"Beyond Bree" 2024 Calendar Available for Pre-Orders

 Mark Hooker Receives the "Beyond Bree" Award!

Mark Hooker is the recipient of the fifth "Beyond Bree" Award, given at the international Tolkien conference "The Return of the Ring" August, 2012, in Loughborough, England.

Honorable Mention goes to Phil Goss and Dinah Hazell.

The "Beyond Bree" Award is given "In recognition of outstanding contribution to the study of JRR Tolkien, from the Readers of 'Beyond Bree.'" The Award itself is a handsome framed certificate signed by "Beyond Bree" members.

Mark Hooker is the author of Tolkien Through Russian Eyes, A Tolkienian Mathomium, The Hobbitonian Anthology, and most recently, Tolkien and Welsh.

Phil Goss runs the website, "The Compleat Gyde to Tolkien Calendars", www.tolkiencalendars.com. Dinah Hazell is the author of The Plants of Middle-earth.

The first "Beyond Bree" Awards were presented at Bree Moot 4/ Mythcon XXX at Milwaukee, WI, in 1999. The recipients were Charles Elston and Dr Richard E Blackwelder. The second Awards were given at Bree Moot 5 at St Paul, MN, in 2002, to Richard and Perri West and Gary and Sylvia Hunnewell. The third Awards were presented October 2004 at Bree Banquet, in Milwaukee, WI, to René van Rossenberg and Mike Foster. The fourth Awards were given at Tolkien 2005 in Birmingham, England, to David & Dorothea Salo, Wayne Hammond & Christina Scull, and Anthony Burdge & Jessica Burke.

 "Illustrating Tolkien: Artists' Roundtable" at "The
Return of the Ring" 2012

The JRR Tolkien Special Interest Group of American Mensa will sponsor "Illustrating Tolkien: Artists' Roundtable," with Nancy Martsch (moderator), and panelists Anke Eissmann, Octo Kwan, Ruth Lacon, Jef Murray, and Ted Nasmith.

"This will be a roundtable discussion by a panel of professional and fan artists on the many aspects of illustrating Tolkien's work. Topics may range from philosophy of art to practical considerations, including different approaches to Tolkien's work, the importance of fidelity to the text, abstraction vs. realism, styles of Tolkien illustration, history of Tolkien illustration, Tolkien's art, the panelists' own work, etc. Audience participation is encouraged."

Nancy Martsch, Editor of "Beyond Bree," will give a presentation on "Thirty Years of Tolkien Fandom" at "The Return of the Ring."

 The Tolkien 2005 Panel Discussion