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A review by caireann
The Keys of Middle-Earth: Discovering Medieval Literature Through the Fiction of J.R.R. Tolkien by S. Lee, Elizabeth Solopova
5.0
It's a must-read for all those that are looking for references in Tolkien's fiction in order to fully understand the meanings behind certain concepts and motifs taken from Old English and Old Norse verse. It focuses mostly on The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings, providing excerpts that are of particular interest to us on the basis of specific fragments from the book. Hence, we are given a very nice comparison of texts with a lenghty description and notes that may help tackle with the original.
What I loved about this book, that it's rather a self-study rather than a given analysis. We are given hints, background, general descriptions of themes, and a text. And this is what matters - the ability of comparing it further by ourselves with the help of additional notes and appendices. These bits of texts were meant to fuel the need for more of the source texts, and - at least in my case - they were successful.
What I loved about this book, that it's rather a self-study rather than a given analysis. We are given hints, background, general descriptions of themes, and a text. And this is what matters - the ability of comparing it further by ourselves with the help of additional notes and appendices. These bits of texts were meant to fuel the need for more of the source texts, and - at least in my case - they were successful.