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Home The Rangers Library J.R.R. Tolkien

Tolkien Info Center

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The Lord of the Rings was written by professor John Ronald Reuel Tolkien and it was published in the 1950's. It is considered by many as the standard work of Modern Fantasy literature. His books became immensely popular (being voted as best book of the 20th century in some polls) and the motion picture trilogy by director Peter Jackson has contributed immensely to its current popularity, leading to the creation of Lord of the Rings Online (LOTRO) by the software company Turbine.

But what is this simulation world of Middle Earth based on? Why did an Oxford professor write fantasy? Who was J.R.R. Tolkien, actually? And what did he write?

Answers to this you will find in this section of the Rangers' Library - it's a compendium of Tolkien and his books.


In this section, you can find background and information on John Ronald Reuel Tolkien.

He is the creative father of Middle Earth and an inspiration for all. In the Tolkien Biography section you can read who he was, when he lived and what made an English University professor set the standard for Fantasy literature.
In the Tolkien Bibliography section you can find all the books J.R.R. Tolkien has published, from the well-known works like Lord of the Rings, to lesser known works like Leaf by Niggle.

In the second section you can find summaries of Tolkien's most important works: The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit and the Silmarillion.

  • The Lord of the Rings was published in 3 parts in 1954-55 and it became a bestseller in the 1970'ies. It is Tolkien's best known work and it describes the events in Middle Earth at the End of the Third Age. The LOTRO game is based on this book.
  • The Hobbit was the first major work of Tolkien on Middle Earth, first published in 1937 and primarily meant as a children's book. It describes the adventures of Bilbo Baggins at the End of the Third Age.
  • The Silmarillion is the essential source for stories of the First and Second Age in Middle Earth. It is a rather complicated story, due to the many names and events which are described in it, but it is an essential work for those engaged in serious roleplaying. The main story is the history of the Elves and the Silmarils, the Great Jewels of the Noldor, in the First Age. A smaller part is dedicated to the Men of Westernesse, of which Aragorn descends.