Tolkien and the Good News

I really enjoyed this book. Wood articulates ideas that I felt but could not clearly express whenever I pick up Tolkien. Highly recommended for any Tolkien fans.

This book was great. If you love to know more about Tolkien's world then this is a great book.

It was a great companion to the books and I really enjoyed this book. The only thing that was a little was hard was that he quotes the 3rd book of the Lord of the Rings and I should have known that before going in because I have not yet read the Return of the King.

Besides that I really did enjoyed the book. It was a very good read and I liked how he matched the themes in the Christian belief and connected them to Tolkiens work. He brought in some other quotes in as well that connect with what he is talking about.

It made me think a lot about the Tolkiens books and the characters that I love in those books and I like when a book makes me think a bit about my faith in God and just about things.

The way that Ralph writes makes it so interesting and know that he did his research on everything he talks about in the book. It was a very good read and it is a very good book to have if you like the Lord of the Rings and want to add to your Tolkien collection.

This book is unlikely to be of interest to anyone who is not already a fan of Tolkien's writings. I am a fan, so I picked it up hoping to get a little more insight into where Tolkien's Christianity came through in the story.

I did not come away the book feeling that I had really made any new connections with meaning in the story, but it did help to reaffirm some of the things that I like so much in LoTR. The book points out some connections that to a strongly believing Christian are already intuitively obvious. It also makes other connections that seem like bit of stretch.

An absolute thrill to read. The author really approached certain elements of how Tolkien's faith penetrates the Middle Earth Book Series! It is both a must read and a must own for any true Tolkien fan who wants to see more behind the story than just the events.

For a book with not many pages, this is a complex read. Although the title says 'gospel' do not look for a comparison with the Gospels. Rather, take the meaning of the word (good news) and you will be on the right track as you discover the kinship between Tolkien's writing and the Gospels. A very rewarding and illuminating read.

Been wanting to read this book for a while. It communicated a lot of ideas that I have read about or thought about previously, but it was good to see it all laid out logically and sequentially.

My favorite section was the one on how faith is displayed through friendships in LOTR. I also enjoyed many of the comparisons that Ralph points out that I had never connected, especially the bittersweet victory of LOTR that mirrors the end of the Christian story. I also liked the emphasis on how Tolkien viewed evil as always seeking to imitate and is never truly creative and pure in its invention.

Overall a good read if you have read LOTR at least once, know some additional background, and are familiar with Christianity. In general, this book is right up my alley but understand it is by no means for everyone.

Rather interesting listen, some more obscure references to Christianity that I hadn't considered occurring throughout the trilogy

I have not read the full works of Tolkien, but now am fully tempted to do so and carefully reexamine this tale in a new light. very good book, highly recommended

5/10
"All stories are simply a reordering of the larger story."

This short look at the works of Tolkien (primarily covering The Lord of Rings), confirms what many have already suspected, Middle earth is simply lousy with the gospel. It permeates every chapter and line, every character and plot turn. Somehow Wood seems to believe this obvious fact is contentious as he seeks to prove it as though it were in doubt. Still, I suppose someone needed to write this book, even if much of it was obvious. The apocalyptic literature of Tolkien was new for me, as well the idea of Illuvatar remaking Arda in a direct Biblical parallel.

"Creation is good because it is mortal. Wisdom is gained in a life lived towards death."

“Tolkien understands the odd danger posed by virtue cut off from the Good. Over and again, he demonstrates his fundamental conviction that evil preys upon our virtues far more than our vices. Our very strengths and assets-whether intelligence or bravery, diligence or loyalty or beauty, but especially righteousness-may dispose us either to scorn those who lack such virtues, or else to employ our gifts for our own selfish ends.”

Absolutely wonderful look at Tolkien's Middle-Earth works and the Catholic theology that influenced them. While it is definitely scholarly, it is also definitely Christian, which may throw off some readers. But I would recommend it to anyone interested in theology and literature, or the thought behind The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings.

I hate to confess that I want to like Tolkien but always come away disappointed. I have actually only read the Hobbit which I thought was good but not GREAT. It may be that my expectations are too high based on the virtual reverence many feel toward Tolkien. Nevertheless this is a helpful survey of Tolkien's spiritual vision. Tolkien wrote from a Catholic worldview. But little things like the stories are set before Genesis and Jesus helped me understand better what was going on. (I had previously assumed this was medieval setting.) Thus these were in no sense meant to be some kind of Christian allegory like the Narnia series or Pilgrim's Progress.

Well written, makes connections between the book and Christian principles. This provided me a deeper understanding of Tolkien and his abilities. Mr. Wood did state some inconsistencies in his work. At one point he wrote of how the ring grants longevity to its bearer, and that this corrupts. That anyone in this state will not do good. Later he speaks of the everlasting existence of the Elves and how they always do good. His sections on pity, mercy and love are exceptionally well written, and very thought provoking.