Italian scholar Oronzo Cilli, is ready to see the results of years of hard work, come finally to life. On the 8th of August 2019, Tolkien’s Library: An Annotated Checklist will be released.
The book is now is now out, in Paperback and Hardback, on the Luna Press Store. You can also find it on AMazon and all the discerning retailers.
The digital version is also ready to download on all usual online sites (Kindle, Kobo, etc.)
Tolkien scholar Tom Shippey, author of the Foreword of Tolkien’s Library, has this to say about the book:
“A combination of circumstances means that we know more about J.R.R. Tolkien than about almost any other author, from any period. Nevertheless, in spite of all the efforts, there remains a certain opacity about Tolkien, both professionally and personally.
As this book shows, there is a way to bridge that gap which has not been previously attempted: a fact which makes this work by Oronzo Cilli arguably the work with most potential for giving us a truer understanding of Tolkien; a work which, besides its own immediate effect, points the way for many further studies. What Oronzo has done is, quite simply, to collect what is known about the books Tolkien owned and read.
The best guide to an author’s mind is through his books, and in the work of Oronzo Cilli we have now the best and most valuable guide to Tolkien’s books. It is a devoted, enduring, and above all inspirational work of scholarship, but not, as Oronzo knows, a final one. It joins that very select group of works, the most useful of all: a book we should keep, update, and write notes in the margin of, for the rest of our lives.”
“This book is a labour of love and will surely prove to be an important research tool for established and new Tolkien scholars alike.”
Dimitra Fimi
“Drawing together a wide range of information about Tolkien’s reading, Oronzo Cilli has constructed a library which never wholly existed, or did not wholly exist in one place or at one time, but represents the foundation of the work of one of the twentieth century’s greatest writers and scholars. Tolkien’s Library is an impressive, fascinating, and useful essay in bibliography.”
Christina Scull & Wayne G. Hammond
“From the thorough research of the untiring Tolkien scholar Oronzo Cilli, here is a unique guide to Tolkien’s Library which will catch your breath: more than 2,000 entries, ranging from the expected several editions of Beowulf to the complete surprises, such as Agatha Christie’s At Bertram’s Hotel. If you are doing research on Tolkien, you simply cannot miss Oronzo’s work.”
Giovanni C. Costabile
Tolkien artist, Jay Johnstone, is the talent behind the magnificent cover for Tolkien’s Library. You can see more of Jay’s work on his website.
Oronzo has created a Facebook page where you can read all the latest about the book.
As Tom Shippey says, this book is a work in progress, and as more entries are discovered, they will be added to Oronzo’s website, with the view of collecting them in the future.
We are looking forward to the release of Tolkien’s Library this summer. If you attend Tolkien 2019 conference, you can collect your copy there and, if you wish, get it signed by Oronzo Cilli, Tom Shippey and Jay Johnstone.
