The CBC Radio One podcast Words At Large has a vintage 1987 interview with Rayner Unwin, who convinced his father to publish J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord Of The Rings.
“When he sent it to George Allen & Unwin, the company’s publisher asked his 10-year-old son to vet the manuscript. Rayner Unwin recommended that the book be published, saying that it would appeal to ‘children ages five to nine.’ He was paid one shilling for his work.”
Listen direct |MP3|, or subscribe to the podcast feed:
http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/wordsatlarge.xml
Posted by Jesse Willis
P.S. Hope y’all haven’t forgotten that Apocalypse Al still must be freed!