hhimring

"Auden thought that admiration for Tolkien was an indispensable sign of good literary judgment. That’s putting it too strongly, but you could certainly say that a willingness to read Tolkien with an open mind, and pass judgment on the work’s merits or lack of them, is a sign that no preconceptions about literary categories are in place." (John Lanchester, 11 April 2013, LRB)

The main subject of the article is actually A Song of Ice and Fire (the books) and The Game of Thrones (TV/video).
The article is here:
http://www.lrb.co.uk/v35/n07/john-lanchester/when-did-you-get-hooked