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Rating: 
Summary: Good intro
Review: "Who was J.R.R. Tolkien?" With the release of the astounding movie trilogy, a lot of people are suddenly flocking into the "Lord of the Rings" fandom, people who previously would have paid no attention to a classic fantasy or its author. If you don't know much about Tolkien, then this book is a good introduction to his life.After an introduction where Coren talks about the popularity of the book (and how much critics hate that it IS popular), Coren introduces us to Tolkien in his youth. John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was born in a turmoil-filled time, was orphaned as a boy, fought in World War I, and married and had four children. And, of course, he produced books -- the fantasy classic "The Hobbit" and the darker, more epic "Lord of the Rings," "Roverandum," a few other little tales, and the Bible-like "Silmarillion." Coren does a good job with the book. Not a great job, but a good job. His tone is usually pretty conversational, but occasionally he gets a little too heated or gushy or cutesy. This book doesn't contain any new interpretations or information; it's pretty basic, he tells us what Tolkien did, where, and sometimes why. There are plenty of crisp black and white photographs of Tolkien, his buddy C.S. "Jack" Lewis, Tolkien's homes, his guardian Father Morgan, book covers, parts of Oxford such as Merton College, and even a few wide shots of all of Oxford. Normally this book would earn four stars, but there are some basic errors in describing people and events in "Lord of the Rings." This is pardonable in the author -- everyone makes booboos -- but an editor should have caught those little items; that's what editors are for. It gives the book a rather rushed feel. If you already know about J.R.R. Tolkien, his life and his works, then you won't get anything new from this book. But if you're a new fan, or never learned much about Tolkien himself, then this can be considered a good introduction to the basics.
Rating: 
Summary: Juvenile, but not in a good way
Review: Already in hardcover and recently released in softcover, this is a juvenile biography of Tolkien: it's intended for children, and written down for children. The cozy, smarmy tone and false sense of intimacy (leading Coren into many errors, though not as many as Michael White's =Life and Work of J.R.R. Tolkien=) make this book painful reading. Like all other juvenile biographies of Tolkien, or of C.S. Lewis (another subject Coren has essayed), this is entirely outclassed by adult offerings. Any child capable of appreciating =LotR= enough to desire a biography of the author can handle Humphrey Carpenter's classic book, and should.
Rating:
Summary: Juvenile, but not in a good way
Review: Already in hardcover and recently released in softcover, this is a juvenile biography of Tolkien: it's intended for children, and written down for children. The cozy, smarmy tone and false sense of intimacy (leading Coren into many errors, though not as many as Michael White's =Life and Work of J.R.R. Tolkien=) make this book painful reading. Like all other juvenile biographies of Tolkien, or of C.S. Lewis (another subject Coren has essayed), this is entirely outclassed by adult offerings. Any child capable of appreciating =LotR= enough to desire a biography of the author can handle Humphrey Carpenter's classic book, and should.
Rating: 
Summary: A good introduction for adults too.
Review: Although "JRR - The Man Who Created ..." was aimed at young adults, I found it a good introduction for me as an older adult. It can be read in an evening, but I believe that it touches on all the main points. True, it does not go into the scholarly quarrels and quibbles or the lit crit, but I did not need that. I really just needed to know what type of a person Tolkien was. The book serves that purpose admirably. If I were cataloguing for a library, I would put one in the adult section too.
Rating: 
Summary: J.R.R. Tolkien fans, this is the book for you!
Review: For all "Lord of the Rings" fans, this book is a must read. A great biography on that great orphan, scholar, soldier, professor, and author of what is considered by many to be the finest book of the 20th Century, J.R.R. Tolkien! There are 125 pages about the life of Tolkien, from when he was born in South Africa, January 3, 1892, to the day he died on September 2, 1973. The book is divided into seven chapters: Chapter 1) Beginnings: This chapter tells about how Tolkien's parents were married and they began their life in South Africa. When both his parents died he lived with Father Francis and when he was old enough, was accepted to Exeter College.
Chapter 2) Oxford and Upward: Tolkien is now a man and has married his love, Edith Bratt. But then comes World War I and he is sent out as a second lieutenant. Luckily he comes back home safely.
Chapter 3) Inklings: Now a professor, Tolkien starts becoming very popular among students and friends. This chapter talks mostly about Tolkien's professor life and about his friends, especially one of his greatest friends, C.S. Lewis. (author of the acclaimed "Narnia Chronicles".)
Chapter 4) A Hole in the Ground: Tolkien finishes writing his first book, "The Hobbit". And quite to his surprise, he finds that many, many people simply loved it! Around that time, he also publishes "Farmer Giles of Ham" and "Mr. Bliss". He also beings writing "The Silmarillion", which he never really finished but his son, Christopher, did.
Chapter 5) His Lordship of the Rings: After 12 years of writing, Tolkien finished his "Lord of the Rings" story. Published in three books, it won over people and Tolkien is now very popular.
Chapter 6) Just Another Teacher: Even with his fame, Tolkien is still a wonderful teacher and family man. This chapter mostly focuses on his life afterwards.
Chapter 7) End Times: This chapter deals on the last years of Tolkien's life. As I said a terrific book! Definitely for kids 11 and up and a worthy read for adults, too. A nice collection of around 28 pictures which, though black and white, are very clear pictures. A nice introduction in the beginning which I find very interesting. And also at the end of the book, there is a bibliography on books by Tolkien, his books which were edited by others, and also books about Tolkien. The index at the end was a good idea, too. A great read!
Rating:
Summary: Ok
Review: I found this book very interesting until I got to the synopsis of the Lord of the Rings. I found four mistakes! 1 - Mike says that Legolas, Gimli, AND Aragorn are in a boat 2gether going down the Anduin and Frodo and Sam are alone. Wrong. Aragorn is with the 2 hobbits. 2 - It mentions that Frodo is wounded in battle and captured by Orcs. Wrong again, he was wounded by a spider. 3 - The guy totally skips over when Aragorn is crowned! That is half of the point of ROTK! 4 - Lotho Simple? Where did he get that? It's Lotho Sackville-Baggins! I am quite irritated with this book! I now have no idea if half the facts are even true! Tiis is an easy read, but Mike sure didn't read LOTR! And, I KNOW some of the other facts aren't true... I wouldn't recommend this book to someone who hasn't read LOTR at all, because the synopsis is totally wrong. I really wanted to learn something about JRRT, but I learned something else - Mike doesn't know what he's talking about.
Rating:
Summary: Great Tolkien biography!
Review: Michael Coren's biography of Tolkien is excellent. It is primarily aimed at a school-age audience (it's a Scholastic book, and the cover says "age 11 and up"). But readers of any age who want a short biography of Tolkien will agree that this is a great book. This book mostly focuses on Tolkien the man -- his upbringing, his family life, his religious beliefs, his friendship with C.S. Lewis, and his children. But it also discusses his work, especially "Lord of the Rings". If you haven't read "Lord of the Rings", you should do that first! Otherwise Coren's book may give some secrets away....
Rating:
Summary: Great Tolkien biography!
Review: Michael Coren's biography of Tolkien is excellent. It is primarily aimed at a school-age audience (it's a Scholastic book, and the cover says "age 11 and up"). But readers of any age who want a short biography of Tolkien will agree that this is a great book. This book mostly focuses on Tolkien the man -- his upbringing, his family life, his religious beliefs, his friendship with C.S. Lewis, and his children. But it also discusses his work, especially "Lord of the Rings". If you haven't read "Lord of the Rings", you should do that first! Otherwise Coren's book may give some secrets away....
Rating:
Summary: A decent juvenile biography of the creator of the hobbits
Review: The introduction to this juvenile biography of focuses on how "Lord of the Rings" keeps coming out on top of surveys of the most popular literature of all time, to the dismay of academics and critics, and that fact that the trailer for the first film in the trilogy set a download record on the internet. Michael Coren certainly covers the biographical details of J. R. R. Tolkien's life and gives young readers a sense for how the Oxford don's love of words led to him creating entire new languages, which in turn led to him telling stories about the people who spoke these unknown tongues. However, Coren's writing style does get a little too cute at times and while children might think nothing of it, older readers might find themselves rolling their eyes or wincing from time to time. There are lots of black & white photographs from throughout Tolkien's life and attention is paid to the publication of his famous works and the various attempts to transform them into radio programs and feature films. Coren is obviously a fan of Tolkien and if he lays it on a bit thick at times that is not too grievous a sin. At least he focuses on the man's life and his work rather than getting caught up in gossip and details about "The Fellowship of the Ring" film. I learned some details about Tolkien and if I rolled my eyes a few times at Coren's verbal excesses, I can live with it.
Rating:
Summary: Highly recommended
Review: This slim book is a fascinating look at John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, the author of the classic works, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Starting with his birth in South Africa in 1892, the book shows his life, and the progression of his writing career. Along the way, the reader is given a real feeling for Mr. Tolkien, and the life that he lived. This book, though originally written for the younger reader, is a wonderful addition to anyone's library. I especially like the way that Catholicism is treated in such a sympathetic way, just the way that Tolkien would have presented it himself. I found this book to be informative and quite interesting to read, and highly recommend it to everyone.
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