J. R. R. Tolkien (1892–1973) was an English Roman Catholic writer, poet, philologist, and academic, best known as the author of the high fantasy works The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

[5][6] Part I examines the origins of Tolkien's legendarium, relating it to the diminutive elves and fairies in Victorian children's books, and to English and European folklore.

The book is illustrated with 13 monochrome images in the text, including historic depictions of fairies and elves, some of Tolkien's own drawings and paintings, and a photograph of Sarehole Mill by the author.

He finds the text clear and informative, but in some places "not really new", as Tolkien's [then] unpublished writings and poetry were inaccessible; that made the biographical-historical method impossible to apply in full detail.

She notes how Fimi explores Tolkien's "admiration" for Elias Lönnrot's Kalevala, a compilation of Finland's national mythology, and the matching desire in England for something similar.

[12] Campbell finds Part III "perhaps the most intriguing" section of the book, as myth turns to history, and men take centre stage, displacing elves.

He admires, too, Fimi's kaleidoscope image of Moseley Bog (a nature reserve near Tolkien's childhood home in Warwickshire), which he finds entirely appropriate for the book's cover.

[13] Hooker adds that Fimi's analysis of the British and European tradition of inventing languages makes Tolkien's "secret vice" more understandable.