TumblogWritings, musings and generally lighthearted bantee

Good news for those of us waiting ever so patiently until the September release of “The Tolkien Professor” Dr. Corey Olsen’s new book, Exploring J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit!

Word from Professor Olsen himself is that blurbs from his fellow Tolkien scholars are coming in now and that the first review, courtesy of Publishers Weekly, is out.  Publishersweekly.com notes that fans of The Tolkien Professor site and podcasts “will be pleased to discover Olsen narrowing his focus here to The Hobbit…” and proclaims it a “work of love backed up by professional experience, this book is packed with information; the author’s infectious enthusiasm pervades his words, ensuring that what could have been a dry work in other hands will retain even a casual reader’s interest.”

Read the full Review here: http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-547-73946-5

To keep up to date on Reviews and news about Exploring J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, visit our Exploring press page: http://www.mythgard.org/exclusives/exploring-the-hobbit/press

You can pre-order copies of Exploring J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit on Amazon.com, and signed copies are available by contacting Shannon Wyble at [email protected].  International shipping available; credit card orders only, please.

And of course you can visit The Tolkien Professor website (http://tolkienprofessor.com) to listen to podcasts and learn more about his other endeavors, Signum University and The Mythgard Institute.

Missed the open house session on Mythgard Academy’s first Tolkien course “Lord of the Rings I: The Road Goes Ever On”?  Never fear!  Dr. Olsen recorded the entire session so you can learn more about this great opportunities for high school students and adults alike:

Learn even more about Mythgard Academy and sign up here.

Faerie and Fantasy 29 is available for immediate download here or check it out on iTunes. The heated discussion of the C.S. Lewis classic, “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” continues with chapters 7-11.

Professor Olsen and his class tackle chapters 1-6 of C.S. Lewis’s classic fantasy, “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe”.Find it here or on iTunes.

The third week of discussion of Chapter 19 of The Silmarilion “Of Beren and Luthien” is now available. Be sure to listen to the very end to hear Dave Kale’s special announcement! You can find the file here and on iTunes.

Looking for a short course on Tolkien this Summer?  Mythgard’s got just the thing for you!  For only $90, students who want to participate in this Summer’s Mythgard Academy course, “The Lord of the Rings I: The Road Goes Ever On” can sign up to audit.  The course will be taught by Dr. Corey Olsen and will cover The Fellowship of the Ring in detail! Auditing will give you access to all six live class sessions as well as the recordings of each so you can listen on your own schedule.

And for those of you who want to get practice with college writing, Mythgard Academy is also offering the courses with individual writing tutors for just $160.  There’s even a Harry Potter course if you want to branch out into new worlds!

The Tolkien course kicks off on July 9 and registration closes in the first week of July so visit Mythgard Academy to learn more and sign up!

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Tolkien’s American publishers, are starting to gear up for the 75th Anniversary celebration of The Hobbit, and they are providing a glimpse into my book as part of the fun!  You can check out the excerpt from my book here (http://www.mythgard.org/exclusives/book-excerpt/) and head over to Houghton Mifflin’s new Hobbit Facebook app (http://apps.facebook.com/readthehobbit/Home).  They’ve just started up that app, and I’ll be working with them on more content in the next few months.  If you have suggestions for something you’d like to see, let me know!

Professor Olsen wraps up “Smith of Wooten Major”, and his students propose a controversial new interpretation of the text. Find the file here, or listen on The Tolkien Professor’s feed on iTunes.

Faerie and Fantasy 26 is available! This time Dr. Olsen tackles J.R.R Tolkien’s “Smith of Wootton Major” and takes a look at the realm of Faerie. Find it and all the episodes of the Faerie and Fantasy class here, or listen on iTunes.

The BBC archives have just released something truly remarkable for any fans of Tolkien:  a rare video interview from 1968!  In the clip from In Their Own Words, J.R.R. Tolkien talks about everything from nature to his love of beer – and, of course, his books.  A treat to start off your Monday, we hope!

Watch part two and read more over at The Good Report.

(Thanks to Patricia Ralston for posting this over at Mythgard’s Facebook page.)