For this episode, I had the opportunity to speak with my good friend and brilliant Tolkien scholar: Mariana Rios Maldonado!

Mariana is a PhD student at the University of Glasgow where she is interested in ethics, feminist theory, and encountering the Other in Tolkien's works. She received a grant from Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (National Council for Science and Technology, CONACyT) and Fundación INBA (National Foundation for Fine Arts and Literature) in Mexico for her studies. She also serves as the Equality and Diversity Officer for the University of Glasgow’s Centre for Fantasy and the Fantastic. In addition to all of her engagement with the University of Glasgow, she also holds a position on the Editorial Review Board of Mallorn: The Journal of the Tolkien Society.