The J. R. R. Tolkien Companion and Guide: Boxed Set

I finally got my hands on the Tolkien Companion and Guide Books Set which is a must have for all collectors, the books set arrived in perfect condition.

I hardly know where to begin describing these books. The amount of work that has gone into this and the sheer wealth of detail is phenomenal. The three books (hardbacks in dust jackets) are all encased in a very hard thick card slip cover. The books are quite tightly squeezed into the slipcase so I found I have to tip the case up in order to get a volume out, and they do have a tendency to all want to come out together. The first volume is a chronology of Tolkien's life. The detail increases throughout, ie the latter part of his life is better documented than the beginning, as one would expect. The two other volumes comprise a Reader's Guide, which includes histories & discussions of Tolkien's works, analyses of the mythology, brief biographies of people Tolkien knew and various essays on all sorts of other things. A must buy for any Tolkien enthusiast.Incidentally I have noticed that the price of these volumes has varied quite significantly. I have seen them on here as much as £130 per set and as low as £72 per set. (All brand new on Prime)

Good books but very poor quality production. In all 3 volumes at least half the pages have flaws in the paper, furrows and creases - very poor production by Unwin Hyman

Just got the set yesterday! Like some users said it looks a tad smaller. I was expecting it to be a lot bigger since my LOTR set is exactly the same size as this one. Anyways, there's loads and loads of info which will keep you busy for a long time. What i didn't like was the fact that there were no pictures of any kind. Just lots of info on JRRT. Highly recommended if you're a die-hard fan. Not recommended to casuals.

I am overhelmed. Just cannot find the words to express the feelings. Ready for a long journey as far as reading is concerned. In years to come I plan to find the answers to the questions on Tolkien in this Companion and Guide. Great job of the authors and plenty of useful information for the readers (and Tolkien's books fans mostly).

Love Tolkien.

Fantastic man was a genius who makes modern author's look idiots

It goes without saying that the content of this expanded and revised edition of the Companion & Guide is of a high quality, as we have come to expect from Hammond & Scull. The original edition was already very comprehensive, and it will depend on your apetite for the material, whether you need to "upgrade". If you don't have the first edition and you have an interest in Tolkien's life and works, this is one of those must-have editions, though.In terms of the physical construction of the books, this review is for the 1st printing of the boxed set. They are - unfortunately - printed in China (I knocked off a star for that), but unlike some of the other recent HarperCollins Chinese editions (which have been awful), the books are well-made and have curved spines and high quality jackets. The slipcase is solid (more solid than the first edition), and the only downside is that the first batch had excess glue, which can stick to the edges of the dustjackets. If you get such a set, you will need to remove the books very gently. A little bit of paper from the inside of the slipcase will come off onto the jackets, but this can easily be removed with a thumbnail. Presumably later printings will not have this problem, and certainly some of the initial run were sent back by the publisher to be re-jacketed and slipcased.

Deve constar da estante de todos os admiradores da obra de J R R Tolkien .

I must preface this review with the fact that I have had very mixed experiences with buying books through amazon, the prices are usually very good but the books are sometimes not well packaged which can result in alot of damage. (Usually superficial I admit, though damage is damage regardless.)This set of books arrived in a slightly bigger box than necessary. However the books were well wrapped in plastic which protected even the vulnerable edges from damage.This actually suprised me in the best of ways, as it was shipped all the way from Poland to the U.S. The books themselves are of a very high quality, with nice thick pages, fine print, and a sturdy slipcase for the three of them that fits them just right! I started looking through the Chronology immediately and know without a doubt I will not regret purchasing this set from Christina Scull and Wayne G. Hammond. They have quite alot of valuable insight on Tolkien, and after already having The Art of the Hobbit and The Art of the Lotr I look forward to reading these books as well for an even greater understanding and knowledge of my favorite 20th century author as well as the wonderful secondary world he created for us all to enjoy.

!!ATTENZIONE!!Questi tre volumi riguardano Tolkien, NON espressamente le sue opere.Quindi la "Chronology" è la cronologia della SUA VITA, NON di quella di Arda/Terra di Mezzo.Il "Companion" invece riguarda TEMATICHE (religione, figure retoriche, lingue ecc.) contenute nelle sue opere, NON una sorta di enciclopedia alfabetica dei personaggi.Se cercate questo, "The Complete Guide To Middle Earth" (9780007169429) di Robert Foster è quello che fa per voi.Detto questo, la ritengo un'ottima opera per approfondire la vostra conoscenza dell'Autore più importante (a mio parere) del XX secolo, andando ad analizzare molti aspetti della sua vita e della sua componente creativa.

This is a set for serious or amateur scholars of Tolkien, the man; and/or Tolkien, his literary works. The volumes are thick and heavy with quite small print, so be forewarned. They are, however, a comprehensive and detailed look at Tolkien's life and writings. For me (an amateur scholar), this set is an updated version of a single volume set I already have. You need a cold winter, a fireplace, a glass of wine - cigar optional, an obsessive interest in Tolkien, and a lot of time to truly appreciate these volumes. A practical description of the contents is available elsewhere, so I won't repeat that here. A must have if you're a true fan.

The Chronology: is a listing of significant events relating to Tolkien and starts in 1857 with the birth of J. R. R. Tolkien's father through to November 1973, 50 pages of notes and a unified index of the 3 volumes.Reader's Guide Part 1: consists of entries A-M of key works, quotations from key essays, biographical information, details of people key to Tolkien, criticism, research and general studies.Reader's Guide Part 2: consists of entries N-Z continued from part 1 plus Family Trees, Bibliographies of Tolkien's published works, academic contributions, art, poetry. A section of work consulted which will blow you away how deeply they have studied for these works. Then again like the chronology there is the unified Index.This set is an essential aid to researching J. R. R. Tolkien.