Happy Birthday JRR Tolkien

While reading about the  life of one of my favorite authors, fantasy genius, JRR Tolkien


 I was distressed to discover he in fact never owned a dog ( I pictured him with an Irish Wolfhound).

Wouldn't a dog like this have been perfect for Tolkien?

There are rather Irish Wolf Hound esque sort of dogs that appear briefly in The Hobbit, the shape shifter Beorn, has some large dogs that are sorts of servants and can walk on their hind legs.   In the Lord of the Rings the only dogs that appear, are the well trained, but rather scary, ones belonging to Farmer Maggot that used to chase Frodo when he was a vegetable stealing youngster.

There is an important canine character in the The Silmarillion, Huan, a great hound (which sounds rather like an Irish Wolf Hound).  Like most of Tolkien's animal characters, Huan has some very human traits.   He participates in quests and understands the complex situations around him, and he is given the power to speak on three occasions.  

  In 1998, twenty five years after his death, Tolkien obsessives published an unpublished manuscript of story, Roverandom, inspired by a lost toy dog that the author wrote for his son.  

The book also features Tolkien's own original illustations of Rover and the other characters.



I haven't read it yet but definitely need to add it to my reading list.

If you want something warm to wear on your feet while reading  Tolkien the perfect pattern is Hobbit Feet Slippers from Knits for Nerds.   

They are comfy and quick, you can make a pair in about 2 hours (I think I need to add some more fun fur too mine)