{"product_id":"the-bovadium-fragments","title":"The Bovadium Fragments","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWorld first publication of a previously unknown short satirical fantasy by J.R.R. Tolkien, edited by his son, Christopher Tolkien, and accompanied by illustrations from the author together with an essay, \u003cem\u003eThe Origin of Bovadium\u003c\/em\u003e, by Richard Ovenden OBE.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs Christopher Tolkien notes in his Introduction, \u003cem\u003eThe Bovadium Fragments\u003c\/em\u003e was a ‘satirical fantasy’ written by his father, which grew out of a planning controversy that erupted in Oxford in the late 1940s, when J.R.R. Tolkien was the Merton Professor of English Language and Literature.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWritten initially for his own amusement, Tolkien’s tale was a private academic jest that poked gentle fun at such things as 'the pomposities of archaeologists' and 'the hideousness of college crockery'. However, it was at the same time expressing a barbed \u003cem\u003ecri de coeur\u003c\/em\u003e against the inexorable rise of motor transport and 'machine-worship' that was overwhelming the tranquillity of his beloved city.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEnriched by a selection of illustrations by the author, and enhanced by Christopher Tolkien's notes and commentary, readers can enjoy at last this tale of an imagined Oxford viewed through the lens of future (and not wholly reliable) academic study.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRichard Ovenden's accompanying essay paints a vivid portrait of Oxford during that time. He also provides rich background to the \u003cem\u003ecasus belli\u003c\/em\u003e which led to the furore that Tolkien witnessed first-hand, as the embers of debate between town planners and the university colleges were fanned into flame.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePlayful, erudite, and ultimately tragically moving, \u003cem\u003eThe Bovadium Fragments\u003c\/em\u003e is like nothing else that J.R.R. Tolkien wrote, and its themes remain both provocative and timely. Within its lines may be found a concern for the fragility of our natural world, a love of which that was shared by both father and son. As Christopher Tolkien’s final presentation of his father’s work, it is therefore perhaps fitting that \u003cem\u003eThe Bovadium Fragments\u003c\/em\u003e should be their coda.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"HarperFiction UK","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47173441257629,"sku":"9780008737764","price":138.0,"currency_code":"MYR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0511\/7575\/1837\/files\/9780008737764.jpg?v=1759991489","url":"https:\/\/mphonline.com\/products\/the-bovadium-fragments","provider":"MPHOnline.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}