A book written by and for Tolkien über-nerds. I really enjoyed it, but am one of those über-nerds and have a high tolerance for academic writing.

The book is primarily set of essays exploring the different landscapes, stories, placenames, and puns (lots of puns) that Tolkien drew on when building his worlds. Fans of LOTR will be happy to know that there is plenty of Middle Earth lore in here, but should also expect a lot of coverage of the Silmarillion, his published short stories (like Smith of Wooten Major), and even unpublished poems and stories. Garth does a really good job showing how Tolkien's creative process worked and situating those works in personal, geographical, and historical context. I think that the inclusion of unpublished works was mostly successful, albeit at the risk of talking about stories the audience doesn't (and can't) know about. Overall, enjoyable and largely accessible academic writing that demands a high degree of familiarity with Tolkien's writing.

The other 25% is "pretty coffee table book". The illustrations are great! My favorites were Tolkien's paintings and drawings, which I thought were really fantastic. There were a few times where Garth references a painting or drawing but doesn't include it - I was always bummed by the exclusion. The non-Tolkien images included photos, paintings, concept art, maps, and advertisements, all of which serve the essays well.

It's a book that's worth getting if you love Tolkien, enjoy looking at pretty pictures, and don't mind academic prose.