High Praise for The Storm Chronicles!
Thrilled to receive this shoutout from my life coach about my upcoming fantasy series! If you want to find out yourself what made him so excited, sign up for Part 1 of the first book on my home page. “Very … { Read More }
Introducing The Storm Chronicles!
Out of the west, shall he come from the narrow entrance, Into of the storm, shall he go In the time of the One Darkness shall haunt his steps But Light shall he be The sword of the One … { Read More }
Pity for a Creature As Dark As Darkness
The meeting of Bilbo, the dreadfully and fearfully lost hobbit, and Gollum, a creature “as dark as darkness” (Hobbit 88), their riddle-game and what happens after Gollum loses are among the most iconic scenes of children’s literature. But how many … { Read More }
The Legacy of Tolkien and the TCBS: A Light to the World: The Call Heard and Answered
At the ‘Council of London’ held by the Tea Club and Barrovian Society in December 1914, J. R. R. Tolkien and his three dearest friends spoke of the call they felt to bring beauty and meaning back into a world grown … { Read More }
Harkening to the Horns of Hope and Love: What The Lord of the Rings Teaches Us For Today
Hope and love are dominant themes in The Lord of the Rings. These are two of the most desperately needed virtues today in a world entrenched in a culture of death, despair, and lust, due to the instant and 24 … { Read More }
Arthurian Elements in Reepicheep’s Journey
There are many Arthurian elements in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, but what is at the heart of it all is Reepicheep’s quest to reach Aslan’s country, an even better place than the Avalon Arthur travels to. Geoffrey of … { Read More }
Guardian Angels of the Quest: Frodo, Sam, and the Valar
Sam is Frodo’s guardian angel on the Quest, but he is not the only one. The Valar also play instrumental roles in aiding the Ring-bearer and his friends during the War of the Ring and beyond. So vital is their … { Read More }
Arthur’s Audacious Dream
Why does the tale of Arthur and his knights still resonate with its readers centuries after its first introduction? It ends in the tragic defeat of the King, with the deaths of nearly all of his men, and his dreams … { Read More }
The Value of Family in Malory’s Le Morte Darthur
Sir Thomas Malory placed great importance on the role of the family in his rendering of the Arthurian legends. For good or ill, familial ties in Le Morte Darthur have tremendous impact on men and women and those around them. … { Read More }
Creation and Sub-Creation in Narnia and The Timeless Halls
C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien varied greatly in their conceptions of the secondary worlds they fashioned. Lewis focused on the creative power of God to call into existence an entire world out of nothing. Tolkien chose to … { Read More }
Eucatastrophe, Fate, and Free Will in the Life of Beren and Lúthien
Welcome to my site, Gazzolo Creative! After Beren avenges his father’s murder and spends years as an outlaw, he climbs the Mountains of Terror and sees the land of Doriath from far away. “There it was put into his heart … { Read More }
Nienna, Lady of Pity and Mercy, and the Fall of Sauron
I finished my Master’s Degree at Signum University! I highly recommend anyone interested in pursing their Tolkien studies in a scholarly manner to consider attending some classes here. You do not have to be there to pursue a degree. You … { Read More }
The Beginning of Stories
As long as we could speak and realize we had a mind and intelligence and a need to explain to ourselves and to others the world around us, we have told stories. For things we have not understood like the … { Read More }
More Than Memory: Death as Eucatastrophe in ‘The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen’
In the fullness of time, Aragorn and Arwen come to their parting after many long years together. Unlike his Númenorean ancestors who were poisoned by the deceits of Sauron and grew to fear death so greatly they did anything they … { Read More }
The Powerful Realm of Faerie
J. R. R. Tolkien speaks of a subject close to his heart in his lecture and essay, “On Fairy-Stories.” He approaches this not just as an admirer or literary critic but as an author of such himself. He had a … { Read More }
Echoes of Middle-earth in The Chronicles of Prydain
Lloyd Alexander uses many figures from Welsh mythology to give voice to some of the greatest characters in The Chronicles of Prydain series. Some are merely names he fleshed out to have lives in Prydain they did not have at … { Read More }
The Role of the Narrator in Tolkien and Lewis
The voice of the narrator is similar in both The Hobbit and the Narnia books and used wonderfully well to draw readers into the tale. They talk directly and indirectly to their audience, offer advice, use words that speak of … { Read More }
A Short Reflection on Myths and Reality
There is such power in story-telling! Visionaries, seers, bards, poets, playwrights, and novelists have harnessed this vast resource for as long as man has existed. What a crowd we are part of. What shoulders we stand on. I am proud … { Read More }
Frodo’s Sacrifice
Ah, March 25, that most glorious of days! Here is an excerpt from my book, Chosen: The Journeys of Bilbo and Frodo of the Shire. In Frodo’s devotion to the mission entrusted to him, he gives a wonderful example of … { Read More }
The Consolation of Fairy-Stories
In his wonderful essay “On Fairy-Stories”, J. R. R. Tolkien states three things fantastical stories bring us: recovery, escape, and consolation. In our shattered world, we need them all. We need to see anew everyday things that we do not … { Read More }
The Value of Myths
From early days, man defined himself and his world through stories. The mind and heart travel further along their hidden roads and secret passageways than a body does down the modern superhighway. The places reached are brighter and darker than … { Read More }
The Importance of Being Bilbo
An excerpt from Chosen: The Journeys of Bilbo and Frodo of the Shire: Gandalf recounts in the unfinished tale “The Quest of Erebor” how the twin threats of Sauron and Smaug greatly troubled him. He thinks a trip to the … { Read More }
Photo: Irish landscape by Bernadette Rohan