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Sign up todayTolkien’s Ordinary Virtues
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Learn more“As I get older and learn more of what sort of person I am, and continue sojourning to the rich soil of the Shire and the high tower of Minas Tirith, I discover that many of my notions of what is good and right and noble in this world have their source in that one.”—from the author
The Lord of the Rings offers us essential lessons in living. Here we discover ordinary virtues like generosity, pity, hospitality and rest. We meet extraordinary people like Bilbo, Gandolf, Tom Bombadil and Glorfindel. We learn about the roots of destruction in pride and betrayal. And we find the ingredients for success, such as community and sacrifice.
Each of us, even the most simple, is called to a journey. We may be asked to leave behind everything we have grown dependent on. And when this is the case, the tale of Frodo and his friends offers hope that we will be given the strength and the help we need to overcome every obstacle and defeat every foe. This book will help you find the way.
Mark Eddy Smith, a writer who grew up in rural New Hampshire (which is not so different from the Shire) has read The Lord of the Rings more than a dozen times. He works as a graphic designer at InterVarsity Press and currently resides in Oak Park, Illinois.
Simon Vance is an award-winning actor and an AudioFile Golden Voice with over fifty Earphones Awards and thirteen prestigious Audie Awards. He was named Booklist’s very first Voice of Choice in 2008 and an AudioFile Best Voice of 2009.
Reviews
“Contains…original ideas.”
“With insight, humor, and a good deal of personal passion for his subject, Mark Eddy Smith offers glimpses into the deeper spiritual meaning of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings.”
“Mark Eddy Smith’s gentle account of Tolkien’s ordinary virtues gets to the very quick of the great storyteller’s vision.”
“Writing in graceful, easy prose, Smith invites us to admire Tolkien not only for the epic scope of his imagination but also for the depth of his spiritual insight.”
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