Tolkien Graphic Novel Review by the Hobbit. This post contains affiliate links, you can find out more on our policies page or in the disclaimer at the bottom of the blog.
Know Before You Read
Book: Tolkien: Lighting Up the Darkness
Author: Willy Duraffourg
Artist: Gianacarlo Caracuzzo
Colorist: Flavia Caracuzzo and Joel Odone
Genre: Biography, Graphic Novel, Adventure, War
Length: 78 pages
Age suggested: 12 and up
Release Date: February 14th, 2024
Warnings: Lots of Ramifications of War (Injury, Death of friends, etc), Death of parents
Full Tolkien Graphic Novel Summary
Tolkien: Lighting Up the Darkness tells the early story of John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (J.R.R. Tolkien). It begins with his birth and the joy that brought to his parents, along with his brother. This all takes a sad turn when his parents both die and they are left under the care of a boarding house. This is where Tolkien is introduced to Edith, who he falls in love with. Unfortunately, she is 3 years older than him (she is 19 and he is 16 at this time) and their relationship is deemed inappropriate. Tolkien and his brother are then moved to another house to prevent this relationship, but Tolkien’s love remains.
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While Tolkien is forced to leave Edith, a new friend group begins to blossom. This group got together to discuss philosophy, each other’s writings, and life in general. This group would become known as the Tea Club and Barrovian Society (TCBS for short). In the backdrop of this whole story, World War 1 is beginning and the conversations of whether or not to enlist begins. Ultimately, they do, which pushes us into the last bit of the book. But before Tolkien leaves for war, he reunites with Edith, against her father’s will. They get married prior to Tolkien getting posted in France.
Tolkien finds himself in war, which is much more harrowing than he ever could have imagined. During the infamous Battle of Somme, Tolkien contracts trench fever and is removed from active service to heal. After healing, he becomes the signal officer and serves out the rest of his term (with some more complications). During the war, Tolkien is informed that many of his friends did not survive the war and this grief hits him intensely.
The book culminates with John Tolkien being motivated by his children to start a story about a Hobbit. At the very end, we see John and his brother at the grave of Edith which quickly becomes just Chris at the gravesite of Edith and John saying “I think you managed to bring out light to the world, my dear twin brother. You succeeded in the end. Everyone shall see.”
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Tolkien Graphic Novel Review
As you may be able to notice, we are quite big fans of J.R.R. Tolkien, which is one reason we were so excited to read this graphic novel. Overall, this graphic novel takes a fairly small, but very pivotal, portion of Tolkien’s life and really let’s you sit in the misery and ramifications of grief and war. Despite this, the book also does a good job at providing brevity and hope at times so that the overall feeling is not just pure loss.
One thing I wanted to point out is that the artwork on the cover is very different than the artwork within the graphic novel itself. The cover has a bigger emphasis on photo realism while the inner story has the more classic style of comic books and graphic novels. With that said, both are wonderfully done and the graphic novel does a great job illustrating the overall feeling the author writes about.
For anyone who wants to understand Tolkien’s upbringing and how the war affected him, this is a great read. For those who are a bit more familiar with Tolkien’s story, you may pick out some particulars that you may have not known, but can still enjoy the visual journey that Caracuzzo provides.
Continue reading for our Tolkien Graphic Novel Quotes and Discussion Questions.
Favorite Tolkien Graphic Novel Quotes
Don’t forget about me when you’re busy telling the story of the elves an their marvelous language.
A world at war is a strange and gloomy place, with wastelands and crumbling houses where cities once stood, your beloved trees felled or torn apart by explosions.
I wanted to stay positive in front of Edith, but I knew the sad reality: In France, young officers were being killed at a rate of ten per minute
So peaceful. What a lovely summer! It seems like not even war can disturb such beauty.
It is this nature and this rain that gives us life, Tom. It is the countryside that we come to defend. We owed it our respects.
God, these words are both so empty and so terrifying. Death is everywhere, Edith. If you only knew what my eyes have seen…
You know, I’ve always believed England needs a kind of modern mythology, and i think I can do it. I can write it.
I think you managed to bring out light to the world, my dear twin brother. You succeeded in the end. Everyone shall see.
Tolkien: Lighting Up the Darkness Quotes
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Tolkien Graphic Novel Discussion Questions
Themes to Discuss: Community, Survivor’s Guilt, Trauma, Inspiration, Forbidden Love
- How does this story influence the way you see the stories in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings?
- How did the TCBS influence Tolkien’s life and writing?
- How was Tolkien different before and after the war? How can you see Tolkien’s experience in war in his writing?
- Which characters from The Lord of the Rings do you see reflected in the real life of Tolkien?
Thanks for reading our Tolkien Graphic Novel Review. Remember to share it with the Tolkien lover in your life!
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