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The History of Middle-Earth #1
Racconti ritrovati
Universo fantastico di immagini e di personale mitologia, i Racconti ritrovati segnano l’inizio della creazione fiabesca di J.R.R. Tolkien. Vi si trovano, in forma germinale e perciò misteriosa e allusiva, i grandi temi narrativi del cosmo tolkieniano, che accompagneranno poi per decenni la sua straordinaria produzione: gli Ainur, i grandi Dèi, che si innamorano del mondo da loro creato e vi si rifugiano, edificando le dimore leggendarie; la lotta mai conclusa contro Melko, il dio enigmatico e maligno; l’avvento nel mondo degli Elfi, creature di Ilúvatar. Nella magica Casetta del Gioco Perduto proprio gli Elfi inscenano dinanzi agli occhi di Eriol, il marinaio assetato di avventura e di antiche conoscenze, queste storie del mondo che precedono la nascita del genere umano. Iniziati tra il 1916 e il 1917, quando J.R.R. Tolkien aveva solo venticinque anni, i Racconti ritrovati sono qui accompagnati dal puntuale commento di Christopher Tolkien, il figlio del grande scrittore, che offre la chiave di lettura e l’ideale raccordo con gli altri testi del ciclo tolkieniano, e in particolare con Il Silmarillion. Insieme ai Racconti perduti, questo libro forma il primo volume dell’opera monumentale di Tolkien, La storia della Terra di Mezzo, per la prima volta qui presentata nella traduzione aggiornata a cura della Società Tolkieniana Italiana.
436 pages, Paperback
First published October 28, 1983
2396 people are currently reading
27465 people want to read
About the author
J.R.R. Tolkien
768 books76.9k followersJohn Ronald Reuel Tolkien: writer, artist, scholar, linguist. Known to millions around the world as the author of The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien spent most of his life teaching at the University of Oxford where he was a distinguished academic in the fields of Old and Middle English and Old Norse. His creativity, confined to his spare time, found its outlet in fantasy works, stories for children, poetry, illustration and invented languages and alphabets.
Tolkien’s most popular works, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings are set in Middle-earth, an imagined world with strangely familiar settings inhabited by ancient and extraordinary peoples. Through this secondary world Tolkien writes perceptively of universal human concerns – love and loss, courage and betrayal, humility and pride – giving his books a wide and enduring appeal.
Tolkien was an accomplished amateur artist who painted for pleasure and relaxation. He excelled at landscapes and often drew inspiration from his own stories. He illustrated many scenes from The Silmarillion, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, sometimes drawing or painting as he was writing in order to visualize the imagined scene more clearly.
Tolkien was a professor at the Universities of Leeds and Oxford for almost forty years, teaching Old and Middle English, as well as Old Norse and Gothic. His illuminating lectures on works such as the Old English epic poem, Beowulf, illustrate his deep knowledge of ancient languages and at the same time provide new insights into peoples and legends from a remote past.
Tolkien was born in Bloemfontein, South Africa, in 1892 to English parents. He came to England aged three and was brought up in and around Birmingham. He graduated from the University of Oxford in 1915 and saw active service in France during the First World War before being invalided home. After the war he pursued an academic career teaching Old and Middle English. Alongside his professional work, he invented his own languages and began to create what he called a mythology for England; it was this ‘legendarium’ that he would work on throughout his life. But his literary work did not start and end with Middle-earth, he also wrote poetry, children’s stories and fairy tales for adults. He died in 1973 and is buried in Oxford where he spent most of his adult life.
Tolkien’s most popular works, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings are set in Middle-earth, an imagined world with strangely familiar settings inhabited by ancient and extraordinary peoples. Through this secondary world Tolkien writes perceptively of universal human concerns – love and loss, courage and betrayal, humility and pride – giving his books a wide and enduring appeal.
Tolkien was an accomplished amateur artist who painted for pleasure and relaxation. He excelled at landscapes and often drew inspiration from his own stories. He illustrated many scenes from The Silmarillion, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, sometimes drawing or painting as he was writing in order to visualize the imagined scene more clearly.
Tolkien was a professor at the Universities of Leeds and Oxford for almost forty years, teaching Old and Middle English, as well as Old Norse and Gothic. His illuminating lectures on works such as the Old English epic poem, Beowulf, illustrate his deep knowledge of ancient languages and at the same time provide new insights into peoples and legends from a remote past.
Tolkien was born in Bloemfontein, South Africa, in 1892 to English parents. He came to England aged three and was brought up in and around Birmingham. He graduated from the University of Oxford in 1915 and saw active service in France during the First World War before being invalided home. After the war he pursued an academic career teaching Old and Middle English. Alongside his professional work, he invented his own languages and began to create what he called a mythology for England; it was this ‘legendarium’ that he would work on throughout his life. But his literary work did not start and end with Middle-earth, he also wrote poetry, children’s stories and fairy tales for adults. He died in 1973 and is buried in Oxford where he spent most of his adult life.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 566 reviews
October 6, 2020
If you want to know more about the prehistory of The Lord of the Rings, want to delve into old and long forgotten tales, this is the right collection for you. You read about how the world was created, who the gods were, hear about Tulkas, Valinor and the evil Melko (brilliant character). Each tale has a comment and plenty of explanation. There are even poems included and thousands of strange sounding names. For every Ring fan an absolute must read. The tales often reminded me on nordic myths. This is pure escapism. Highly recommended, though a bit difficult with all the annotations, glossary, comments and notes.
June 21, 2013
STOP: Ask yourself if you read and enjoyed The Silmarillion?
If the answer is 'yes', then you might like this book.
If the answer is 'no, I haven't read The Silmarillion', then read that before this book.
If the answer is 'no, I don't like like The Silmarillion', then you won't like this book.
This book will give you insight into the early thoughts and ideas that eventually became the Silmarillion. If you are or want to be a hardcore Tolkien fan then this book is a must, but for most casual fans of Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit it isn't.
If the answer is 'yes', then you might like this book.
If the answer is 'no, I haven't read The Silmarillion', then read that before this book.
If the answer is 'no, I don't like like The Silmarillion', then you won't like this book.
This book will give you insight into the early thoughts and ideas that eventually became the Silmarillion. If you are or want to be a hardcore Tolkien fan then this book is a must, but for most casual fans of Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit it isn't.
February 19, 2023
3.5 stars
My first attempt to read _The Book of Lost Tales_ was made way too early in my life and made certain that my response was to put it on the shelf and decide that all of this background stuff, especially taken from this early phase in Tolkien’s life as a writer, was way too different from the Middle-Earth stories that I loved for me to waste any time on it. Looking at where the book mark from my first attempt still sat when I picked it up again, I noticed that I didn’t even get much beyond the first several pages of the introductory chapter “The Cottage of Lost Play”. I remember thinking that it was just altogether too twee for me, what with the Eldar of Middle-Earth still being referred to as ‘faeries’ and the, to me, bizarre structure of a wanderer coming to a tiny cottage (bigger on the inside than the outside) peopled by dancing and singing children and adults who primarily sat around telling tales and reciting pretty mediocre poetry. It wasn’t really Middle-Earth now was it? Well, at the time I put down the volume and decided that I’d stick with the ‘real’ stuff of LotR, The Hobbit and The Silmarillion and that, as they say, was that for probably about two and a half decades. Then it came about that I discovered my greatest love vis a vis Tolkien’s work was growing to be the posthumously published The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-Earth, both of which contained some of the most beautiful and powerful of Tolkien’s writing. I looked at the corpus of ‘The History of Middle Earth’ with something of a new eye and decided that I might just dip into it and see what it was like. I consciously chose to first read those volumes that dealt with the matter of the First and Second ages of Middle-Earth and were latest in the chronology of composition thus presumably assuring that I was coming across ideas and stories that were closer in tone and content to the ones with which I was so familiar and that thrilled me with their mythic reverberations. I ended up loving what I found in Morgoth's Ring and The War of the Jewels and decided that maybe this huge work undertaken by Christopher Tolkien to present the works of his father in toto wasn’t an altogether bad idea after all (especially given my hunger for more material regarding the tales as told in The Silmarillion).
So now I find myself re-embarking on the journey from the beginning and tackling the very Book of Lost Tales (part one) that defeated me in my youth. I’m glad I came back. Pushing through past the point in the first chapter beyond which I never made it before I actually found a fair bit to like, even though it wasn’t the undiluted Middle-Earth vintage I had initially wanted. I was actually reminded a bit of William Morris’ medieval romances that so influenced Tolkien as I read about the journey of Eriol the mariner upon the Isle of Tol Eressëa and once the tales themselves began to be told I saw that there was a surprising amount of coherence between these earliest versions of the myths of Middle-Earth with what eventually came to be published in The Sil. The differences themselves were intriguing and I found as the chapters sped on the framing device didn’t bother me half as much as once it had. I will readily admit that much of the poetry in this volume leaves something to be desired. I am not one of those readers of Tolkien that skips over the poems, and I think that many of them are quite beautiful (esp. Bilbo’s poem of Eärendil sung in Rivendell), but the early ones showcased in this volume are not really my cup of tea (though one can certainly see Tolkien’s word-craft in them improving as time went on). The Cottage of Lost Play itself took on greater interest as well as I started to see some parallels between it and the ultimate development of Elrond’s house of Rivendell as “a perfect house, whether you like food or sleep or story-telling or singing, or just sitting and thinking best, or a pleasant mixture of them all’. Merely to be there was a cure for weariness, fear, and sadness.”
Eriol the mariner, a man from medieval England who has found his way to the magical isles of the west, sits in this pleasant house and has recounted to him many of the tales of the elder days when the Elves were alone in Middle-Earth, or mankind just arising from their ages long slumber. All of these tales are ones that a reader of The Silmarillion will already be familiar with: the creation myth of the Music of the Ainur, the building of Valinor and creation of the Two Trees of Light, the battles against Melkor (here named Melko) and his initial imprisonment, the coming of the Elves to the blessed lands and their ultimate rebellion and return to Middle-Earth in pursuit of Melko, and the myth of the creation of the sun and moon upon the death of the two trees. Some of these are not very far from the more final versions that were presented in The Silmarillion, while others display drastic differences (such as the expanded legend of the sun and moon, the extensive bits that deal with cosmology and the make-up of the world, and the inclusion of Valar who mate and even include in their number some gods of war), but it is very safe to say that unless you have a deep and abiding love for Middle-Earth, and especially tales of the elder days, you probably won’t get much out of this book. I would agree with those who claim this is really only for aficionados of Tolkien’s tales who want more and who are interested in seeing the development of his mythology. It is indeed a fascinating peek over the shoulder of Tolkien as he writes his tales and we finally start to get a glimpse of the sheer magnitude of the effort that his son expended simply in producing from the jumble of inter-related texts about the legends of the Elves a volume as slim and relatively cohesive as The Silmarillion.
I’m looking forward to tackling Book II of the lost tales and proceeding with the history of Middle-Earth texts at least up to volume 5 to continue to get my fix and maybe even get a taste of some legends of the elder days that I haven’t already experienced in another form. Recommended for hard-core Tolkien fans who don’t mind critical apparatus and multiple versions of tales.
My first attempt to read _The Book of Lost Tales_ was made way too early in my life and made certain that my response was to put it on the shelf and decide that all of this background stuff, especially taken from this early phase in Tolkien’s life as a writer, was way too different from the Middle-Earth stories that I loved for me to waste any time on it. Looking at where the book mark from my first attempt still sat when I picked it up again, I noticed that I didn’t even get much beyond the first several pages of the introductory chapter “The Cottage of Lost Play”. I remember thinking that it was just altogether too twee for me, what with the Eldar of Middle-Earth still being referred to as ‘faeries’ and the, to me, bizarre structure of a wanderer coming to a tiny cottage (bigger on the inside than the outside) peopled by dancing and singing children and adults who primarily sat around telling tales and reciting pretty mediocre poetry. It wasn’t really Middle-Earth now was it? Well, at the time I put down the volume and decided that I’d stick with the ‘real’ stuff of LotR, The Hobbit and The Silmarillion and that, as they say, was that for probably about two and a half decades. Then it came about that I discovered my greatest love vis a vis Tolkien’s work was growing to be the posthumously published The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-Earth, both of which contained some of the most beautiful and powerful of Tolkien’s writing. I looked at the corpus of ‘The History of Middle Earth’ with something of a new eye and decided that I might just dip into it and see what it was like. I consciously chose to first read those volumes that dealt with the matter of the First and Second ages of Middle-Earth and were latest in the chronology of composition thus presumably assuring that I was coming across ideas and stories that were closer in tone and content to the ones with which I was so familiar and that thrilled me with their mythic reverberations. I ended up loving what I found in Morgoth's Ring and The War of the Jewels and decided that maybe this huge work undertaken by Christopher Tolkien to present the works of his father in toto wasn’t an altogether bad idea after all (especially given my hunger for more material regarding the tales as told in The Silmarillion).
So now I find myself re-embarking on the journey from the beginning and tackling the very Book of Lost Tales (part one) that defeated me in my youth. I’m glad I came back. Pushing through past the point in the first chapter beyond which I never made it before I actually found a fair bit to like, even though it wasn’t the undiluted Middle-Earth vintage I had initially wanted. I was actually reminded a bit of William Morris’ medieval romances that so influenced Tolkien as I read about the journey of Eriol the mariner upon the Isle of Tol Eressëa and once the tales themselves began to be told I saw that there was a surprising amount of coherence between these earliest versions of the myths of Middle-Earth with what eventually came to be published in The Sil. The differences themselves were intriguing and I found as the chapters sped on the framing device didn’t bother me half as much as once it had. I will readily admit that much of the poetry in this volume leaves something to be desired. I am not one of those readers of Tolkien that skips over the poems, and I think that many of them are quite beautiful (esp. Bilbo’s poem of Eärendil sung in Rivendell), but the early ones showcased in this volume are not really my cup of tea (though one can certainly see Tolkien’s word-craft in them improving as time went on). The Cottage of Lost Play itself took on greater interest as well as I started to see some parallels between it and the ultimate development of Elrond’s house of Rivendell as “a perfect house, whether you like food or sleep or story-telling or singing, or just sitting and thinking best, or a pleasant mixture of them all’. Merely to be there was a cure for weariness, fear, and sadness.”
Eriol the mariner, a man from medieval England who has found his way to the magical isles of the west, sits in this pleasant house and has recounted to him many of the tales of the elder days when the Elves were alone in Middle-Earth, or mankind just arising from their ages long slumber. All of these tales are ones that a reader of The Silmarillion will already be familiar with: the creation myth of the Music of the Ainur, the building of Valinor and creation of the Two Trees of Light, the battles against Melkor (here named Melko) and his initial imprisonment, the coming of the Elves to the blessed lands and their ultimate rebellion and return to Middle-Earth in pursuit of Melko, and the myth of the creation of the sun and moon upon the death of the two trees. Some of these are not very far from the more final versions that were presented in The Silmarillion, while others display drastic differences (such as the expanded legend of the sun and moon, the extensive bits that deal with cosmology and the make-up of the world, and the inclusion of Valar who mate and even include in their number some gods of war), but it is very safe to say that unless you have a deep and abiding love for Middle-Earth, and especially tales of the elder days, you probably won’t get much out of this book. I would agree with those who claim this is really only for aficionados of Tolkien’s tales who want more and who are interested in seeing the development of his mythology. It is indeed a fascinating peek over the shoulder of Tolkien as he writes his tales and we finally start to get a glimpse of the sheer magnitude of the effort that his son expended simply in producing from the jumble of inter-related texts about the legends of the Elves a volume as slim and relatively cohesive as The Silmarillion.
I’m looking forward to tackling Book II of the lost tales and proceeding with the history of Middle-Earth texts at least up to volume 5 to continue to get my fix and maybe even get a taste of some legends of the elder days that I haven’t already experienced in another form. Recommended for hard-core Tolkien fans who don’t mind critical apparatus and multiple versions of tales.
![Profile Image for Anna [Bran. San. Stan].](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.gr-assets.com%2Fimages%2FS%2Fcompressed.photo.goodreads.com%2Fusers%2F1593184464i%2F98245866._UX200_CR0%2C0%2C200%2C200_.jpg&w=128&q=75)
October 19, 2024
Book 1 of 12 of The History of Middle-earth presents us with an early version of The Silmarillion, started in 1916-17, but with a framework of someone (Eriol the mariner) who is being told these tales by various elves. While I‘m glad Christopher Tolkien decided against using that framework in The Silmarillion as it was rather tedious, I became used to that image of sitting in the Cottage of Lost Play, next to Eriol, listening to tales.
As for the structure itself, the book comprises various chapters (such as “The Music of the Ainur“) where original texts are heavily annotated and then followed by a commentary by Christopher Tolikien, pointing to similarities and differences between the old version and the new version as given in The Silmarillion. (The more “exciting“ chapters, such as “The Fall of Gondolin,“ will follow in the second part of the Lost Tales.) I really enjoyed those commentaries, especially since the original texts show that they are early drafts; they are often verbose and unnecessarily complicated. This complexity and the density of the commentaries made for some difficult reading at times.
All in all, even if this was a tough read at times, I’m glad I read this - mostly because I can’t seem to get enough of Tolkien. So if you‘ve read and loved The Silmarillion and want to dive even deeper into the legendarium, this book is for you
Note to self: Make use of the glossary of obsolete, archaic, and rare words. I would not have been so confused by the use of “an“ instead of “if“ - to name one example.
As for the structure itself, the book comprises various chapters (such as “The Music of the Ainur“) where original texts are heavily annotated and then followed by a commentary by Christopher Tolikien, pointing to similarities and differences between the old version and the new version as given in The Silmarillion. (The more “exciting“ chapters, such as “The Fall of Gondolin,“ will follow in the second part of the Lost Tales.) I really enjoyed those commentaries, especially since the original texts show that they are early drafts; they are often verbose and unnecessarily complicated. This complexity and the density of the commentaries made for some difficult reading at times.
All in all, even if this was a tough read at times, I’m glad I read this - mostly because I can’t seem to get enough of Tolkien. So if you‘ve read and loved The Silmarillion and want to dive even deeper into the legendarium, this book is for you
Note to self: Make use of the glossary of obsolete, archaic, and rare words. I would not have been so confused by the use of “an“ instead of “if“ - to name one example.
March 18, 2024
This is essentially a collection of stories of Tolkien's first conceptions of Middle Earth, and of which are told to Eriol, who found the realm of Valinor. This book centres on some of the content that is in The Silmarillion, and it was really interesting to remind myself of that whilst reading this first volume.
I think it is all fascinating- anything connected to Middle Earth I'm here for, and this book was a lot to digest. For the hardcore Tolkien fan it's like a dream, although, even I found it a little trying at times, and I found myself reading over passages in order to understand.
What I personally loved was the little notes that Tolkien had wrote, ideas that had suddenly sprung to mind or something to possibly include in a future book. Christopher Tolkien certainly had a lot of work to do, unravelling his Father's works to something more readable, and I'm very happy he did.
I think it is all fascinating- anything connected to Middle Earth I'm here for, and this book was a lot to digest. For the hardcore Tolkien fan it's like a dream, although, even I found it a little trying at times, and I found myself reading over passages in order to understand.
What I personally loved was the little notes that Tolkien had wrote, ideas that had suddenly sprung to mind or something to possibly include in a future book. Christopher Tolkien certainly had a lot of work to do, unravelling his Father's works to something more readable, and I'm very happy he did.
January 30, 2022
Suvo zlato <3
Konacno sam se upustio u uvanturu citanja "Istorije Srednje Zemlje", 12 knjiga na Engleskom jeziku koje na skoro 6000 strana dopunjuju, objasnjavaju, predstavljaju genezu i na svaki drugi moguci nacin nam prblizavaju svet Srednje Zemlje i Valinora.
Bitno je znati:
Content
"This...discussion is an attempt to explain my primary motives for offering The Book of Lost Tales for publication. It is the first step in presenting the 'longitudinal' view of Middle-earth and Valinor: when the huge geographical expansion, swelling out from the centre and (as it were) thrusting Beleriand into the west, was far off in the future; when there were no 'Elder Days' ending in the drowning of Beleriand, for there were as yet no other Ages of the World; when the Elves were still 'faeries', and even Rúmil the learned Noldo was far removed from the magisterial 'loremasters' of my father's later years."
—Christopher Tolkien, towards the end of the Foreword to the book
Konacno sam se upustio u uvanturu citanja "Istorije Srednje Zemlje", 12 knjiga na Engleskom jeziku koje na skoro 6000 strana dopunjuju, objasnjavaju, predstavljaju genezu i na svaki drugi moguci nacin nam prblizavaju svet Srednje Zemlje i Valinora.
Bitno je znati:
Content
"This...discussion is an attempt to explain my primary motives for offering The Book of Lost Tales for publication. It is the first step in presenting the 'longitudinal' view of Middle-earth and Valinor: when the huge geographical expansion, swelling out from the centre and (as it were) thrusting Beleriand into the west, was far off in the future; when there were no 'Elder Days' ending in the drowning of Beleriand, for there were as yet no other Ages of the World; when the Elves were still 'faeries', and even Rúmil the learned Noldo was far removed from the magisterial 'loremasters' of my father's later years."
—Christopher Tolkien, towards the end of the Foreword to the book
February 13, 2024
This was almost a reference source that analyzed various tales and parts from The Silmarillion. There was chapters dedicated to aspects from it that includes "Music of the Ainur", "The Coming of the Valar", "Making of the Elves" and more. This was richer in overall information due to the breadth of knowledge this book presented. It would be for a new person to comprehend the lore, history, and mythopoeic delivery of this book. I would recommend this to J.R.R Tolkien completists, not for the newbie. Thanks!
February 26, 2015
"A story must be told or there'll be no story, yet it is the untold stories that are most moving. I think you are moved by Celebrimbor because it conveys a sudden sense of endless untold stories: Mountains seen far away, never to be climbed, distant trees never to be approached - or if so only to become near trees..."
June 16, 2020
Okay, this is kind of tough to rate. If I could split hairs on this I would only rate it 3.5, but ultimately this is Tolkien, whose ideas become the genesis of so much I enjoyed from childhood on (D&D, high fantasy, sword and sorcery, you get the idea), it gets rounded up to 4. If it were just Tolkien's work, it would be a solid 4, even though I confess there was a lot of it that did not absorb for me on my first reading here. (I usually have to read a Tolkien volume 3 times before I feel like I really have a grasp of it.)
And that's where I really thought this particular volume fell short--the "editing" by Christopher Tolkien. I was hoping that would offer a more cogent analysis, something more clearly and concisely written that might help me navigate through some of the denser ideas. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate what Christopher Tolkien set out to do. But I needed the commentary to be more cogent than it was. And in looking at his own author profile I now have a better understanding as to what he was up against trying to bring materials written long-hand on paper, erased, then written over again on the same paper. So I get it. It was a monumental task. I just found it a bit dense too and it would have been more helpful if it had been like the commentary on the movies. (That's just my opinion). For example, I found the discussions about gnomes problematic and did not answer some of the most basic questions that popped into my head.
Another issue I had was one that I really can't fault anyone but the publisher. In several instances they try to draw comparisons to storylines or content that was also in the Silmarillion. They would cite to a page in the Silmarillion for reference. How they thought that would be helpful when there are so many versions and publications and republications is beyond me. There's no way I would be able to track down the material to which they were actually citing.
At some point I will re-read this, I'm sure.
And that's where I really thought this particular volume fell short--the "editing" by Christopher Tolkien. I was hoping that would offer a more cogent analysis, something more clearly and concisely written that might help me navigate through some of the denser ideas. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate what Christopher Tolkien set out to do. But I needed the commentary to be more cogent than it was. And in looking at his own author profile I now have a better understanding as to what he was up against trying to bring materials written long-hand on paper, erased, then written over again on the same paper. So I get it. It was a monumental task. I just found it a bit dense too and it would have been more helpful if it had been like the commentary on the movies. (That's just my opinion). For example, I found the discussions about gnomes problematic and did not answer some of the most basic questions that popped into my head.
Another issue I had was one that I really can't fault anyone but the publisher. In several instances they try to draw comparisons to storylines or content that was also in the Silmarillion. They would cite to a page in the Silmarillion for reference. How they thought that would be helpful when there are so many versions and publications and republications is beyond me. There's no way I would be able to track down the material to which they were actually citing.
At some point I will re-read this, I'm sure.
May 13, 2020
El Libro De Los Cuentos Perdidos 1.- J.R.R. Tolkien
"Encuentro aquí un insistente mensaje siempre cercano
en medio de la Tierra de los Elfos marchitos
(Alalminórë en los Reinos de Faery);
aquí girando lentamente en un dulce lamento
se demoran las hadas sagradas, los elfos inmortales
entonando un canto de desmayado anhelo"
El marinero Eriol emprende un viaje hacia el Oeste, cuyo destino es la isla Tol Eressëa que es en donde viven los elfos. Una vez allí conoce Los Cuentos Perdidos de Elfinesse, con historias sobre Dioses, la creación del mundo, Elfos, enanos, gestas heroicas y también oscura maldad.
Acá empezó todo….
El Libro De Los Cuentos Perdidos, fue la primer gran obra de Tolkien, escrita a los 25 años de edad durante la primer Guerra Mundial. En estas historias se puede leer la génesis de lo que luego fue El Silmarillion.
Christopher Tolkien editó este material que su padre escribió a lápiz, en su mayoría, en distintos cuadernos. Con la meticulosidad habitual de los libros editados por Christopher, se presentan los cuentos con una introducción sobre el material de origen y luego un análisis del mismo, incluyendo a veces material complementario como por ejemplo poemas (a veces más de una versión del poema en cuestión) relacionados con el cuento. Esto ayuda a ponernos en contexto y también asociar los hechos aquí relatados con lo que luego se conoce en El Silmarillion.
Sin dudas, este un libro que se disfruta mucho más si uno leyó El Silmarillion previamente; solo así creo que es posible tomar conciencia de la enorme imaginación y la dedicación para con su arte de J.R.R. Tolkien.
🤘🤘🤘🤘
"Encuentro aquí un insistente mensaje siempre cercano
en medio de la Tierra de los Elfos marchitos
(Alalminórë en los Reinos de Faery);
aquí girando lentamente en un dulce lamento
se demoran las hadas sagradas, los elfos inmortales
entonando un canto de desmayado anhelo"
El marinero Eriol emprende un viaje hacia el Oeste, cuyo destino es la isla Tol Eressëa que es en donde viven los elfos. Una vez allí conoce Los Cuentos Perdidos de Elfinesse, con historias sobre Dioses, la creación del mundo, Elfos, enanos, gestas heroicas y también oscura maldad.
Acá empezó todo….
El Libro De Los Cuentos Perdidos, fue la primer gran obra de Tolkien, escrita a los 25 años de edad durante la primer Guerra Mundial. En estas historias se puede leer la génesis de lo que luego fue El Silmarillion.
Christopher Tolkien editó este material que su padre escribió a lápiz, en su mayoría, en distintos cuadernos. Con la meticulosidad habitual de los libros editados por Christopher, se presentan los cuentos con una introducción sobre el material de origen y luego un análisis del mismo, incluyendo a veces material complementario como por ejemplo poemas (a veces más de una versión del poema en cuestión) relacionados con el cuento. Esto ayuda a ponernos en contexto y también asociar los hechos aquí relatados con lo que luego se conoce en El Silmarillion.
Sin dudas, este un libro que se disfruta mucho más si uno leyó El Silmarillion previamente; solo así creo que es posible tomar conciencia de la enorme imaginación y la dedicación para con su arte de J.R.R. Tolkien.
🤘🤘🤘🤘
July 7, 2012
Having read The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion many times since I was a teen, as well as Tolkien's papers, letters, and biographies, I decided it was time to go the last mile and read his son Christopher's annotated compilation of the Professor's earlier drafts. BoLT/I is the first of the five-volume collection. It covers topics familiar to anyone who has read The Silmarillion--the creation of the world, the making of Valinor, the Valars' conflict with Melkor, the Awakening of the Elves, and the Coming of Men--but in some of the earlier drafts the details vary greatly with the "canonical" versions. What's more, all the tales in this volume are presented as having been told around a fire to Eriol, a traveler visiting the Elves living on the island of Tol Eressea. Chritospher explains how that island, in his father's imagination, was an analog to the English county of Warwickshire, and bolsters the claims of those that the Shire was an allegorical representation of England, and Middle-Earth as a whole was analogical to Europe (though the Professor vehemently denied the latter).
In the tales--and most particularly in Christopher Tolkien's very careful commentary--one can also trace the evolution of the Quenya and Sindarin languages. I had often wondered where the various Elvish dictionaries got their extensive word lists from, since so little was presented in the canon; now I know, and am thrilled to find such a trove of vocabulary.
In the tales--and most particularly in Christopher Tolkien's very careful commentary--one can also trace the evolution of the Quenya and Sindarin languages. I had often wondered where the various Elvish dictionaries got their extensive word lists from, since so little was presented in the canon; now I know, and am thrilled to find such a trove of vocabulary.
February 1, 2022
I've been wanting to start this massive series, The History of Middle-Earth, for a long, long time. Because as anyone knows, I bloody love Tolkien and Middle-Earth.
However, it took me a while to start, mostly because I don't have more than the first two books yet and I have a feeling that I'll be wanting to read book 3 right after I finish book 1.
Now, book 1.
If you have read The Silmarillion, you'll know that it is largely the story of the elves, their origins and such. Way, way before the events of our beloved The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. And if you have read Silmarilion, you'll find that you might recognise the stories in this book, as they would later become The Silmarillion -- along with part II.
This book offers an insight into the crafting of the massive and historically intricate universe that is Middle-Earth. And as such, I can't help but like it. Even if I might prefer the eventual "finished" stories of The Silmarillion.
For more thoughts on Lost Tales, you can check out my review of Part II, here.
Also reviewed together on my blog Bookish Love Affair.
However, it took me a while to start, mostly because I don't have more than the first two books yet and I have a feeling that I'll be wanting to read book 3 right after I finish book 1.
Now, book 1.
If you have read The Silmarillion, you'll know that it is largely the story of the elves, their origins and such. Way, way before the events of our beloved The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. And if you have read Silmarilion, you'll find that you might recognise the stories in this book, as they would later become The Silmarillion -- along with part II.
This book offers an insight into the crafting of the massive and historically intricate universe that is Middle-Earth. And as such, I can't help but like it. Even if I might prefer the eventual "finished" stories of The Silmarillion.
For more thoughts on Lost Tales, you can check out my review of Part II, here.
Also reviewed together on my blog Bookish Love Affair.
January 13, 2018
In one sentence - I'm fascinated. This book is real gem and beacon to all blurred and unclear parts in the final version of The Silmarillion. This book is missing link to onset of Tolkien's creation of his own mythology. It's all about Valar and their deeds in creation of Arda. Also, Valar and their traits are much more developed than in The Silmarillion (but many details from The Silmarillion are unmentioned or were unknown then). Special part is devoted to Sun and Moon creation, after darkening of the Valinor, and of its hiding. From those tales, I finally found the origin and learnt about creation of the Door of Night, and Gates of Morn. Also, I recognized many Tolkien's inspirations from Norse mythology that he wove into this tales (e.g. when Orome created rainbow-bridge, or when Vanna cut off her hair for Gods to weave sails and ropes for the boat of Sun etc.).
February 12, 2021
Among one of Tolkien's very first conceptions for Middle-earth was as a series of stories, or tales, that are told to a traveler, Eriol, who found the not-so-hidden realm of Valinor. This touches on a lot of the stories and world building that will later be found in The Silmarillion. It's interesting to see what was kept, what was left behind, and how some of the story ideas and characters evolved over the span of years that Tolkien tinkered away at his mythology for Middle-earth.
There's a lot here and frankly it's probably not of much interest to a non-Tolkien geek, and even for me it was a bit dry at times. But if you ever want to feel comforted about your own manuscripts going nowhere, or starting and stopping and mutating into completely different stories from what you started with, this might do the trick.
I didn't even try to keep track of which of these characters end up as different characters later on (with not just different names, but sometimes different genealogies and motivations), but Christopher does provide that information if it's important to you. This first Book of Lost Tales covers the creation of the Valar and Eä up through to hiding of Valinor, and even hints at Túrin, Luthien, and other greater tales to come.
One of the more interesting early concepts was that this traveler, Eriol, could theoretically at least be given an elixir, limpë, which when drunk kept the drinker young and healthy. Probably only of interest since I had recently had a conversation elsewhere with someone who insisted there was a drink the Ringbearers could be given when they got to Tol Eressëa that would allow them to live forever. They didn't have a reference when I asked for one, but now I stumble upon it here. Of course, being an early conception, it's up to each person to decide how much this should play into canon. (And it doesn't make a Man immortal, just youthful. So that person was still wrong, lol. Not that the Ringbearers, being practical hobbits, would want to live forever anyway, especially after everything they went through to get rid of the Ring. Geesh.)
I also got a kick out of Tolkien's little notes to himself, jotting down lists, ideas, sentences/paragraphs on random pieces of paper. This was a man who needed a computer. But he'd probably be one of those guys whose desktop would be littered with shortcuts and documents and empty folders. LOL. I don't envy Christopher's job of trying to make sense of his father's notes and journals. Bad enough the man erased his pencilled texts and wrote over them in ink (paper was precious in those days!), but trying to follow the paper trail would leave one with a migraine, I can only imagine.
So one down, eleven more to go! (I've read the HoME volumes for LOTR years ago, so I'm looking forward to rereading those.)
There's a lot here and frankly it's probably not of much interest to a non-Tolkien geek, and even for me it was a bit dry at times. But if you ever want to feel comforted about your own manuscripts going nowhere, or starting and stopping and mutating into completely different stories from what you started with, this might do the trick.
I didn't even try to keep track of which of these characters end up as different characters later on (with not just different names, but sometimes different genealogies and motivations), but Christopher does provide that information if it's important to you. This first Book of Lost Tales covers the creation of the Valar and Eä up through to hiding of Valinor, and even hints at Túrin, Luthien, and other greater tales to come.
One of the more interesting early concepts was that this traveler, Eriol, could theoretically at least be given an elixir, limpë, which when drunk kept the drinker young and healthy. Probably only of interest since I had recently had a conversation elsewhere with someone who insisted there was a drink the Ringbearers could be given when they got to Tol Eressëa that would allow them to live forever. They didn't have a reference when I asked for one, but now I stumble upon it here. Of course, being an early conception, it's up to each person to decide how much this should play into canon. (And it doesn't make a Man immortal, just youthful. So that person was still wrong, lol. Not that the Ringbearers, being practical hobbits, would want to live forever anyway, especially after everything they went through to get rid of the Ring. Geesh.)
I also got a kick out of Tolkien's little notes to himself, jotting down lists, ideas, sentences/paragraphs on random pieces of paper. This was a man who needed a computer. But he'd probably be one of those guys whose desktop would be littered with shortcuts and documents and empty folders. LOL. I don't envy Christopher's job of trying to make sense of his father's notes and journals. Bad enough the man erased his pencilled texts and wrote over them in ink (paper was precious in those days!), but trying to follow the paper trail would leave one with a migraine, I can only imagine.
So one down, eleven more to go! (I've read the HoME volumes for LOTR years ago, so I'm looking forward to rereading those.)
December 29, 2021
The Last Tolkien Tuesday of 2021 is fitting for the final chapters of The Book of Lost Tales Vol. 1
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September 14, 2016
It's great wen you can read the first and fresh versions of what will once become the world of Middle-earth and how story was changed and how it will be if it was not. And of course all followed by Christoper's comments. Thank you for sharing, Christopher and thank you for being such a beautiful weird human being with a wonderful brain, Mr. Tolkien.
June 3, 2022
Non per tutti, direi. La nuova edizione, che dà il via all'ambizioso (e troppo rimandato) progetto di traduzione della Storia della Terra di Mezzo, è molto bella e curata. Rimane un testo di analisi filologica, non certo un libretto estivo di racconti. Magnifico vedere come evolve l'intero pantheon di divinità ed elfi conosciuti nel Silmarillion, ma decisamente più un testo di studio per suuuuuuper appassionati.
Read
March 21, 2022
Να που βρήκα και Τόλκιν να με κουράσει, μετά από 20 χρόνια που είμαι θαυμαστής του.
Ένα βιβλίο που σε υπνωτίζει γρηγορότερα κι από Xanax ή Νοοτρόπ.
O χειρότερός μου Τόλκιν μέχρι στιγμής.
Όταν φυσικά λέω ο χειρότερος το εννοώ φυσικά σε σύγκριση με τα άλλα βιβλία του Τόλκιν, που είναι όλα βιβλία 5 και 4 αστέρων.
Άρα είναι πολύ καλύτερο βιβλίο από πολλά άλλα βιβλία που δεν ανήκουν στον Τόλκιν.
Ένας λόγος που δεν μου άρεσε το συγκεκριμένο βιβλίο ήταν η εξαιρετικά μικροσκοπική γραμ��ατοσειρά και ο αργός ρυθμός της ιστορίας.
Η γραμματοσειρά ήταν τόσο μικροσκοπική που μου έπαιρνε 4 λεπτά για να ολοκληρώσω μια σελίδα.
Με άλλα λόγια 40 λεπτά για 10 σελίδες και 1 ώρα για μόλις 15 σελίδες!
Αυτό επηρεάζει ψυχολογικά τον αναγνώστη.
Νιώθεις ότι δεν σημειώνεις καμία πρόοδο και δεν ανυπομονείς για μια ακόμη σελίδα που μοιάζει σαν να σκαρφαλώνεις το Βουνό του Χαμού χωρίς παπούτσια.
Επιπλέον, όταν δεν σε συνεπαίρνει ούτε η ιστορία, τα πράγματα χειροτερεύουν.
Μια ιστορία που ασχολείται με την Κοσμογονία και τη Θεογονία της Μέσης Γης. Θέματα πολύ απομακρυσμένα και απόμακρα την ίδια στιγμή από τον άνθρωπο αναγνώστη.
Αυτό που διάβασα θα μπορούσαμε να πούμε ότι είναι μια έκδοση Beta του Σιλμαρίλλιον.
Είναι τρεις φορές μεγαλύτερη και έχει πολλές ασυνέπειες στην πλοκή, με ονόματα, τοπωνύμια, και ιστορικά στοιχεία που δεν υπάρχουν στο δημοσιευμένο Σιλμαρίλλιον, με αποτέλεσμα να είναι πολύ, μα πάρα πολύ πιο αργή.
Έχω την ελπίδα πάντως πως οι υπόλοιποι τόμοι της δωδεκάτομης Ιστορίας της Μέσης Γης θα είναι πιο ενδιαφέροντες, ελκυστικοί, και φιλικοί προς τον αναγνώστη, ειδικά το κομμάτι που διαδραματίζεται στην Τρίτη Εποχή, την αγαπημένη μου Εποχή.
Αλλά αυτό δεν θα συμβεί πριν από τον τόμο 5.
Οψόμεθα!
ΒΑΘΜΟΛΟΓΙΑ
Χαρακτήρες: 4/10
Γραφή: 8/10
Αναγνωσιμότητα: 4/10
Εμπειρία: 6/10
Ιστορία: 5/10
Σύνολο: 5.4--> 2.7 stars ★★★
September 24, 2011
I had thought that this book was a bunch of stories in the Tolkien mythology that had never been published. It was only after picking this book up at the library that I discovered what it actually is. After his father died, Christopher Tolkien first compiled, edited, and published The Silmarillion and then later made this twelve volume (yes, twelve!) set of what is essentially all of his father's unpublished and generally unfinished writings.
This first book is what eventually was rewritten as The Silmarillion, but how Tolkien had first envisioned the telling of the story, as a man named Eriol who stumbles upon an elfin island and bids everyone he meets to tell him their history of the world.
I've read the Silmarillion a couple of times, so I'm generally pretty familiar with the story. This is like reading Tolkien's first draft of The Silmarillion, which is a little bit weird. After each chapter, Christopher Tolkien describes how each story evolved into the final story in The Silmarillion. Ultimately, I think it's a better idea to read the author's final work rather than early drafts, but it's a little bit interesting to see how Tolkien changed various stories over time.
Really, this is only a book for people who are very well acquainted with the story of Middle Earth and want more insight into Tolkien's literary practice. I would even say that it doesn't make much sense to read this unless you've read The Silmarillion more than once.
This first book is what eventually was rewritten as The Silmarillion, but how Tolkien had first envisioned the telling of the story, as a man named Eriol who stumbles upon an elfin island and bids everyone he meets to tell him their history of the world.
I've read the Silmarillion a couple of times, so I'm generally pretty familiar with the story. This is like reading Tolkien's first draft of The Silmarillion, which is a little bit weird. After each chapter, Christopher Tolkien describes how each story evolved into the final story in The Silmarillion. Ultimately, I think it's a better idea to read the author's final work rather than early drafts, but it's a little bit interesting to see how Tolkien changed various stories over time.
Really, this is only a book for people who are very well acquainted with the story of Middle Earth and want more insight into Tolkien's literary practice. I would even say that it doesn't make much sense to read this unless you've read The Silmarillion more than once.
October 5, 2020
Rating: 3 stars
The Book of Lost Tales, Part 1 is a great book to read before going to sleep, not because it was mind numbingly boring that you can't keep your eyes open after reading a couple pages, but because Tolkien's writing style is so calming. That being said, one really needs to grasp the earlier stories, because the vast majority flow on directly (so much so that they could barely be called separate tales). Not sure when exactly, but I will be getting to Part 2 sometime in the future.
The Book of Lost Tales, Part 1 is a great book to read before going to sleep, not because it was mind numbingly boring that you can't keep your eyes open after reading a couple pages, but because Tolkien's writing style is so calming. That being said, one really needs to grasp the earlier stories, because the vast majority flow on directly (so much so that they could barely be called separate tales). Not sure when exactly, but I will be getting to Part 2 sometime in the future.
March 1, 2025
Very interesting for dedicated Tolkien fans, but also dry and technical. Christopher Tolkien’s explanation of his father’s use of “the impression of depth” in storytelling was worth the whole read for me. I’d recommend reading a good biography of Tolkien first to understand more of his genius with languages and “world/mythology-building” prior to reading this work, as it will help to bring a greater appreciation of the details presented.
January 25, 2023
Easily the driest of Tolkien's back catalog that I've read thus far - which Christopher Tolkien himself mentions in the foreword! (I've read the Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales, the three Great Tales and the Tales from the Perilous Realm collection beyond The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings thus far). 2.5/5
July 11, 2012
This will be my 12-volume write-up of the entire series "The History of Middle Earth".
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This series is ONLY for the hardcore Tolkien fanatic. Predominantly written by
JRR's son, based on JRR's notes on the creation of The Silmarilion and
The Lord of the Rings (much less on The Hobbit). It is somewhat interesting to
see the evolution of the story (for example, "Strider" was originally conceived as
a Hobbit (one of those who "went off into the blue with Gandalf" as alluded to
in The Hobbit).
But the downside to this is that it isn't very fun to read. You can only read yet
another version of Beren and Luthien so many times before you're tired of seeing
the miniscule changes from one version to the next.
So, overall, I slogged through this over about a year. I'd say it was worth it
in the end for someone like me who loves Tolkien and his entire created world
of Arda (and Ea in general). But I'll never re-read them. They come off too much
as seeming like Christopher Tolkien just bundled every scrap of paper he could find,
rather than thinning them down into a logical consistency.
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This series is ONLY for the hardcore Tolkien fanatic. Predominantly written by
JRR's son, based on JRR's notes on the creation of The Silmarilion and
The Lord of the Rings (much less on The Hobbit). It is somewhat interesting to
see the evolution of the story (for example, "Strider" was originally conceived as
a Hobbit (one of those who "went off into the blue with Gandalf" as alluded to
in The Hobbit).
But the downside to this is that it isn't very fun to read. You can only read yet
another version of Beren and Luthien so many times before you're tired of seeing
the miniscule changes from one version to the next.
So, overall, I slogged through this over about a year. I'd say it was worth it
in the end for someone like me who loves Tolkien and his entire created world
of Arda (and Ea in general). But I'll never re-read them. They come off too much
as seeming like Christopher Tolkien just bundled every scrap of paper he could find,
rather than thinning them down into a logical consistency.
November 22, 2017
Ever since I started reading J.R.R. Tolkiens books this month I had this strong urge to read the short stories and learn more about the "middle-earth." Now, I haven't officially read all of his books or the different series he has written that are set in the middle-earth but I still found these stories highly entertaining. I really liked how Christopher took his dads work and made it into the book of lost tales. And now after reading these I'm even more pumped to read the rest of J.R.R's books. I seriously can't wait and I'm definitely going to read the second part of these lost tales. I hope they get better!!
January 21, 2010
Don't pick this up unless you were very bummed about finishing the Hobbit, the Lord of the Rings, the Silmarillion, and other greats -- and are craving more. So much that you're willing to essentially sit back in a college-level literary analysis course.
The stories are magical, and definitely "Tolkienesque", but at times it can be a tough read.
That's primarily because most of what Christopher Tolkien (J.R.R.'s son) used to put this -- not to mention the rest of the History of Middle-Earth series -- together were fragments of stories, sometimes three or more different versions.
There is a lot of academic-style commentary, complete with name comparisons, investigations of intentional vs. scrapped pieces of story, notes of geography of Middle-Earth gleaned from the tales, and so on.
If you don't like that kind of commentary, go ahead and skip right to the stories. But be warned that they'll be bit confusing to piece into the Middle-Earth we know and love, and you will lose context of what's going on to understand why C. Tolkien arranged the book the way that he did.
The stories are magical, and definitely "Tolkienesque", but at times it can be a tough read.
That's primarily because most of what Christopher Tolkien (J.R.R.'s son) used to put this -- not to mention the rest of the History of Middle-Earth series -- together were fragments of stories, sometimes three or more different versions.
There is a lot of academic-style commentary, complete with name comparisons, investigations of intentional vs. scrapped pieces of story, notes of geography of Middle-Earth gleaned from the tales, and so on.
If you don't like that kind of commentary, go ahead and skip right to the stories. But be warned that they'll be bit confusing to piece into the Middle-Earth we know and love, and you will lose context of what's going on to understand why C. Tolkien arranged the book the way that he did.
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December 28, 2019Early version of the Silmarillion, the focus being the episodes regarding the Valar and Valinor. Covers the story of creation, the fiefdoms of the Valar, the arrival of the Eldar and the flight of the Noldor, and ends with the discovery of Men. Corresponds well with the Silmarillion's version except for extraneous details. Prodigious pages are notes by Christopher Tolkien. Plot events are moving, dramatic or humorous at turns but are swaddled by thick swatches of setting descriptions or laborious high epic / high fantasy vocabulary, which depending on personal taste can be an additional appeal or additional Herculean labor of reading the book. The audience that abides with this book to the end can be somewhat limited.
December 19, 2015
Auch wenn ich für den Band verhältnismäßig lang gebraucht habe, bedeutet das nicht, dass ich keinen Spaß hatte. Vielmehr hat er so viel Inhalt, dass ich nicht zu viel auf einmal lesen konnte.
Sicherlich nur für Leute interessant, die die Geschichten im Silmarillion mochten und vor allem mehr zu Tolkiens Schaffungsprozessen wissen möchten. Ich bin beim Lesen so tief abgetaucht, dass es mir tatsächlich vorkam, als würde ich ein richtiges historisches Buch lesen. Mittelerde und Co. sind für mich nochmal um ein Vielfaches gewachsen <3
Sicherlich nur für Leute interessant, die die Geschichten im Silmarillion mochten und vor allem mehr zu Tolkiens Schaffungsprozessen wissen möchten. Ich bin beim Lesen so tief abgetaucht, dass es mir tatsächlich vorkam, als würde ich ein richtiges historisches Buch lesen. Mittelerde und Co. sind für mich nochmal um ein Vielfaches gewachsen <3
March 26, 2020
It's Tolkien, I love it. (:
May 13, 2022
10 gwiazdek dla Christophera
October 8, 2021
This is archaeology in book form. Christopher Tolkien has compiled early drafts of his father's writings. Some are complete stories--others not so much. This is the first of twelve volumes in The History of Middle-earth. I've read a few individual volumes of HoMe in the past, but never all of them and not this one. It covers stories like the Music of the Ainur, Melko (later Melkor/Morgoth) and his rebellion, and the creation of the Silmarils, as well as the Trees of Valinor and later the creation of the Sun and Moon. In other words, the first few chapters of the Silmarillion. But these early drafts are quite different from the final stories. The narrative structure was also different. Tolkien early on conceived of these ancient stories being told to a Man by Elves in later days when he sailed West and found the Lonely Isle where Elves still are.
Even in rough form, the stories are still interesting. Tolkien knows how to write epic myths, that's for sure! There's also a lot of notes and commentary and yes, it can be dry at times when discussing linguistic evolution of the place and character names. Also, my version of the History of Middle-earth is all twelve volumes in just three giant hard cover books. So this first book, although not that long, required me to hold this huge tome that is not ideal for cuddling. 😔 Oh well, it looks great on the shelf!! One down, 11 to go in the History of Middle-earth!
Even in rough form, the stories are still interesting. Tolkien knows how to write epic myths, that's for sure! There's also a lot of notes and commentary and yes, it can be dry at times when discussing linguistic evolution of the place and character names. Also, my version of the History of Middle-earth is all twelve volumes in just three giant hard cover books. So this first book, although not that long, required me to hold this huge tome that is not ideal for cuddling. 😔 Oh well, it looks great on the shelf!! One down, 11 to go in the History of Middle-earth!
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