Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by John Garth

The Wonder of Tolkien @tolkienwonder.bsky.social · 4d

Tolkien and the Great War
by @johngarthwriter.bsky.social
t.co/RwYqQykkry

https://amzn.to/46NOe3a

t.co

1

Reposted by John Garth

The Wonder of Tolkien @tolkienwonder.bsky.social · 4d

The Worlds of JRR Tolkien
by @johngarthwriter.bsky.social
amzn.to/4nDXBd0

The Letters of JRR Tolkien
amzn.to/3ISIRYy

Pity Power & Tolkien's Ring
by @alas-not-me.bsky.social
amzn.to/3VQex3Q

The Fantasy of JRR Tolkien
amzn.to/435Vnuz

Tolkien & the Great War
by by John Garth
amzn.to/42qOLqr

1

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · 4d

As #Tolkien became professor of Anglo-Saxon in Oxford century ago, the city’s Morris Motors became Britain’s biggest car maker. There's a certain inevitability he would flourish a poison pen on the topic. I review THE BOVADIUM FRAGMENTS in today's Times. www.thetimes.com/culture/book...

Lord of the ring road — JRR Tolkien’s war against the motor car

In the posthumously published satire The Bovadium Fragments, the Hobbit creator inveighs against car culture

www.thetimes.com

6 20

Reposted by John Garth

Thoughts on Tolkien @tolkienthoughts.bsky.social · 5d

During the month of October @princetonupress.bsky.social has @johngarthwriter.bsky.social's excellent book "The Worlds of J.R.R. Tolkien" available for 70% off! If you don't have it already, this is a great opportunity.

1 6 10

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · 10d

Did you know J.R.R. Tolkien was an air raid warden in the Second World War while writing The Lord of the Rings? Now a previously unseen archive image reveals the date he joined. I have thoughts on why…
tinyurl.com/tolkienwarden
#Tolkien #WW2 #Oxford #LotR

The day Tolkien became a WW2 air raid warden

The day Tolkien enrolled as a Second World War air-raid warden has been revealed in a previously unseen image from Oxford’s city archives…

tinyurl.com

6 22

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · 15d

That's amazing! A primary school teacher changed my life by reading The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe to us when I was seven – instantly turning me into an avid reader.

1

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · 15d

Reread The Hobbit – and maybe you'll want to venture further this time.

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · 16d

That's the first copy I read too, passed on by my big sisters.

1 1

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · 16d

Happy Hobbit Day everyone! On this day in 1937, J.R.R. Tolkien gave us The Hobbit, our doorway into Middle-earth. Inside he hid a gift to his favourite aunt. My latest blog post will put you in the picture! tinyurl.com/hobbitongrange
#Tolkien #HobbitDay #Hobbit

2 4 23

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · 26d

Tolkien hid all kinds of personal jokes and messages in his stories and – it turns out – in his pictures. Here's a newly discovered one in his famous image of Hobbiton. tinyurl.com/hobbitongrange
#Tolkien #Hobbit #Hobbiton #inspiration #Nottinghamshire

Tolkien’s hidden gift to his favourite aunt

Tolkien hid all kinds of personal jokes and messages in his stories and – it turns out – in his pictures. Here's a newly discovered one in his famous image of Hobbiton.

tinyurl.com

6 28

Reposted by John Garth

Gareth Hanrahan @mytholder.bsky.social · Sep 7

At his talk in Cork, @johngarthwriter.bsky.social talked about the influence of the Tuatha de Danann on the elves. This whole sequence reminds me a bit of another part of Irish mythology, the Colloquy of the Ancients.

1 1 10

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · Sep 6

"Stop! Hey, wait a minute Mr. Publican…"

1

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · Sep 5

By my calculations, he was 6,517 at the time of the Council of Elrond. Only 9 years to go before he'd reach the 64-year mark for the 102nd time! But "When I'm 6,528" doesn't quite have that McCartney touch, does it?

2

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · Sep 5

Holy smoke!

1

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · Sep 5

Elrond's song title is great, but I think he's lost count.

1 3

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · Sep 5

Moria Medley:
Yrch Blues
Hey Balrog
Get Back (I Am the Servant of the Flame of Anor)

1 2

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · Sep 5

One for each hobbit! Sam’s and Pippin’s are hilarious.

2

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · Sep 5

Catchy, eh?

2

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · Sep 4

Excellent Bombadil point! And The Wight Album 💀

2

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · Sep 4

What do you think the #Beatles might have sung if they'd made their #LotR movie? I'll start…
Carry That Weight
Shelob’s You
Elanor Gamgee
I Am The Man Who Wrote The Oxford English Dictionary Etymology For The Word “Walrus”

[Gary B and Gary D 🥲 also contributed. No AI was used in this image.]

2 2 16

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · Sep 4

What do you think the #Beatles might have sung if they'd made their #LotR movie? I'll start…
Carry That Weight
Shelob’s You
Elanor Gamgee
I Am The Man Who Wrote The Oxford English Dictionary Etymology For The Word “Walrus”

[No AI was used in this image. Gary B and Gary D 😢 contributed.]

5 3 7

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · Aug 28

My new article with @petermgilliver.bsky.social, in the newly announced Tolkien Studies 21, sheds light on a hazy but crucial period of Tolkien's life – at the end of his WW1 soldiering and the start of his OED work. kalimac.blogspot.com/2025/08/tolk...

#tolkien #oed #ww1 #tolkienstudies

4 14

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · Aug 22

New fan and new follower here. For the past few days, I've been listening to you narrate your amazing Before Mars, several hours a day. Meanwhile you've been going through the absolute mill. Get well as soon as can be!

1 1

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · Jul 19

To be fair, Marcel, I *occasionally* live the good life.

1 2

John Garth @johngarthwriter.bsky.social · Jul 16

The unexpected joys of teaching a Tolkien course in Tolkien's old Oxford college, Merton… My room is in a 16th-century building and the view from the windows might be of some nook of Minas Tirith. Outside in the street someone is talking about Tolkien. It's deep immersion!

1 8 60