord of the Rings was published, and it became the centerpiece of Tolkien's work. The Ring Epic covers approximately ten thousand years, and contains a vast amount of information as well as a huge variety of words and names which Tolkien translated from the Elvish and Mannish tongues. The Tolkien Companion is an impressive endeavor to guide one through the world of Middle Earth (sic), compiling every fact, name, word, and date from all the works into one comprehensive and accessible volume.

Here, in one source, is the High History of the Elven peoples. The origins of Morgoth the Enemy is clarified, as is his Fall, and the subsequent rise to power of Sauron the Great, Lord of the Rings. The heroic epic of how the Free peoples -- Elves, Men, Ents, Dwarves, and Hobbits -- survived against the Peril of the Ancient World is meticulously detailed. And a guide to the various Elvish writing systems, together with explanatory maps, charts, even genealogical tables, bring the remarkable genius of Tolkien and the unforgettable world and wonder of Middle Earth to life with focus and accuracy. Presented in alphabetical order for quick and easy reference, The Tolkien Companion is an indispensable accompaniment for anyone who embarks on the reading journey of a lifetime.