Darren Sutherland
Specialist
Literature
Lot 151
TOLKIEN ON THE LORD OF THE RINGS. TOLKIEN, J.R.R. 1892-1973. Autograph Letter Signed ("J.R.R. Tolkien") to Miss F.L. Perry on the reception and writing of The Lord of the Rings,
22 June 2023, 12:00 EDT
New YorkSold for US$16,640 inc. premium
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TOLKIEN ON THE LORD OF THE RINGS.
TOLKIEN, J.R.R. 1892-1973. Autograph Letter Signed ("J.R.R. Tolkien") to Miss F.L. Perry on the reception and writing of The Lord of the Rings, 2 pp, 170 x 133 mm, on a single sheet of 76 Sandfield Road stationery, September 20, 1954, old fold, minor staining.
TOLKIEN WRITES TO MISS PERRY ON THE RECEPTION OF THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING AND ON THE WRITING OF THE LORD OF THE RINGS. He begins noting a few less than favorable reviews, "the lowest depths being reached by master Peter Green in the D. Telegraph"), but importantly mentions his friend C.S. Lewis's "essay" in Time and Tide: "However, I cannot complain, as I have had some write-ups (which even my vanity suspects of being too good) of remarkable appreciation (and length): chief the 'essay' in Time and Tide by C.S. Lewis (not C. Day Lewis!), but others as widely distributed as the New Statesman, Truth, and Country Life."
He ends with a beautifully expressed note on the creative composition of his burgeoning masterpiece: "I do not think you can possibly have any inkling of what you are in for, as at the point you have reached, I had none myself. The whole process was far more like deciphering the pages (disordered) of a history, and of finding out what was there and did happen, than of 'invention.' Of that I had no experience — except in parts discarded as wrong."
Miss F.L. Perry was the first fan to send Tolkien a letter regarding the new book The Lord of the Rings, the sequel to The Hobbit, as he wrote to her in a letter dated August 6, 1954.
Tolkien enjoyed receiving letters from enthusiastic fans at the time and did not find replying to be a burden (see Hammond & Scull, A Tolkien Companion and Guide, 2006, p 437). Tolkien and Miss Perry exchanged a number of letters documenting his feelings during publication, and continued correspondence until 150-153 in this sale.
TOLKIEN WRITES TO MISS PERRY ON THE RECEPTION OF THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING AND ON THE WRITING OF THE LORD OF THE RINGS. He begins noting a few less than favorable reviews, "the lowest depths being reached by master Peter Green in the D. Telegraph"), but importantly mentions his friend C.S. Lewis's "essay" in Time and Tide: "However, I cannot complain, as I have had some write-ups (which even my vanity suspects of being too good) of remarkable appreciation (and length): chief the 'essay' in Time and Tide by C.S. Lewis (not C. Day Lewis!), but others as widely distributed as the New Statesman, Truth, and Country Life."
He ends with a beautifully expressed note on the creative composition of his burgeoning masterpiece: "I do not think you can possibly have any inkling of what you are in for, as at the point you have reached, I had none myself. The whole process was far more like deciphering the pages (disordered) of a history, and of finding out what was there and did happen, than of 'invention.' Of that I had no experience — except in parts discarded as wrong."
Miss F.L. Perry was the first fan to send Tolkien a letter regarding the new book The Lord of the Rings, the sequel to The Hobbit, as he wrote to her in a letter dated August 6, 1954.
Tolkien enjoyed receiving letters from enthusiastic fans at the time and did not find replying to be a burden (see Hammond & Scull, A Tolkien Companion and Guide, 2006, p 437). Tolkien and Miss Perry exchanged a number of letters documenting his feelings during publication, and continued correspondence until 150-153 in this sale.