Reviews
"Deftly balancing thrilling battles with moments of introspection, Tolkien's vivid and gripping narrative reaffirms his primacy in fantasy literature." -Publishers Weekly, "Editor Christopher Tolkien has performed a remarkable feat . . . as cobbled together from untold abandoned efforts at completion by his father, the mortar matches the bricks nearly to perfection." -Booklist, "It has seemed to me for a long time that there was a good case for presenting my father's long version of the legend of the Children of Húrin as an independent work" Christopher Tolkien "The Children of Hurin is about to thrill and intrigue millions. It is safe to say that the 'great tale' of Turin is about to become a global myth...in its own dotty but also awe-inspiring way, it works." Sunday Times Culture "...worthy of a readership beyond Tolkien devotees...this book deserves to eclipse all his other posthumous writings, and stand as a worthy memorial to the imagination of Tolkien.' The Times "I hope that its universality and power will grant it a place in English mythology'... It isn't jolly, but then neither is Anthony and Cleopatra." The Independent on Sunday, "Ambitious fans of fantasy will find a work that reminds them why we continue to place Tolkien at the zenith of fantasy literature after so many years." -School Library Journal, "Read by Lee in delightfully melancholy and beautifully sonorous tones." - Booklist , on the audio edition, "It has seemed to me for a long time that there was a good case for presenting my father's long version of the legend of the Children of Húrin as an independent work" Christopher TolkienThe Children of Hurin is about to thrill and intrigue millions. It is safe to say that the 'great tale' of Turin is about to become a global myth…in its own dotty but also awe-inspiring way, it works. Sunday Times Culture…worthy of a readership beyond Tolkien devotees…this book deserves to eclipse all his other posthumous writings, and stand as a worthy memorial to the imagination of Tolkien.' The TimesI hope that its universality and power will grant it a place in English mythology'… It isn't jolly, but then neither is Anthony and Cleopatra. The Independent on Sunday, "It has seemed to me for a long time that there was a good case for presenting my father's long version of the legend of the Children of H'rin as an independent work" Christopher Tolkien a?The Children of Hurin is about to thrill and intrigue millions. It is safe to say that the 'great tale' of Turin is about to become a global mytha? in its own dotty but also awe-inspiring way, it works.a? Sunday Times Culture a'a? worthy of a readership beyond Tolkien devoteesa? this book deserves to eclipse all his other posthumous writings, and stand as a worthy memorial to the imagination of Tolkien.' The Times a?I hope that its universality and power will grant it a place in English mythology'a? It isn't jolly, but then neither is Anthony and Cleopatra.a? The Independent on Sunday "It has seemed to me for a long time that there was a good case for presenting my father's long version of the legend of the Children of H'rin as an independent work, between its own covers, with a minimum of editorial presence, and above all in continuous narrative without gaps or interruptions, if this could be done without distortion or invention, despite the unfinished state in which he left some parts of it." Christopher Tolkien, "Ambitious fans of fantasy will find a work that reminds them why we continue to place Tolkien at the zenith of fantasy literature after so many years." -School Library Journal, "It has seemed to me for a long time that there was a good case for presenting my father's long version of the legend of the Children of Hrin as an independent work" Christopher Tolkien eoeThe Children of Hurin is about to thrill and intrigue millions. It is safe to say that the 'great tale' of Turin is about to become a global mythein its own dotty but also awe-inspiring way, it works.e Sunday Times Culture eoeeworthy of a readership beyond Tolkien devoteesethis book deserves to eclipse all his other posthumous writings, and stand as a worthy memorial to the imagination of Tolkien.' The Times eoeI hope that its universality and power will grant it a place in English mythology'e It isn't jolly, but then neither is Anthony and Cleopatra.e The Independent on Sunday, "Deftly balancing thrilling battles with moments of introspection, Tolkien's vivid and gripping narrative reaffirms his primacy in fantasy literature." -Publishers Weekly, "It has seemed to me for a long time that there was a good case for presenting my father's long version of the legend of the Children of Hrin as an independent work" Christopher Tolkien "The Children of Hurin is about to thrill and intrigue millions. It is safe to say that the 'great tale' of Turin is about to become a global myth...in its own dotty but also awe-inspiring way, it works." Sunday Times Culture "...worthy of a readership beyond Tolkien devotees...this book deserves to eclipse all his other posthumous writings, and stand as a worthy memorial to the imagination of Tolkien.' The Times "I hope that its universality and power will grant it a place in English mythology'... It isn't jolly, but then neither is Anthony and Cleopatra." The Independent on Sunday, "It has seemed to me for a long time that there was a good case for presenting my father's long version of the legend of the Children of Hùrin as an independent work" Christopher Tolkien"The Children of Hurin is about to thrill and intrigue millions. It is safe to say that the 'great tale' of Turin is about to become a global myth...in its own dotty but also awe-inspiring way, it works." Sunday Times Culture"...worthy of a readership beyond Tolkien devotees...this book deserves to eclipse all his other posthumous writings, and stand as a worthy memorial to the imagination of Tolkien.' The Times"I hope that its universality and power will grant it a place in English mythology'... It isn't jolly, but then neither is Anthony and Cleopatra." The Independent on Sunday"It has seemed to me for a long time that there was a good case for presenting my father's long version of the legend of the Children of Hùrin as an independent work, between its own covers, with a minimum of editorial presence, and above all in continuous narrative without gaps or interruptions, if this could be done without distortion or invention, despite the unfinished state in which he left some parts of it." Christopher Tolkien, "Read by Lee in delightfully melancholy and beautifully sonorous tones." -Booklist, on the audio edition, "Editor Christopher Tolkien has performed a remarkable feat . . . as cobbled together from untold abandoned efforts at completion by his father, the mortar matches the bricks nearly to perfection." -Booklist, "It has seemed to me for a long time that there was a good case for presenting my father's long version of the legend of the Children of Húrin as an independent work" Christopher Tolkien The Children of Hurin is about to thrill and intrigue millions. It is safe to say that the 'great tale' of Turin is about to become a global myth…in its own dotty but also awe-inspiring way, it works. Sunday Times Culture …worthy of a readership beyond Tolkien devotees…this book deserves to eclipse all his other posthumous writings, and stand as a worthy memorial to the imagination of Tolkien.' The Times I hope that its universality and power will grant it a place in English mythology'… It isn't jolly, but then neither is Anthony and Cleopatra. The Independent on Sunday
Synopsis
Painstakingly restored from Tolkien's manuscripts and presented for the first time as a fully continuous and stand alone story, the epic tale of The Children of Húrin will reunite fans of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings with Elves and Men, dragons and Dwarves, eagles and Orcs, and the rich landscape and characters unique to Tolkien., After long study of the various manuscripts that composed this early tale of Middle-Earth, Christopher Tolkien has constructed a coherent and epic narrative that composes a crucial part of his father's literary oeuvre. In the great country that lay beyond the Grey Havens in the West following the great cataclysm that ended the First Age of the World, Morgoth--the first Dark Lord--dwelt in the vast fortress of Angband, the Hells of Iron. As he waged war against the lands and secret cities of the Elves, the tragedy of Turin and his sister Nienor unfolds. Their brief and passionate lives are dominated by the elemental hatred that Morgoth bears them as the children of Hurin, the man who had dared to defy and to scorn him to his face. Against them Morgoth sends his most formidable servant, Glaurung, a powerful spirit in the form of a huge wingless dragon of fire. Sardonic and mocking, Glaurung manipulates the fates of Turin and Nienor by lies of diabolic cunning and guile, and the curse of Morgoth is fulfilled. Unabridged and read by Christopher Lee--the actor who portrayed Saruman in the film adaptation of The Lord of the Rings trilogy--this is a gripping story of Elves and Men, dragons and Dwarves, and struggle and revenge., Painstakingly restored from Tolkien's manuscripts and presented for the first time as a fully continuous and stand alone story, the epic tale of The Children of H rin will reunite fans of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings with Elves and Men, dragons and Dwarves, eagles and Orcs, and the rich landscape and characters unique to Tolkien. There are tales of Middle-earth from times long before The Lord of the Rings, and the story told in this book is set in the great country that lay beyond the Grey Havens in the West: lands where Treebeard once walked, but which were drowned in the great cataclysm that ended the First Age of the World. In that remote time Morgoth, the first Dark Lord, dwelt in the vast fortress of Angband, the Hells of Iron, in the North; and the tragedy of T rin and his sister Nienor unfolded within the shadow of the fear of Angband and the war waged by Morgoth against the lands and secret cities of the Elves. Their brief and passionate lives were dominated by the elemental hatred that Morgoth bore them as the children of H rin, the man who had dared to defy and to scorn him to his face. Against them he sent his most formidable servant, Glaurung, a powerful spirit in the form of a huge wingless dragon of fire. Into this story of brutal conquest and flight, of forest hiding-places and pursuit, of resistance with lessening hope, the Dark Lord and the Dragon enter in direly articulate form. Sardonic and mocking, Glaurung manipulated the fates of T rin and Nienor by lies of diabolic cunning and guile, and the curse of Morgoth was fulfilled. The earliest versions of this story by J.R.R. Tolkien go back to the end of the First World War and the years that followed; but long afterwards, when The Lord of the Rings was finished, he wrote it anew and greatly enlarged it in complexities of motive and character: it became the dominant story in his later work on Middle-earth. But he could not bring it to a final and finished form. In this book Christopher Tolkien has constructed, after long study of the manuscripts, a coherent narrative without any editorial invention., Painstakingly restored from Tolkien's manuscripts and presented for the first time as a fully continuous and stand alone story, the epic tale of The Children of Húrin will reunite fans of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings with Elves and Men, dragons and Dwarves, eagles and Orcs, and the rich landscape and characters unique to Tolkien. There are tales of Middle-earth from times long before The Lord of the Rings, and the story told in this book is set in the great country that lay beyond the Grey Havens in the West: lands where Treebeard once walked, but which were drowned in the great cataclysm that ended the First Age of the World. In that remote time Morgoth, the first Dark Lord, dwelt in the vast fortress of Angband, the Hells of Iron, in the North; and the tragedy of Túrin and his sister Nienor unfolded within the shadow of the fear of Angband and the war waged by Morgoth against the lands and secret cities of the Elves. Their brief and passionate lives were dominated by the elemental hatred that Morgoth bore them as the children of Húrin, the man who had dared to defy and to scorn him to his face. Against them he sent his most formidable servant, Glaurung, a powerful spirit in the form of a huge wingless dragon of fire. Into this story of brutal conquest and flight, of forest hiding-places and pursuit, of resistance with lessening hope, the Dark Lord and the Dragon enter in direly articulate form. Sardonic and mocking, Glaurung manipulated the fates of Túrin and Nienor by lies of diabolic cunning and guile, and the curse of Morgoth was fulfilled. The earliest versions of this story by J.R.R. Tolkien go back to the end of the First World War and the years that followed; but long afterwards, when The Lord of the Rings was finished, he wrote it anew and greatly enlarged it in complexities of motive and character: it became the dominant story in his later work on Middle-earth. But he could not bring it to a final and finished form. In this book Christopher Tolkien has constructed, after long study of the manuscripts, a coherent narrative without any editorial invention.