Peter Jackson's film version of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and the accompanying proliferation of Rings-related paraphernalia, has once again brought the work of J.R.R. Tolkien to a popular audience. There are, however, few full and accessible treatments of the religious vision permeating Tolkien's influential works. Bradley Birzer has remedied that with his fresh study, J.R.R. Tolkien's sanctifying Myth: understanding Middle-earth. In it Birzer...

"Fresh examination of the works of Thornton Wilder emphasizing continuities in American literature from the seventeenth through twentieth centuries. Sees Wilder as a literary descendant of Edward Taylor who drew from the Puritan worldview and tradition. Includes indepth readings of Shadow of a Doubt, The Trumpet Shall Sound, and others"--Provided by publisher.