Sounds like it will be interesting, at least!

Deagol wrote:
This one will be interesting:

J.R.R.Tolkien: Codemaker, Spy-master, Hero: au unauthorised biography

by Elan Sea (Author), Mr Alexander Lewis (Consultant Editor), Ms Elizabeth Currie (Consultant Editor)

I thought he just did a three day induction course with GCHQ and then decided he didn't want to join (or GCHQ didn't require his services?). Surely that would render him neither a spy-master nor a hero* (by any stretch of those terms)?

• Obviously I'm excluding the First World War, but I haven't read of any specific acts of heroism there, either.

Deagol wrote:
This one will be interesting:

J.R.R.Tolkien: Codemaker, Spy-master, Hero: au unauthorised biography

by Elan Sea (Author), Mr Alexander Lewis (Consultant Editor), Ms Elizabeth Currie (Consultant Editor)

Hmm, I will probably pass this one. Too speculative for my taste. From the Amazon description: "With careful examination of Tolkien's existing biographies and the inadequacies of the explanations given and perpetuated from one biographer to the next, a persuasive picture is built up of what Tolkien may have been involved in over a period of decades. The writings themselves are amongst the most revealing proof of Tolkien's preoccupation with espionage and Intelligence and they are analysed closely and carefully"

Apropos nothing much - the picture on the front shows what they say is a Webley Mk V revolver - I suspect it's based on a photo of Tolkien's WWI revolver, which is now in the Imperial War Museum (North) in Manchester.

Tolkien's revolver is a MK VI - (as is the one in the sketch on that cover). A Mk V pistol has quite a different hand-grip.

Of course, Elan Sea is just the letters L & C (Lewis & Currie) read out loud - possibly a code-breaking test for readers?

garm wrote:
Of course, Elan Sea is just the letters L & C (Lewis & Currie) read out loud - possibly a code-breaking test for readers?

I reckon you actually probably have it there. And those two have prior form with such shenanigans.

IIRC there's been some talk lately of not one but two movies about Tolkien's life. I think one would feature his supposed work as a code-breaker. I wonder if Elan sea are anticipating movie rights to their book?

As I said before, interesting.... from the introduction (page iv): "To put it bluntly, we can say what we like about him and there is nothing that anyone can do about it."

Still not sure I am going to plunk down the $35 for a copy here in the USA. Alex says they are not going to release an ebook for it any time soon, due to concerns of piracy.

Doesn't sound like a very scholarly approach to me. As for the notion of piracy -words fail me.

Urulöké wrote:
As I said before, interesting.... from the introduction (page iv): "To put it bluntly, we can say what we like about him and there is nothing that anyone can do about it."

Not a very good way of advertising your book, we can make up what ever we like about Tolkien in our book :(

I have contacted the Tolkien Estate to make them aware of this title and the comments from the authors.