Roverandom - Tapa dura

An unpublished full-length story written and illustrated by the author of The Hobbit.

In 1925, while the Tolkiens were on holiday at Filey in Yorkshire, four-year-old Michael lost his beloved little lead dog on the beach. To comfort him, J.R.R.Tolkien wrote Roverandom, a story about a real dog, Rover, who is turned into a toy by a wizard. When dropped on the beach by a small boy, the toy is transported to the moon along the path of light the moon makes when it shines over the sea. The Man in the Moon renames him ‘Roverandom’ and gives him wings.

Roverandom and Moondog set out on a series of adventures, encountering the Great White Dragon and other moon fauna like giant spiders and dragon-moths. Finally, back on Earth, Roverandom travels under the sea inside Uin, oldest of the whales, to ask the wizard who changed him into a toy to undo the spell.

J.R.R.Tolkien was a prolific storyteller to his children, though few of his early stories survive. Roverandom was a particular favourite, so much so that Tolkien wrote it out and even illustrated it himself. But for over 70 years it has remained unpublished. Bearing many of the hallmarks which were to make The Hobbit such a classic ten years later, this delightful book is finally published together with Tolkien’s own paintings and drawings. Introduced by Wayne Hammond and Christina Scull, authors of the acclaimed J.R.R.Tolkien: Artist & Illustrator, this book is destined to become a classic and will be welcomed by Tolkien fans of all ages.

While on holiday in 1925 young Michael Tolkien lost his beloved toy dog on the beach. To console him, his father, J.R.R. Tolkien, invented a story about a real dog who is turned into a toy by a wizard and sent by a ‘sand sorcerer’ to the moon and under the sea.

More than 70 years later, the adventures of the dog Rover, also known as ‘Roverandom’, are now published for the first time. They have been edited from the original typescript by Christina Scull and Wayne G. Hammond, who relate the story to sources ranging from the Norse sagas to E. Nesbit, and link it also to Tolkien’s other fiction, including 'The Hobbit ', the ‘Father Christmas’ letters, and ‘The Silmarillion’. The book also includes five illustrations by Tolkien himself.

Entertaining and rich in wordplay, 'Roverandom' will delight all readers who love a clever tale, and will be welcomed by Tolkien’s many admirers of all ages.

Christina Scull is the former librarian of Sir John Soane’s Museum, London and the editor of the magazine 'The Tolkien Collector'. Her husband, Wayne G. Hammond, is Assistant Librarian in the Chapin Library of Rare Books, Williams College, author of the standard bibliography of Tolkien’s works, and a regular contributor of Tolkien notes to the journal 'Mythlore'. The couple live in Williamstown, Massachusetts. Their acclaimed study of Tolkien’s paintings and drawings, 'J.R.R. Tolkien: Artist and Illustrator', is also published by HarperCollins.