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Tolkien began to work on The Lord of the Rings less than three months after the 1937 publication of The Hobbit. A mere three weeks after its release Stanley Unwin (founder and chairman of George Allen & Unwin) warned Tolkien that “‘a large public’ would be ‘clamoring next year to hear more from you about Hobbits!’” (Letters by J.R.R. Tolkien, #17). Although Tolkien’s chief interest lay with the tales that would eventually become The Silmarillion, he nevertheless spent the next 12 years crafting and reworking the complex narrative of The Lord of the Rings. “It is written in my life-blood, such as that is, thick or thin; and I can no other” (Letters, #109). Tolkien’s process was as meticulous as it was inspired, “Hardly a word in its 600,000 or more has been unconsidered” (Letters, #131). His perseverance paid off and The Lord of the Rings has enjoyed an almost unceasing popularity ever since. |
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Home » The Lord of the Rings » U.S. Editions
