Hello from the Shire!

[Ashbranch]

Greetings everyone! I thought it was high time I joined this forum and I look forward to some interesting and in-depth discussions. Here's a bit about me: I was brought up, and still live about half a mile from Tolkien's childhood stomping ground of Sarehole Mill and Moseley Bog, and because of this I feel an intimate, personal connection with his works, which exist in the very landscape around here - not to mention local tales and stories about Tolkien himself. Because of this connection I have been inspired, over many years, to make an extensive study of the connections between the Legendarium and real history and mythology, and some of the fruits of this research are presented on my website Three Rings for the Elven Kings, linked below. There are many issues raised here, not least that of canon, and I look forward to debating all of them.