The Children of Húrin (Pre-Lord of the Rings)

This book is a curious case. Having looked over some of the other reviews, I would say people who are likely to read this book already have, and few who are not already semi-hardcore to hardcore fans of Tolkien will not find much here that is of interest to them. I would classify myself as a semi-hardcore fan of Tolkien. I have read The Silmarillion, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings three times each over the course of my life, and have recently embarked upon my fourth deep dive into the Middle Earth literary experience. It is at the outset of this fourth voyage that I picked up both the Unfinished Tales and Children of Hurin, which added a good deal to my experience of Tolkien's world. I have no real interest in exploring the copious and editorial-heavy "Histories of Middle Earth" series, as I already found my patience for the extensive notes and half-finished narratives taxed by "Unfinished Tales," as rewarding as that book is overall. That is where I draw the line between semi-hardcore and hardcore fandom. As for Children of Hurin, overall I really found this to be a fabulous reading experience, especially because I had not yet read the version offered in Unfinished Tales, which would have made very little of the text of CoH new to me. As it stands, having only read the version offered in Silmarillion, there is much new material to enjoy here that really fleshes out the main story of Turin, Morwen and Nienor. It is also really enjoyable to see such a well presented volume with new artwork by Alan Lee, showcasing several full-color prints and smaller black and white sketch-style pictures that bookend each chapter. The new material, at least in terms of adding to the Silmarillion version, is downright epic. I especially enjoyed the fuller sections on the confrontation between Hurin and Morgoth, Turin's trial in Thingol's court, as well as the episode where Turin and the band of outlaws dwell with the dwarf Mim underground. I also really enjoyed the fuller version of Turin's return home in his search for his mother and the chaos that ensues. Some have said that Turin is a static character that shows little growth throughout the narrative. I disagree. The very nature of a character that challenges himself not to remain in the comfort of safety in the realms of the Elves, but to charge out and meet his fate multiple times, going from adopted Elven Prince to outlaw to Military Commander, facing defeat many times, utter ruination in one case, and still enduring to settle in a forest town and finally know love, albeit a tragic one, is of a man prone to change and growth. His story is profound and stirring. Turin's fatal flaws of pride, rashness, volatility and being quick to violence are constants of course, but the idea that the character doesn't show progress or a propensity for evolution is absurd. Turin is a man of his times and lived under Morgoth's curse, still managing to achieve many victories amidst his follies, and rallying himself to twice confront one of the greatest scourges of the Earth, Glaurung the father of dragons, one of the vilest and most demonic dragon characters ever written, being a veritable extension of his master's will and malice. Where Morgoth is full of pride and a will toward domination, Glaurung lives only to destroy and gleefully revels in the death, fear, torture and destruction he unfurls. There are many episodes here that entertain, although overall this is one of the darkest chapters in all of Tolkien's stories and apart from being inspired by the bravery and chivalry on display, this is most definitely a downer of a story, although even tragedies have their value as any fan of Shakespeare can validate. Some have accused this of being a blatant ploy on Christopher Tolkien's part to add a superfluous volume to the cannon for the sake of money alone. I disagree. While there isn't much new material here on the whole, it is a worthy addition to the material already released, if for no other reason than providing an excuse for Alan Lee to contribute more artwork to his already profuse Tolkien-inspired offerings. As with all of the volumes published by C.T. after the death of his father, it is evident that these are true labors of love for him and that a great deal of painstaking labor and reverence for the writer and material went into these volumes. There is of course the rather difficult question of who this work would appeal to and where exactly it fits in relation to the rest of the published works. I am confident in suggesting that if one is not already familiar with The Silmarillion, there is no point in reading this book. So many of the characters and locations are integral to the overall mythology offered in The Silmarillion that, while one could feasibly read this book without having read it, the experience of reading CoH is immeasurably enriched if one has already read The Silmarillion. CoH basically includes the material contained in Chapter 20 and 21 of The Silmarillion while greatly expanding the text with new material, and then at the end (somewhat annoyingly) tacks on a very abridged version of the first few pages of Chapter 22 as if to just say "oh, and this is what happened to Hurin." The full text of Chapter 22 in The Silmarillion offers a broader and more complete account of Hurin's last days after being released from Angband following the events of CoH. If anyone reading this has actually not yet read either Children of Hurin or The Silmarillion and has only read The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings, I would recommend reading The Silmarillion through Chapter 20, then stopping, reading Children of Hurin for the full story of Turin and Nienor, and then continuing The Silmarillion from Chapter 22 on to avoid redundancy, or reading the entire Silmarillion and then reading CoH after, although then you would know the whole story and it would somewhat spoil any surprises. If one has already read both the Silmarillion and the expanded version of CoH offered in Unfinished Tales, there really isn't too much that is new here, however it is still worth a read especially if you enjoyed this particular story and haven't read the Unfinished Tales in a long while.

This review is designed to enumerate a few features of the Deluxe Edition. But first, some notes on the text. As a semi-obsessed Tolkien fan who owns the Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales and has begun to dip into the History of Middle-earth series, I was predestined to be thrilled with the publication of this volume -- the most complete rendering to date of a remarkable work of mythology. And I was not disappointed. But as other reviewers have noted, "The Children of Húrin" will be more accessible to casual readers than the aforementioned works, falling somewhere between the Silmarillion and LOTR in its style and structure. I say *more* accessible, not perfectly accessible. I'm sure many prospective fans will tune out after the first paragraph, which is devoted to Húrin's immediate geneology. But this story was very close to Tolkien's heart -- he labored over it for years -- and fans with a serious literary interest, a little patience, and an open mind (no Hobbits or happy endings to be found) will be rewarded. "Children" isn't Tolkien's most polished work (its manner of posthumous construction makes that inevitable) but there are gems aplenty. I am particularly struck by the figure of Húrin himself, bound to the mountain of the Dark Lord, matching wits and wills with the very Devil of Middle-earth. (Fans hungry for more would do well to seek out the History of Middle-earth Vol. XI, "The War of the Jewels", for the quasi-sequel narrative "The Wanderings of Húrin" -- too fragmentary to include here, but worth reading nonetheless!) I would also encourage readers to take the time to read the informative introduction by Christopher Tolkien, especially if you haven't read the Silmarillion. Combined with the fold-out, two-color map, it will help set the stage. If it seems a little complicated, don't worry ... it should seem less obscure as you progress through the text. Now, some words about the American Deluxe Edition. The final product differs significantly from the pictured product at Amazon (at least, as of May 18, 2007), which looks identical to the UK edition save for the publisher's logo and the large foil insignia. On the final book, the blue seems richer and the slipcase insignia is on the other side (and smaller). (Pictures I have seen of the UK version on eBay seem to match these details.) The Tolkien rune is still on the spine, with Tolkien's name beneath it, but the title of the book is written out across the length of the spine (running top-to-bottom rather than left-to-right) and is not written in all-caps ("The Children of Húrin" rather than "THE CHILDREN OF HÚRIN"). The spine also seems a little more rounded than the pictures indicate. The gold foil insignia on the slipcase is nicely duplicated on the book's front cover, and the Tolkien rune is inlaid in foil on the back cover. The boards are thick and sturdy, with a nice tight binding. The paper is thick, of a very nice quality, and a blue silk ribbon place-marker makes a classy finishing touch. The cover artwork for the regular hardcover edition has been reproduced as frontspiece art. And of course, all the other illustrations -- both color plates and chapter-heading sketches -- are included. In short, the Deluxe Edition is FAR superior to the regular edition, which felt entirely too ordinary and insubstantial to my hand. The text on the back insert (not attached in any way, just stuck under the shrink-wrap) claims this edition of the book is "limited", but I don't know how limited exactly. Fans would do well to grab a copy while they can, especially at Amazon's current sale price. For those of you who already bought the regular edition a month ago (it's unfortunate that both editions weren't released at the same time), the significant improvement in presentation makes it worth the upgrade, in my opinion. In short, this book is a real treat for Tolkien fans, and for fans of high fantasy in general who are willing to tolerate a certain formality of style, and who aren't expecting another rambunctious Hobbit tale. It will please die-hards most of all, but many casual fans will find themselves drawn to it in a way that earlier publications perhaps did not inspire. The American Deluxe Edition in particular is a magnificent production worthy of any bookshelf. I know it will sit proudly next to "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings" on mine.

I didn't read the book yet, but as you can see Amazon delivered this book in perfect state: - a beautiful matt slipcover without damage - fits perfectly with the other Harper Collins collection of Tolkien - nice pictures on special paper and some black/white sketches of Alan Lee in the book - foldable map at the end of the book So according to me a perfect book for any Tolkienlover! Thanks Amazon!

good

Je suis loin d'être une fan de Tolkien, je n'ai jamais réussi à lire le Seigneur des Anneaux en entier tellement je m'y ennuie, et le Hobbit, si je l'ai plutôt apprécié, m'a semblé quand même bien enfantin. Mais là j'ai pris une claque. Quelle splendeur! Dire que j'ai découvert ce roman par hasard! C'est beau, c'est terriblement sombre et tragique. Je retrouve les mêmes sensations qu'en lisant des sagas islandaises. Le style est sobre et va droit au but, les dialogues sont percutants, acérés comme une lame d'épée, les personnages taillés dans le roc et pourtant tellement humains. Une violence sauvage, une malédiction qui s'acharne jusqu'au bout contre les deux héros, des forêts profondes, des gouffres, un dragon à faire pâlir Smaug... On en sort en ayant l'impression d'avoir vécu une vie entière. Lisez ce livre, même si comme moi vous vous fichez des Seigneurs des Ténèbres, orcs, sorciers et autres tolkieneries. Vous ne le regretterez pas.

Only Tolkien can create such epic worlds and weave such complex but intriguing narratives. The amount of detail and interlinked characters are mind boggling. All praise to Christopher Tolkien for such wonderful job of editing his fathers works and bringing to us this epic tale. Must read for all fantasy readers and hope to see movie adaptation in the future

First read this in middle school. Have read it several times since. Highly recommend.