Name: Lord of the Rings
Brand: Moons Rare Books
SKU: lord-of-the-rings-3
Availability: InStock

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Lord of the Rings

$313.25

Original: $895.00

-65%

Lord of the Rings—

$895.00

$313.25

Original: $895.00

-65%

Lord of the Rings—

$895.00

$313.25

The Story

6b J. R. R. Tolkien. New York: Ace Books, Inc. 1965.

Notes

In 1965, Ace Books exploited a loophole in U.S. copyright law to publish the first-ever paperback edition of the Lord of the Rings trilogy without the J. R. R. Tolkiens permission. At the time, American law required foreign-printed books to be manufactured domestically to maintain full copyright protection; because the original U.S. hardcovers used pages printed in the UK, Ace's editor argued the work had fallen into the public domain. Despite Tolkien's initial distaste for the "degenerate" paperback format, this unauthorized release sparked a fierce "War over Middle-earth." Tolkien personally mobilized his growing American fanbase to boycott the "pirated" editions, famously informing readers that Ace was "not so much a publisher as a pirate."

To reclaim legal control, Tolkien overhauled the text into a definitive Second Edition for the Ballantine Books"Authorized Edition." This version is iconic for its surrealist, three-part "triptych" cover art by Barbara Remington. Interestingly, Remington was forced to paint the covers before even reading the books; her work featured whimsical, psychedelic elements like emus, lizards, and strange bulbous trees that had no basis in Tolkien’s lore. While Tolkien famously asked, "What has it to do with the story? Where is this? [and] Why of the emus?", the art perfectly captured the 1960s counter-culture aesthetic. Every Ballantine copy bore a prominent "Statement of Authorization" and a note from Tolkien urging fans to support only this version, ultimately cementing the series as a global phenomenon.

Description

Three volume paperbacks in red, yellow, and blue. Sun fading to spines of books one and two. Extremely minimal wear to extremities. Sharp points and very clean set overall. Fine condition.