Again.....in memorium

[Child of the 7th Age]

Another one of the early commentators on Tolkien has passed away. J. E. A. Tyler died on October 28, just eleven days after he received a diagnosis of cancer.

Tyler is the author of the Tolkien Companion published in 1976. That book has gone through multiple revisions and reprintings, the latest in 2002. It is one of the few print guides that lists name from HoMe in addition to Silm, Hobbit, and LotR. Many days, I grab for the volume if there's a name in a post I don't recognize. Tyler also wrote a number of other books including a good one on the Beatles that I own.

In the final edition of his book, Tyler had this to say about JRRT:

Middle-earth has been described as the 'most perfectly conceived and detailed example of literary sub-creation ever accomplished, and few would argue with that assessment, least of all myself. I first read The Lord of the Rings in 1966; and today, nearly forty years later, the sense of wonder and delight is every bit as keen, while my admiration has deepened beyond measure. If I have managed to convey even a little of this in The Complete Tolkien Companion, I shall be satisfied.

A polite thank you to James Edward Anthony Tyler for putting the time in on this book.

[Bêthberry]

What a remembrance and what a life! How splendid that someone who viewed life as a cosmic joke could find such interest and reward in Middle-earth.

Originally Posted by Tyler

I want you to know, for when your time comes," Tyler told his wife, her sister and mother two days before he died, his curiosity about the mysteries of life and death undiminished, "that this isn't really too bad. It's quite dealable with."

I have the feeling that Tolkien would have have a calm, quite chuckle over that, and approved.

[piosenniel]

Originally Posted by The Independent Online Edition

"I want you to know, for when your time comes," Tyler told his wife, her sister and mother two days before he died, his curiosity about the mysteries of life and death undiminished, "that this isn't really too bad. It's quite dealable with."

Good onya!

~*~ Pio

*thumbing through the much used, dog-eared book . . .

[Mithalwen]

I don't know if I would have got through the Silmarillion the first time without Tyler and Foster to help me keep track of the similary name characters. I lent them to my god daughter when I hoped that she might get the Tolkien bug rather than merely the Orlando Bloom bug ... could use them still... time to reclaim ...

[Lalwendë]

Well I never! I only discovered Tyler's guide around a year ago when I spotted it on eBay and decided to get meself a new treat (its a first edition). I didn't know he was a Scouser, and to boot involved in the music scene. He must have known John Peel (one of my heroes), and he established the irreverent NME we know today; not only that but he's responsible for Julie Burchill - some would not know whether to say if this is a good or a bad thing...