'Even the smallest person can change the course of the future.'
The prophetic words of Galadriel, addressed to Frodo as he
prepared to travel from Lothlorien to Mordor to destroy the One
Ring, are just as pertinent to J R R Tolkien's own fiction. For
decades, hobbits and the other fantastical creatures of Middle-
earth have captured the imaginations of a fiercely loyal tribe
of readers, all enhanced by the immense success of Peter
Jackson's films: first "The Lord of the Rings", and now his new
"The Hobbit". But for all Tolkien's global fame and the
familiarity of modern culture with Gandalf, Bilbo, Frodo and
Sam, the sources of the great mythmaker's own myth-making have
been neglected. Mark Atherton here explores the chief influences
on Tolkien's work: his boyhood in the West Midlands; the
landscapes and seascapes which shaped his mythologies; his
experiences in World War I; his interest in Scandinavian myth;
his friendships, especially with the other Oxford-based
Inklings; and the relevance of his themes, esp