J.R.R. Tolkien exploded to new heights of popularity in the
mainstream with the release of the film translations of his famed
THE LORD OF THE RINGS. Sales of the series soared, and interest in
all things Tolkien knew no bounds. Now, a few years removed from
that mass media frenzy, Christopher Tolkien has decided it’s
time to return the focus of the Tolkien legacy where it belongs: on
the printed word.

Christopher opens THE CHILDREN OF HURIN with his own commentary; he
says he did as little as possible to insert his own ideas or
inferences into the piece, pulled together from extensive but
scattered notes left by his late father. The tale of Túrin has
been mentioned in minor variations in more than one previous work,
but this marks the first time that the full story has been told and
likely will be the last full-length journey to Middle Earth.

THE CHILDREN OF HURIN does not read as straightforward as THE LORD
OF THE RINGS and by no means should it. This tale, which is older
than the Middle Earth of the War of the Ring and older than the
power of the dark lord Sauron, tells of lands long since drowned by
the rising of the sea. It is mythological, mythic in size and
scope, and thus told with reverence, as all stories of long-ago
heroes are told.

However, this does not keep the story from accessibility.
Previously, the posthumous works such as UNFINISHED TALES or THE
SILMARILLION were criticized heavily for the dry and near-religious
presentation, so drastically different from THE HOBBIT and THE LORD
OF THE RINGS as to be unreadable by the masses. Initially, names
will come fast and furious, but once you become accustomed to the
various places and characters, the reading will progress quite
smoothly. Included in the book is a map that comes in handy and an
index of names to help you keep things straight.

This is a tale worthy of the telling, and one that was intensely
important to Tolkien. Beren and Lúthien were oft-spoken of in
THE LORD OF THE RINGS, and Túrin was mentioned only in
passing, but his legend and curse were vital to Tolkien's
world.

THE CHILDREN OF HURIN is a tragedy and a tale of great sorrow, and
its sadness begins early on for the child Túrin, whose younger
sister, Urwen, dies from the illness that comes from the Evil
Breath. Her death is a great blow to the melancholy Túrin.
Their father, Húrin --- the lord of Dor-lómin --- marches
with his men against the forces of Morgoth, the original Dark Lord.
His men are slain by the orcs, and he is taken as a prisoner to the
Dark King's sanctuary. There, Morgoth lays a curse upon his
children, Túrin and Niënor, saying, "Upon all whom you
love my thought shall weigh as a cloud of Doom, and it shall bring
them into darkness and despair."

And so the doom of Man is set. Túrin is sent to Doriath, where
he lives as the foster-child of the elven king Thingol (the father
of Lúthien the Fair), long an ally of Húrin. There he
grows to manhood but longs to take up arms against Morgoth. Fleeing
Doriath, as he fears a punishment from the king (which never
comes), Túrin takes up with brigands, eventually coming to see
that more is needed of him --- and of the men who would follow him
--- if he truly is to take after his father. Thus he begins to show
his quality, and starts his rise in the legendarium of Middle
Earth.

Part ancient epic (such as “The Kalevala”), part
Oedipus, part Romeo and Juliet, and even part Beowulf, THE CHILDREN
OF HURIN draws from a deeper well than most fantasy fiction and
will move you on multiple levels. It is horrendously tragic and yet
at the same time a wholly beautiful work that only deepens further
the legend and legacy of Middle Earth.