History of the Lord of the Rings

[cesar.ewok]

I have already read some volumes of the HoMe which correspond to the narrative of the Silmarillion. I hadn't bought those ones talking about the LotR out of lack of interest. However, I have recently become interested in their content (because of the Letters), and I have bought Return of the Shadow and Sauron Defead (these were the only ones available in the store :P; the others I should purchase later). I was wondering what is your opinion about these books...

[MatthewM]

They are great to have. True gems into the creation of M-e.

[cesar.ewok]

What sort of accounts am I to find in these books? Are they nice to read? Are they similar to those of the latest books? Is there any additional info or are there only accounts of previous writings?

[Groin Redbeard]

I'll join you in this one, cesar.ewok. I'm looking into buying the complete series of HoME, but one thing that I've noticed is that the Children of Hurin is not accounted for in this series. Is the Children of Hurin a seperate book unto itself like the Silmarillion?

[Eönwë]

Originally Posted by Groin Redbeard

I'll join you in this one, cesar.ewok. I'm looking into buying the complete series of HoME, but one thing that I've noticed is that the Children of Hurin is not accounted for in this series. Is the Children of Hurin a seperate book unto itself like the Silmarillion?

I haven't read it myself, but I think the CoH is meant to be read in much the same way as LOTR (rather than CT remarking on his father's works).

[Lindale]

My dad hasn't returned my freshly-bought copy of CoH, but he says that it's very much like the story in the sil plus the story in the UT, all melded into an LotR-ish style that he says, "reeks of Greek tragedy."

[Mithalwen]

I own all of HoME and I would say that the Lord of the Rings volumes are to my mind the most approachable - I have read them through whereas I tend to "dip" into some of the others. It is fascinating to see how the story developed and expanded moving from the Hobbit sequel to being also a sequel to the Silmarillion. Obviously some people don't want to know this kind of thing and prefer to take the finished work as it is, but I really enjoyed them.

As for the Children of Hurin, you will find parts of it in HoME but since it was published later you won't find it referred to there as a single volume work.

A short version of the story was published in the Silmarillion, more was included in "Unfinished Tales" and some fragments appeared only in HoME. I seem to recall this was partly because Tolkien wrote many drafts, and moved house and office and was generally somewhat disorganized and as a result some things went to the US university that had bought a lot of his manuscripts while others were left in the care of Christopher Tolkien.

Therefore last year The Children of Hurin was published as a single volume novel.

[MatthewM]

Originally Posted by cesar.ewok

What sort of accounts am I to find in these books? Are they nice to read? Are they similar to those of the latest books? Is there any additional info or are there only accounts of previous writings?

They are nice to read - what you will find in them is the creation of M-e as Tolkien wrote it, put together by his son Christopher. They aren't similiar to his latest books really, because they are just notes and bits of LotR in baby form.

[doug*platypus]

I've only read the first five, and some of Peoples of Middle-Earth. For some strange reason, I've always held back on reading those volumes detailing the evolution of LOTR. I guess I'm somehow worried that if I read this, then it will seem like something that has been cobbled together from humble beginnings. I prefer to think of LOTR as something that emerged in perfect form, even though I know that's a ridiculous notion.

My favourite song lyric may be kind of applicable in this situation (it's from Come to Me by Björk):

"you know that I adore you, you know that I love you, so don't make me say it, it would burst the bubble, break the charm"

I'm afraid of bursting the bubble and breaking the charm. But the sad thing is, I feel I cannot consider myself a true, die-hard Tolkien fan if I have not read all his works, even the posthumous ones. So I'm a bit torn about whether or not to read the History of LOTR volumes. Some advice would be appreciated. Sorry for rambling.

[The Sixth Wizard]

Hey don't worry. After all, technically only LOTR and the Hobbit are "canonical" works. The others are sometimes conflicting and are changeable. I haven't read anything past the Hobbit, LOTR, the Silmarillion and the Children of Hurin, but I consider myself a Tolkien fan.

I would recommend you get CoH, but don't pay too steep a price for it. It's a good book, Turin is a tragic character but it repeats the Silmarillion a fair bit (the font size and margin width are rather big too...)

[Sauron the White]

Just keep in mind that the title of the series is not really what the series is. A more accurate and truthful title would have been

THE HISTORY OF THE WRITING ABOUT MIDDLE EARTH

but how many people would have bought a dozen volumes about that topic?

Aside from that, it is well worth having.

[Eönwë]

Originally Posted by The Sixth Wizard

Hey don't worry. After all, technically only LOTR and the Hobbit are "canonical" works. The others are sometimes conflicting and are changeable. I haven't read anything past the Hobbit, LOTR, the Silmarillion and the Children of Hurin, but I consider myself a Tolkien fan.

I would recommend you get CoH, but don't pay too steep a price for it. It's a good book, Turin is a tragic character but it repeats the Silmarillion a fair bit (the font size and margin width are rather big too...)

I think I might disagree with you there. The Hobbit isn't completely canon either.

But if you haven't read the UT (Unfinished Tales), read that. It gives more depth to a lot of the stuff in LOTR, TH and the Silm.