JRR Tolkien Death Anniversary: Inspirational Quotes To Remember Renowned Fantasy Writer

Wednesday marks the 47th death anniversary of renowned fantasy writer John Ronald Reuel Tolkien who is best known for authoring "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings."

Born in South Africa on Jan. 3, 1892, Tolkien moved to England with his family at the age of 4. After graduating, Tolkien went on to serve in World War I. But he was released from duty due to health reasons. He then joined the University of Leeds as faculty and became a professor at Oxford University.

"The Hobbit" was published in 1937 while the first book in the "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy was released in 1954. Five years later, he retired from professorial duties. He died on Sept. 2, 1973.

Here are some inspirational quotes by the author, courtesy Good Reads –

• "Not all those who wander are lost."
• "I don't know half of you half as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve."
• "If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world."
• "The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater."
• "Fantasy is escapist, and that is its glory. If a soldier is imprisoned by the enemy, don't we consider it his duty to escape?. . . If we value the freedom of mind and soul, if we're partisans of liberty, then it's our plain duty to escape, and to take as many people with us as we can!"
• "Courage is found in unlikely places."
• "There is nothing like looking, if you want to find something. You certainly usually find something, if you look, but it is not always quite the something you were after."
• "May the wind under your wings bear you where the sun sails and the moon walks."
• "Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgement."