Posted: December 25, 1999 at 14:53:02: by Michael Martinez
It's a good book. I was a little surprised by the way some of the story turned out. There are some definite one-to-one matchings between Murphy's story and Tolkien's, but also some differences. And I suspect Murphy has alluded to an Internet tradition in the name of one of the characters, but I may just be projecting that onto the story.She also has a pronounced sense of humor, which shows up every now and then but which defintely set me to laughing when I got near the end of the book. I think most readers would know what I'm talking about when they come to the passage. It's quite unexpected (and has no real parallel in THE HOBBIT) and funny. Anyway, one word of caution to people who are considering buying the book for their kids. There is SOME (not much, but SOME) mature material in the story. I recommend that parents read it for themselves first and decide whether they want the kids to read it or wait. I consider THERE AND BACK AGAIN to be a legitimate part of the Tolkien universe. The influences are clearly acknowledged by the author at the end of the book. People are welcome to discuss Pat Murphy's book here on the White Council just as they can discuss BORED OF THE RINGS, the movies, the Rankin/Bass television specials, etc.
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Pat Murphy's Web site
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