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
Reception of J. R. R. Tolkien was still a subject of debate in 2015. Richard C. West compiled "Tolkien Criticism: An Annotated Checklist" in 1981. The pace of scholarly publications on Tolkien increased dramatically in the early 2000s. The dedicated journal "Tolkien Studies" has been appearing since 2004. The open-access "Journal of Tolkien Research" has been published since 2014. A bibliographic database of Tolkien criticism is maintained at Wheaton College. Earlier reactions could be very negative. The editor and publisher Edmund Wilson made harsh comments about Tolkien's work, which he referred to as "juvenile trash", saying "Dr. Tolkien has little skill at narrative and no instinct