Reviewed by inlibrisveritas on
Reading updates
- Started reading
- 17 February, 2018: Finished reading
- 17 February, 2018: Reviewed
Roverandom
by J. R. R. Tolkien
An unpublished full-length story written and illustrated by the author of The Hobbit.
In 1925, while the Tolkiens were on holiday at Filey in Yorkshire, four-year-old Michael lost his beloved little lead dog on the beach. To comfort him, J.R.R.Tolkien wrote Roverandom, a story about a real dog, Rover, who is turned into a toy by a wizard. When dropped on the beach by a small boy, the toy is transported to the moon along the path of light the moon makes when it shines over the sea. The Man in the Moon renames him ‘Roverandom’ and gives him wings.
Roverandom and Moondog set out on a series of adventures, encountering the Great White Dragon and other moon fauna like giant spiders and dragon-moths. Finally, back on Earth, Roverandom travels under the sea inside Uin, oldest of the whales, to ask the wizard who changed him into a toy to undo the spell.
J.R.R.Tolkien was a prolific storyteller to his children, though few of his early stories survive. Roverandom was a particular favourite, so much so that Tolkien wrote it out and even illustrated it himself. But for over 70 years it has remained unpublished. Bearing many of the hallmarks which were to make The Hobbit such a classic ten years later, this delightful book is finally published together with Tolkien’s own paintings and drawings. Introduced by Wayne Hammond and Christina Scull, authors of the acclaimed J.R.R.Tolkien: Artist & Illustrator, this book is destined to become a classic and will be welcomed by Tolkien fans of all ages.