Book Review: The Children Of Hurin By J.r.r. Tolkien

The Children of Hъrin, a new book of fiction set in J.R.R. Tolkien's fictional land of Middle-earth, first arrived in bookstores on April 17, 2007. How? J.R.R. Tolkien passed away on September 2, 1973. Whenever a new book arrives by a long-dead author, certain inevitable questions crop up. Is this a newly-discovered manuscript, found boxed away in a dusty attic? Is it even new material at all, or simply a repackaging of previously published material? Or is it even (sacrilegiously) not even written by the said author, but marketed under his/her name for the purposes of sales and popularity? Thankfully, The Children of Hurin does not fall into the last category. It is entirely written by J.R.R. Tolkien (outside of a few minor editorial changes). Those who are aware of Tolkien's earlier mythology (published in The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales) already knew at least part of the tale of Tъrin Turambar and the rest of Hurin's cursed family. Christopher Tolkien (J.R.R. Tolkien's son and also the editor of all of his father's posthumously published material) merely pieced together the numerous versions and scattered pieces of the story that already existed, creating a single coherent story. The Children of Hъrin does not contain much new material. Most of the tale that appears here was published previously, in the aforementioned books as well as the twelve-volume History of Middle-Earth series, which consisted of Tolkien unfinished stories and notes. The world became familiar with Middle-earth through The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings and those who delved into Tolkien's further writings became aware of the tremendous depth that Tolkien had created when building his fictional world. The events in The Lord of the Rings take place in the Third Age of Middle-earth. Tolkien had begun writing tales of his fictional world as much as twenty years before he began writing The Lord of the Rings, and he already had an established background history, from a creation story through the First and Second Ages. J.R.R. Tolkien's early tales focused primarily upon the First Age, especially three tales known as his “Great Three”. “The Tale of the Children of Hъrin” was one of these “Great Three”, and the tale most near to complete. The other two major tales, “The Tale of Beren & Luthien” and “Tuor and the Fall of Gondolin”, are much more fragmentary, with quite obvious holes in the narrative. “The Tale of the Children of Hъrin” appears in various degrees of completeness in The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales, and other small discarded fragments of the story appeared in The Book of Lost Tales, Part II and The War of the Jewels, volumes II and XI of The History of Middle-Earth. This new version of The Children of Hъrin is an attempt to publish a single, unbroken narrative of the story from beginning to end. The version told in The Silmarillion was little more than an overview, and the more complete version given in Unfinished Tales omits some important pieces of the story. It is also broken up by distracting editorial commentary. And it works. Publishing the tale in complete form, without confusing editorial notes and breaks in the narrative, allows the reader to fall headlong into Tolkien's created world. That is exactly how the story is intended to be given. But readers beware! The Children of Hъrin is not a stroll through the green shire. There are no cuddly hobbits or Tom Bombadils to brighten the story. It is dark and mournful, resembling the Finnish and Norse mythology that inspired it as much as much as the green world of Frodo and Bilbo. Pride, anger, suicide, and even incest are part and parcel of the tale, and the heroes seldom ride into a happily-ever-after. The Children of Hъrin tells the story of Tъrin Turambar, the son of the great warriors of men. When Tъrin is a child, his father leaves to join a great alliance of men and elves to do battle against Morgoth, the first Dark Lord. By way of reference, Sauron (the great Dark Lord of the Lord of the Rings) is merely one of Morgoth's lieutenants. The battle does not go as anticipated…the alliance is routed and Hъrin is taken prisoner by the Dark Lord. Hъrin possesses knowledge that Morgoth needs, but he mocks the Dark Lord instead. Thus Morgoth places Hъrin and all his offspring under a curse. He sets Hъrin high on a hill and gives him sight so that he can watch the curse play out on his helpless progeny. Tъrin grows up to become one of the greatest warriors of the realm, but all of his choices turn to ill. Misfortune and poor decisions haunt the hero throughout his life, and his overwhelming pride plays a defining role. The Children of Hъrin does not possess the lighthearted charm of The Hobbit or The Lord of the Rings, but it is an immensely readable and powerful story that belongs on the reading list of any fan of Tolkien, fantasy, or great literature in general.