Talking Tolkien Podcast – Ep. 8 – Interview with Illustrator Evan Palmer

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The cycles should be linked to a majestic whole, and yet leave scope for other minds and hands, wielding paint and music and drama.

– Silmarillion xii

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©2013-2015rfcunha

We had a chance to sit down with illustrator and Artist-of-the-Month Evan Palmer of EvanPalmerComics.com and discuss his amazingly cool graphic novel interpretation of Ainulindalë. It was a blast talking to Evan and we learned a ton about his methods and inspirations, so you don’t want to miss it. Enjoy!

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Tolkien’s Letters – 113: An Apology to C.S. Lewis

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Do me the great generosity of making me a present of the pains I have caused, so that I may share in the good you have put them to. (127)

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I love Tolkien’s letters almost as much as his Middle-earth works. In fact, it is probably his letters more than anything that have inspired the creation of this site, for in them I find a dragon’s hoard of wisdom and insight. This is the first post in a series on Tolkien’s letters, in which I will explore the best of the bunch, and gleam whatever insights and quotable snippets I can find.

My daily devotional.

If there is anyone who has influenced and inspired me as much as Tolkien, it would be C.S. Lewis. In fact, I had been into Lewis’ works for years before I ever really discovered his buddy Tolkien. It’s a pleasure then to read correspondence between the two, and so the first of Tolkien’s letters that I’ll be exploring is a letter he wrote to C.S. Lewis in 1948. It is Letter #113 in the book.

The Silmarillion – A Beginner’s Guide – Pt 24 (Of Beren and Lúthien 1/3)

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http://truemyths.org/blog/the-silmarillion-a-beginners-guide-redux-part-24-of-beren-and-luthien-part-1

Thanks for visiting!

Talking Tolkien Podcast – Ep. 6 – On Enjoying Tolkien (or Reasons Why)

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I think we delight to praise what we enjoy because the praise not merely expresses but completes the enjoyment; it is its appointed consummation. It is not out of compliment that lovers keep on telling one another how beautiful they are; the delight is incomplete till it is expressed. It is frustrating to have discovered a new author and not to be able to tell anyone how good he is; to come suddenly, at the turn of the road, upon some mountain valley of unexpected grandeur and then to have to keep silent because the people with you care for it no more than for a tin can in the ditch; to hear a good joke and find no one to share it with. . . . 

– C.S. Lewis, Reflections on the Psalms

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©2013-2015 rfcunha

Why spend so much time talking and writing about Tolkien? What does it mean to fully enjoy something? We discuss these matters, with a little help from C.S. Lewis, on our first non-Silmarillion episode. Come get lost in Middle-earth and explore the history of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings!

Talking Tolkien Podcast – Ep. 5 – The Silmarillion – Ch. 2 – Of Aulë and Yavanna

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It is told that in their beginning the Dwarves were made by Aulë in the darkness of Middle-earth; for so greatly did Aulë desire the coming of the Children, to have learners to whom he could teach his lore and his crafts, that he was unwilling to await the fulfilment of the designs of Ilúvatar. (43)

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©2013-2015 rfcunha

Why do we humans make things? Why are we driven to fashion objects of beauty and create stories? Aulë and Yavanna are two figures that yield some Tolkienian insights into these foundational questions.

The Silmarillion – A Beginner’s Guide – Pt 23 (Of the Ruin of Beleriand 2/2)

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http://truemyths.org/blog/the-silmarillion-a-beginners-guide-redux-part-23-of-the-ruin-of-beleriand-part-2

Thanks for visiting!

Talking Tolkien Podcast – Ep. 4 – The Silmarillion – Ch. 1 – Of the Beginning of Days

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And as they watched, upon the mound there came forth two slender shoots . . . and thus there awoke in the world the Two Trees of Valinor. . . about their fate all the tales of the Elder Days are woven. (38)

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©2013-2015 rfcunha

Episode 4 of Talking Tolkien is live! In this episode, Greta and I discuss Chapter 1 of The Silmarillion, “Of the Beginning of Days.” If you are looking for a very short written synopsis of this chapter, you can find that over at my Beginner’s Guide to The Silmarillion.

The Silmarillion – A Beginner’s Guide – Pt 22 (Of the Ruin of Beleriand 1/2)

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http://truemyths.org/blog/the-silmarillion-a-beginners-guide-redux-part-22-of-the-ruin-of-beleriand-part-1

Enjoy!

Concerning Tolkien’s “Farmer Giles of Ham”

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‘A bargain’s a bargain,’ said Giles. ‘Can’t I keep just a ring or two, and a mite of gold, in consideration of cash payment?’ said [the dragon]. (149)

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Just what is “Farmer Giles of Ham“? Is it a comedic recasting of The Hobbit? Is it a send-up of academic attitudes toward Beowulf?  Is it a satirical jab at money hungry politicians? Was it Tolkien’s first attempt to cash in on the success of The Hobbit?

©2010-2015 getoart

Talking Tolkien Podcast – Ep. 3 – The Silmarillion – Valaquenta

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She goes rather to the halls of Mandos, which are near to her own; and all those who wait in Mandos cry to her, for she brings strength to the spirit and turns sorrow to wisdom. The windows of her house look outward from the walls of the world.

– Valaquenta

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©2013-2015 rfcunha