Queer Approaches to Tolkien Essays on the Many Paths to Middle-earth

By: Robin Anne Reid, Christopher Vaccaro, Stephen Yandell

Published by McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2025-10-07

Voices from wide-ranging academic fields, time periods, and scholarly backgrounds converge in this first collection to focus solely on queer approaches to Tolkien's legendarium. The discussion is grounded in queer experiences, bodies and interpretations, while recognizing and responding to the religious reception of Tolkien's work.

The essays cover a broad chronological span, from work on pre-modern queerness to contributions from contemporary queer theorists trained in later periods. Addressing the tensions between queerness, spirituality and the ongoing debates around diversity, this collection offers new ways to read and understand Tolkien's texts through a queer lens.