Historian Working on New Tolkien Book

Tom Holland is a top historian, well known for his books Persian Fire, Rubicon, Millenium, Dynasty, and Atheistan. He’s recently tweeted a series of interesting statements hinting at a new book that is closely tied to Tolkien.

I finish Lord Of The Rings. What a strange & powerful achievement it is: the foundational work of a whole new genre; a brilliant reworking of early medieval literature; a moving work of Christian apologetics; and a dark & at times Orwellian meditation on 20th century history.

— Tom Holland (@holland_tom) December 30, 2018

His tweet states, “I finish Lord of the Rings. What a strange & powerful achievement it is: the foundational work of a whole new genre; a brilliant reworking of early medieval literature; a moving work of Christian apologetics; and a dark & at times Orwellian meditation on 20th century history.”

This was just one of a series of Tolkien related tweets by Holland. He also included a quote from The Return of the King book, “At his summons, wheeling with a rending cry, in a last desperate race there flew faster than the winds, the Nazgul, the Ringwraiths, & with a storm of wings they hurtled southwards to Mount Doom.” He also tweeted a picture of the One Ring.

Bye bye! pic.twitter.com/5HIH4PaawK

— Tom Holland (@holland_tom) December 30, 2018

When Holland was questioned on the pattern of these tweets, he explained that Tolkien had a starring role in his next book. No other information, however, was given. Holland has said that as a child he read The Lord of the Rings books several times. But rereading them now, as an adult, has allowed him to view their context from the perspective of a historian. This isn’t the first time Holland has spoken about the impact of Tolkien’s masterpieces. During the Hay Festival dedicated to the arts, he spoke on why he feels The Lord of the Rings is the greatest historical novel.

The stories from Tolkien’s books have only increased in popularity over the years since their publication. When Holland’s book comes to the shelves, it should be an interesting read. A new perspective in which to view these novels that fans perhaps hadn’t considered before.