Q: "The Lord of the Rings", one of the best sellers in the new millennium , was made up of three parts--"The Fellow Ship of the Ring", "Two Towers", and "The Return of the King". Millions upon millions of people have read it in over 25 different languages, but fewer know about the author and the history of the composition of the creative masterwork.

John Ronald Refuel Tolkien was born in South Africa in 1892. His parents died when he was a child. Living in England with his aunt, Tolkien and his cousins made up play languages, a hobby that led to Tolkien's becoming skilled in Welsh, Greek, Gothic, Old Norse and Anglo--Saxon.

After graduating from Oxford, Tolkien served in World War I. In 1917, while recovering from trench fever he began composing the mythology for The Rings. As a professor of Anglo-Saxon in the 1930s at Oxford, Tolkien was part of an informal discussion group called the Inklings, which included several writers. The group was soon 1istening to chapters of Tolkien's imaginative work "The Hobbit".

Hobbit was a name Tolkien created for people that could best be described as half-sized members of the English rural class. Hobbits live in hillside holes. One of them,Bilbo Baggins, looks for treasures with a group of dwarves . On the way, he meets the twisted, pitiful creature Gollum, from whom he sees a golden ring that makes the holder invisible.

One of Tolkien's students persuaded her employer, publisher Allen & Unwind, to look at a draft . The chairman of the firm, Stanley Unwind, thought that the best judge for a Children's book would be his ten-year-old son. The boy earned a shilling for reporting back that the adventure was exciting, and "The Hobbit" was published in 1937.

It sold so well that Unwind asked for a continuation. Over a dozen years later, in 1954, Tolkien produced "The Lord of the Rings", a series of books so creative that they hold readers both new and old -- after their publication.

1. John Ronald Refuel Tolkien
2. 1892
3. South Africa
4. his aunt
5. made up play languages
6. Welsh, Greek, Gothic, Old Norse and Anglo--Saxon
7. unknown
8. Oxford
9. no
10. Anglo-Saxon
11. the Inklings
12. half-sized members of the English rural class
13. no
14. hillside holes
15. Bilbo Baggins
16. Gollum
17. a shilling

Numbered questions:
1. Who wrote the Lord of the Rings?
2. When was he born?
3. Where?
4. Who raised him
5. What did he do for fun with cousins?
6. What real languages did he learn?
7. What are the 3 sections of the Lord of the Rings?
8. Where did he go to school?
9. Did he leave before graduating?
10. What diid he teach?
11. What was his discussion group named?
12. What were hobbits?
13. Were they the same thing as dwarves?
14. Where were their homes?
15. What was one of the hobbits named?
16. What terrible creature did he meet?
17. How much did a child receive for reviewing The Hobbit?

Q: The Eucharist (also called Holy Communion or the Lord's Supper, among other names) is a Christian rite that is considered a sacrament in most churches and an ordinance in others. According to the New Testament, the rite was instituted by Jesus Christ during his Last Supper; giving his disciples bread and wine during the Passover meal, Jesus commanded his followers to "do this in memory of me" while referring to the bread as "my body" and the wine as "my blood". Through the Eucharistic celebration Christians remember Christ's sacrifice of himself on the cross.

The elements of the Eucharist, bread (leavened or unleavened) and wine are consecrated on an altar (or table) and consumed thereafter. Communicants (that is, those who consume the elements) may speak of "receiving the Eucharist", as well as "celebrating the Eucharist". Christians generally recognize a special presence of Christ in this rite, though they differ about exactly how, where, and when Christ is present. While all agree that there is no perceptible change in the elements, Catholics believe that they actually become the body and blood of Christ (transubstantiation). Lutherans believe the true body and blood of Christ are really present "in, with, and under" the forms of the bread and wine (sacramental union). Reformed Christians believe in a real spiritual presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Others, such as the Plymouth Brethren, take the act to be only a symbolic reenactment of the Last Supper.

1. The Eucharist
2. jesus' blood
3. "my body"
4. yes
5. leavened or unleavened
6. consecrated on an altar
7. the Plymouth Brethren
8. yes
9. Holy Communion or the Lord's Supper
10. a special presence of Christ
11. his disciples
12. yes
13. in memory of me
14. Communicants

Numbered questions:
1. What rite was established by Jesus during the Passover meal?
2. What did the wine symbolize?
3. And the bread?
4. Was it a certain type of bread?
5. What kind?
6. What had to happen to it before it could be eaten?
7. What religion sees this as just acting out the Last Supper?
8. Is the Eucharist called by other names?
9. Like what?
10. What do Christians remind themselves of when doing this?
11. Who did Jesus give the bread and wine to during the Last Supper?
12. Did he order them to take it?
13. For what reason?
14. What do you call those who eat the bread and drink the wine?

Q: Ken and Anthony were childhood friends. They went to elementary and high school together. They went to college in different states, and then they lost touch. That was twenty years ago. One morning Ken was reading the newspaper with his morning coffee. Inside he saw an announcement for a poetry reading at a nearby bookstore. He was surprised to find that the featured poet was none other than his friend Anthony. Ken decided to see what his old pal was up to. Ken sat in the last row of the area set up inside the bookstore. When Anthony was introduced and came up the podium, Ken hardly recognized him. Anthony was almost completely bald and had a little potbelly . When Anthony was in high school, he was very handsome. What Anthony had lost in looks was made up for in talent. Anthony's poetry was quite good. Anthony recognized Ken sitting in the back row. When the reading was over, Ken stood in line with the others waiting for Anthony to sign a copy of his book. When it was Ken's turn, Anthony stood up and hugged his long lost friend. Anthony invited Ken to stay until he had finished signing books. Ken did, and the two men grabbed a cup of coffee at a nearby cafe. Even though so many years had passed since the two had seen each other, both men had a lot in common. Both graduated from college with degrees in comparative literature . Both went to graduate school. Anthony got his Master's of Fine Art in writing. Ken went to law school. Both men married Mexican women. Both men also had sons that were only a year apart. Ken and Anthony decided not to lose touch again. They planned to meet once a month for breakfast on Saturdays.

1. Ken and Anthony
2. Anthony
3. reading the newspaper
4. no
5. yes
6. yes
7. Ken waited for Anthony to sign a copy of his book
8. yes
9. Mexican
10. Ken
11. almost completely bald with a little potbelly
12. Fine Art in writing
13. yes
14. once a month on Saturdays
15. breakfast

Numbered questions:
1. Who went to primary school together?
2. Who was a poet?
3. What was Ken doing the day he say the announcment?
4. Did the boys talk after school?
5. did Ken go to the poetry reading?
6. Was Anthony different?
7. What happened after the poetry reading?
8. Were both men married?
9. What was the ethnicity of their spouses?
10. Who went to law school?
11. What does Anthony look like now?
12. WHat did he get his Masters in?
13. Will the two meet again?
14. When?
15. For what?