Happy Belated Birthday J.R.R. Tolkien!

Beloved author J.R.R. Tolkien came into this world on January 3rd, 1892. He was known to be friends with Chronicles of Narnia author C.S. Lewis. Both Lewis and Tolkien were members of a writing group called "Inklings." Tolkien was the author of many novels, the most popular ones being The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

I am somewhat ashamed of myself. I've declared myself a fan of high fantasy and sci-fi, yet I've never completed the entire Lord of the Rings book series. I've read The Hobbit (on more than one occasion) but for some reason I've only watched the Peter Jackson version(s) of the trilogy on the big screen. Although I LOVED the movies, I promised myself that the next time I re-watched the movies, would be after I've read the books. I watched the films about ten years ago (when they first came out) and I've forgotten the storyline, so I think this may be a good time to start!

Though I haven't enjoyed all of his work, I've got to hand it to Mr. Tolkien for introducing us to the awesome world of bad ass wizards long before J.K. Rowling did. But I may be a little controversial in my opinion that Merlin is still the ultimate badass wizard. Sorry, Team Gandalf!

I close by saying, Happy Belated Birthday J.R.R. Tolkien and thank you for introducing us to a world of wizards, hobbits, and riddles.

PS, Please enjoy this movie trailer for the upcoming and very anticipated film version of The Hobbit. =)