Works inspired by J. R. R. Tolkien to "The Lord of the Rings" in the early 1970s. She sent them to Tolkien, who was struck by the similarity to the style of his own drawings. In 1977, Queen Margrethe's drawings were published in the Danish translation of the book, which was reissued in 2002, redrawn by the British artist Eric Fraser. Tim and Greg Hildebrandt were also well-known Tolkien illustrators during the first decades after the publication of "The Lord of the Rings". In the 1970s, British artist Jimmy Cauty created a best-selling poster of the Hobbit for the retailer Athena. Probably the widest-known Tolkien illustrators of
J. R. R. Tolkien the novel, stating he preferred applicability to allegory. This theme is taken up at greater length in his essay "On Fairy-Stories", where he argues that fairy-stories are so apt because they are consistent both within themselves and with some truths about reality. He concludes that Christianity itself follows this pattern of inner consistency and external truth. His belief in the fundamental truths of Christianity leads commentators to find Christian themes in "The Lord of the Rings". Tolkien objected strongly to C. S. Lewis's use of religious references in his stories, which were often overtly allegorical. However, Tolkien wrote that the