Review: J.R.R. Tolkein by Mark Horne

Summary: Mark Horne takes readers from the beginnings to the end of the famous author J.R.R. Tolkein's life, giving particular emphasis to Tolkein's inspirations for Lord of the Rings and Tokein's interaction with other key authors including C.S. Lewis. Horne also emphasizes Tolkein's commitment to his Catholic faith.

Review: This is part of the "Christian Encounters" biography series, so, naturally, there are more references to faith than there might be in other biographies of Tolkein. But the religious elements are not prevalent, so non Christians could easily enjoy this book, especially Tolkein fans. And the book offers a lot of tid bits about where Lord of the Rings characters and locations came from, which followers of the books and movies are bound to enjoy. An easy read (aside from a few parts that are hard to follow, as is typical of a biography), and an enjoyable read, this biography is a good read even for the person who doesn't typically enjoy biographies.

On a Personal Note: I was sad to learn that Tolkein was a strong Catholic. The fact may be obvious to most, but I had no idea, and learning this fact made me lose some of my admiration for the author. In my opinion, Catholicism and Christianity are not the same, and if Tolkein believed in certain things like Purgatory, praying to Mary, and confession to the priest, I'm afraid... well... you can defer the rest.

* Disclaimer: I received this book from BookSneeze in return for my honest review of it.