J. R. R. Tolkien letters or of the first editions of his individual writings have however achieved high values at auctions, and forged autographs may occur on the market. In particular, the signed first hardback edition of "The Hobbit" from 1937 has reportedly been offered for $85,000. Collectibles also include non-fiction books with hand-written annotations from Tolkien's private library. A small selection of books about Tolkien and his works: J. R. R. Tolkien John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, (; 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor who is best known as the author of the classic
Works inspired by J. R. R. Tolkien the Ballantine Adult Fantasy series, aimed at adult readers who enjoyed Tolkien's works. Lester Del Rey, however, sought for new books that would mirror Tolkien's work, and published Terry Brooks' "The Sword of Shannara", David Eddings's "Belgariad", and Stephen R. Donaldson's "The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever". Guy Gavriel Kay, who had assisted Christopher Tolkien with the editing of "The Silmarillion", later wrote his own Tolkien-influenced fantasy trilogy, "The Fionavar Tapestry". Russian writer Nick Perumov was able to publish several fantasy novels set in Tolkien's Middle-Earth after the events of "The Lord of the Rings" (due to a loophole