Michael Drout of Wheaton College in Norton, Mass., is recognized as one of the world’s leading scholars of the academic and literary works of the author J.R.R. Tolkien. Having worked with the Tolkien estate as part of his research, Drout is an excellent source on the Tolkien family and is available to offer thoughts and insights on the passing today of Tolkien’s son, Christopher Tolkien.
“Thanks to the patient and meticulous work of Christopher Tolkien, we know more about how J.R.R. Tolkien created The Lord of the Rings than we know about how any other English author created any other masterwork,” stated Drout.
A professor of English and director of the Center for the Study of the Medieval at Wheaton College, Drout is the founder of the academic journal Tolkien Studies: An Annual Scholarly Review, which will recently published its 16th edition. Professor Drout served as the editor of the J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia (New York: Routledge, 2007) and has accessed many of the author’s notes and papers with permission of the Tolkien family.
The Wheaton College professor has received both national and international academic acclaim for his work on several J.R.R. Tolkien-related academic projects—he is the creator of the world’s most comprehensive database of works about the author. He has worked closely with academic colleagues internationally to establish Tolkien Studies, and he worked for several years editing long-lost Tolkien Beowulf & the Critics manuscripts for the writer’s estate.
He would be happy to talk about the importance of Christopher Tolkien’s stewardship of his father’s work and legacy.
His Wheaton College faculty Web page: https://wheatoncollege.edu/academics/faculty-directory/michael-drout/
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