Lord of the Elves and Eldils

Lord of the Elves and Eldils: Fantasy and Philosophy in CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien by Richard Purtill, 211 pages

In this essay on the philosophical dimensions of the fiction of CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien, Purtill busies himself contradicting certain common misconceptions about the works of both authors - foremost among them that Lewis' fiction consists primarily of arguments for Christianity while Tolkien's saga is essentially non-Christian.  He accomplishes this by exploring the underappreciated subtlety of Lewis and the overarching presuppositions of Tolkien.

Lord of the Elves and Eldils was written while Tolkien was still alive, but not only does the author not seem to fear (outside of a few explicitly speculative sections) that Tolkien will contradict him, but some of his arguments are confirmed by the then-unpublished material collected in The Silmarillion, as well as biographical research carried out in subsequent decades.  If this consistency with facts then unknown is testament to the perspicuity of Purtill's observations, the greatest compliment the book can be paid is that it considerably deepens the understanding, and correspondingly heightens the appreciation, of the works of its subjects.