Why J.R.R. Tolkien was rejected for the Nobel Prize in Literature

The Lord of the Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien is the founder of modern epic fantasy, an inspiration to millions of writers, and the seller of over 100 million books. He is beloved…but not by the judges on the committee to decide who received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1961, six years after The Return of the King hit book shelves.

According to reporting published in the Swedish newspaper Sydsvenska Dagbladet (Nobel Prizes are awarded by Swedish and Norwegian institutions), Tolkien was put forward for consideration by fellow author and friend CS Lewis, who’s most famous for his Chronicles of Narnia series. But the judges weren’t fans of his work, noting that it “has not in any way measured up to storytelling of the highest quality.” That year, the Nobel Prize in Literature went to Yugoslav novelist and poet Ivo Andric won, for the “epic force with which he has traced themes and depicted human destinies,” to quote the jurists.

Interesting historical sidebar, no? I hope that Tolkien’s mountains of cash, lasting literary influence and international fame were enough to comfort him if he ever got down over being rejected by a panel of Swedish snobs.

Sorry if that sounds bitter, but I would have given him the prize. Anyway, speaking of all things Tolkien, BBC News reports that the house where he lived from 1930 until 1947 — and where he wrote The Hobbit and part of The Lord of the Rings — is on sale. This brick home on Northmoor Road in North Oxford, England sits on a generous plot of land and has two floors, six bedrooms, and a little blue plaque that marks it as having been occupied by Tolkien.

The asking price is £4,575,000, or $5,922,566.25. Everyone check under their couch cushions.

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h/t BBC News