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Dictionnaire Tolkien review in Medievally Speaking
A little over a month ago, I published a review of Dictionnaire Tolkien in Medievally Speaking, an open access review publication associated with the International Society for the Study of Medievalism. This book challenged me to think about the reception of Tolkien in languages other than English; specifically in this case, in French. It hadn’t
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What a day for Tolkien news!
This morning, in the midst of grading and preparing class notes and answering student emails, I happened to glance at my twitter feed to find that the long-awaited Beowulf translation by Tolkien is about to be published on May 22! Beowulf: A Translation and Commentary is another in a series of publications by the author’s
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The Tolkien Encyclopedia & Reader’s Diary: A Look Back
The J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment is now available in paperback and Kindle version, making this reference work much more affordable than the $100-plus Canadian and US hardback edition (with similar pricing in the UK). The Encyclopedia, edited by Michael D.C. Drout, includes entries by well-known critics such as Tom Shippey, Verlyn Flieger,
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Tracking Tolkien conference listings
In the past I’ve tried to list all of the Tolkien-related conferences that I knew of in the coming year, but now I’ve discovered that I don’t have to. Marcel Aubron-Bülles at The Tolkienist has compiled a wonderful list of Tolkien-related meetings throughout Europe and North America, more extensive than anything I would do! So
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CFP: Humour in and around Tolkien’s work
This call for papers just came in. The original deadlines have been extended. Proposals are now due on March 3 and, if accepted, final papers by June 30. Call for Papers: Humour in and around the works of Tolkien Tolkien has until recently been seen primarily as a writer of epic fantasy, a genre usually
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CFP: Tales After Tolkien: Medievalism and Genre in the Twenty-First Century
The following call for papers came through the Studies in Medievalism email list. You can find some information about the Tales After Tolkien Society on their website, which outlines their formation at the 2013 International Congress on Medieval Studies in Kalamazoo. CFP: Contributions are sought for an edited collection titled Tales After Tolkien: Medievalism and
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Tolkien Studies at PCA: sessions announced
Here is the list of Tolkien Studies sessions that have been approved for the 2014 Popular Culture Association / American Culture Association conference in Chicago in April. The dates and times of the sessions will be posted on the PCA/ACA website in February. As you can see, there was an excellent response to this year’s
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AAU Teaching Showcase: Voicing Interpretations
Each year, the Association of Atlantic Universities sponsors a Teaching Showcase, a conference on a specific theme dealing with teaching and learning. This year’s conference theme at Mount Allison University in Sackville New Brunswick was “Assessment: Teaching, Learning, Quality.” As always, the conference provided plenty of opportunities to reflect on what I do in the
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Tolkien Conference Season in the US: Spring & Summer 2014
This coming spring and summer will see a number of Tolkien conference sessions in the US: you might have to pace yourself carefully! I’m focusing on American conferences, since those are the ones I know best — let me know if there are others I’ve missed. I would also love to hear about upcoming Tolkien
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Popular Culture Association: Tolkien Studies — deadline Nov. 1st
The Popular Culture Association has designated a new special topic of Tolkien Studies, which may become a permanent area in the conference if enough interest is shown. Currently, I know of roundtables being proposed on the state of Tolkien Studies and on the Marquette Tolkien Archive, and I’ve also heard of individual papers likely to
A Single Leaf
“He used to spend a long time on a single leaf, trying to catch its shape, and its sheen, and the glistening of dewdrops on its edges.”
J.R.R. Tolkien, “Leaf by Niggle”
Anna Smol: A Single Leaf 