Amazing.

Excellent little book. Wood deftly examines a comprehensive range of Tolkien's work to uncover his decidedly Christian vision of Middle-earth. Well written and well supported with compelling evidence from Tolkien's vast Legendarium and from Christian Scripture and tradition. Highly recommend this book!

Many hold the works of J.R.R. Tolkien high as magnificent works of literature, while others criticize them from afar. After reading Mr. Wood's analysis of the Christian themes inherent in Tolkien's books, I have a much-increased appreciation for the lovely writing and powerful stories I've discovered in the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings. Beyond skilled artistry, Tolkien's works brim with gospel-saturation. The Gospel According to Tolkien is an incredible guide through Tolkien's writings, bringing to light the subtle threads of Christianity woven into the fabric of his tales of Middle Earth.

If I had the choice I’d give this book a 3.5/5 stars. But I gave it a 4 rather than a 3 because the content is great but the length not so much. It’s not a long book but 4/5 chapters averaged 40 pages long. The chapters just felt like they dragged on especially when they could have been broken up to smaller chapters.

Also I would say that the title really should be, The Gospel Found in Tolkien. I’m not a fan of putting words into an authors mouth that they never said. I really don’t know much about Tolkien and his writings on Middle Earth, but aspects of the book read more so as what could be drawn from Tolkien rather than what Tolkien said. Any well written story have a Gospel arch because any well written story represents humanity well.

What Wood pointed out was really good and makes the experience of reading/watching the LOTR more interesting and deep. Overall, the content was really good and I honestly wasn’t knowledgeable enough to follow some of it because I haven’t actually read much of Tolkien’s works on Middle Earth.

What a brilliant book! By far the greatest interpretive work on Tolkien's fiction that I've ever read. This is possibly the only work of literary-criticism I've read that opened my eyes to unseen depths in the world of an author's fiction while simultaneously enriching my own immediate world on the same level. I was frequently stunned at Wood's succinct and lucid genius in explaining perplexing issues of Tolkien's thought, while all the while imparting the profound wisdom of his main themes into applicable virtues. This is the kind of book you could easily return to again and again (especially in conjunction with returning to The Lord of The Rings again and again).
If you wish to understand The Lord of the Rings on a deeper level than just a moving story about a journey with fantasy creatures, you absolutely need to read this book. It might change the way you view fiction, and your life and world.

Great book that connects faith and fantasy in a way that isn't a stretch.

Pretty good analysis of Tolkien's themes but there's a bit too much "cut and dry" dealing with Tolkien's themes. I'd recommend Battle for Middle-Earth by Fleming Rutledge as a follow-up for more in-depth study.

A book that provoked lots of good thinking on both the Lord of Rings as well as Christianity.

Fans of Tolkien and Middle-earth will love the rich tapestry that is weaved through this book but even more as a Christian my heart was blessed to see the beauty of redemption shown through a favorite book.

From my Weekly Standard review [http://tinyurl.com/3x7pha]:

But among all these new books, Ralph Wood's The Gospel According to Tolkien stands out for its discussion of the Christian theology that informs the depictions of evil in The Lord of the Rings.

Other writers--notably Joseph Pearce and Bradley Birzer--have written on the orthodox Christian character of the trilogy, but many of these authors tend to overplay the superficial Christian elements like the eucharistic symbolism of the elven waybread lembas, or the Marian imagery behind the depiction of the elven Lady Galadriel. By taking a less overt, less defensive, and more meditational approach to the work's Christian character, Wood ends up presenting a more complete and convincing discussion of the Catholicity of Tolkien's work. Far from being home to cartoonish villains or black-and-white representations of evil, "The Lord of the Rings," Wood argues convincingly, depicts "malign magic as the product of panicked despair."

probably 4.5, I found it quite insightful

I was pleasantly surprised by this brief work by Ralph C. Wood. I would have normally passed up a book like this, but Wood’s work with Flannery O’Connor established him in my mind as a serious, thoughtful scholar—not just someone making a buck off of someone else’s genius.

Wood’s literary and theological reflections are equally thoughtful and articulate; I found myself processing Tolkien’s work and Christian doctrines in fresh ways as he made connections between them.

I expect that none of Wood’s observations are radically new (especially if someone has done the work of slogging through parts of The Silmarillion beforehand), but I still found it worthwhile. In fact, readers who aren’t familiar with The Silmarillion might find this to be a helpful entrance point to this tedious work, particularly regarding the deities (?) working behind the scenes.