I very much recommend Tom Shippey's Road to Middle-Earth, which discusses Tolkien's influences from the perspective of a contemporary and friend and academic co

I very much recommend Tom Shippey's Road to Middle-Earth, which discusses Tolkien's influences from the perspective of a contemporary and friend and academic colleague. http://www.amazon.com/The-Road-Middle-Earth-Tolkien-Mythology/dp/0618257608/ http://www.amazon.com/The-Road-Middle-Earth-Tolkien-Mytholog... I haven't yet read Shippey's "Author of the Century", which is about a second set of influences (like the World Wars).