Unfinished Tales: The Lost Lore of Middle-earth

Rating:
Summary: If you enjoyed Beowulf ...
Review: you'll love this one. On the plus side, I found it very useful for bedtime reading -- it definitely did not keep me awake. The laconic prose and tersely developed and emotionally inaccessible characters left me saying, "who cares what happens next."

If you are looking for something interesting that you can connect with in the same way as the Hobbit or the Ring trilogy, you might be disappointed with this. If you are just really into the whole Tolkien fantasy realm and/or you enjoy folk epic literature, you'll probably enjoy this more than I did.

Rating:
Summary: Mandatory reading for Tolkien aficionados
Review: Next to The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales is probably your best resource for learning more about the history and behind-the-scenes events that took place during, and before the War of the Ring.

The book begins with a summery and overview by editor Christopher Tolkien, who as you may have figured out, is John Ronald Reuel Tolkien's son. There's also an introduction, explaining why Christopher Tolkien left some texts unaltered, or why he altered, or did not give altered versions, or definitions and clarifications between differing versions of similar stories...it's all a little long-winded and not entirely necessary in my humble opinion. But perhaps it is important to some. Unfinished Tales is, after all, a large compilation of the scraps and tidbits of information that Professor Tolkien scrawled out in spare time, put together and alongside entire revisions of different stories. I can't imagine the sticky process it took to put this all together.

The book is divided into four sections.

The First Age section entails the story of Tuor, the escaped slave of Morgoth, warned by the "god" of waters, Ulmo, of the impending danger to the bulwark fortress of Gondolin. Tuor journeys with the aid and guidance of a sea-faring Elf, Voronwë, to the stronghold of Gondolin, and offers his message at last to its great king. Since the tale ends here (with only cursory description of the events that followed), I recommend reading The Silmarillion first, if you haven't already, to find out how it turns out. I have, but some of the details were difficult to recall.

Following is the incredibly tragic (and in this rendition, long!) tale of Turin, or rather, Narn I Hîn Húrin, the tale of the children of Húrin. I read it because I didn't want to leave anything skipped, but it's only a more detailed retelling of the same story found again in The Silmarillion. It's such a sad, sordid tale that I don't think I would have lost anything by skipping over it.

The Second Age section tells the story of Aldarion, a future king of Númenór, whose love for the sea is threatened by his love for the maid Erendis, vice-versa. I thought the story was woven incredibly well, except for the fact that it ends abruptly. (I was upset, until I closed the book and remembered that -- duh -- they're UNFINISHED Tales!) From all indications, the ending wasn't too happy anyway. But the story is still of high value for its descriptions of the island of Númenór.

There is a brief recounting of genealogies of the line of Elros, the first king of Númenór, and then a scattered gathering of information about Galadriel and her relationship to Celeborn. Various different versions are compared, very little is concretely presented.

The Third Age is probably my favorite section. It would appear that interest, at least in my case, grows stronger as the time draws closer to the War of the Ring. The first story, The Disaster of the Gladden Fields, is virtually all-new material regarding the march of Isildur after he cut the One Ring from Sauron's hand, how Isildur's army was overtaken by orcs, and how Isildur found his end. There's even a little information about what King Elessar (Aragorn, of course) found in the tower of Orthanc following Saruman's demise!

Then there is the tale of the great grandsire of the Rohirrim, Eorl, and his assistance that he provided to Cirion, the steward of Gondor, in his greatest need, much as Théoden later did. Unfortunately, this tale tells of how Eorl led his troops forth, and all kinds of details about his journey -- and cuts short just as the battle begins. Don't blame Christopher Tolkien though...it's one of the Unfinished elements. We're also told of the pledge between Gondor and Rohan, and of the gift of the land of Rohan to the Eorlingas.

Then we get some more, extra information about the Quest of Erebor, where Bilbo Baggins of the Shire was first persuaded to join thirteen dwarves on an impossible mission to reclaim the great dwarf treasure hoard which was stolen by the dragon Smaug. It is told from Gandalf's perspective to the hobbits inside Minas Tirith following the coronation of Aragorn, which gives it an added bonus, much like seeing extended material on the special extended DVD of the movie.

There are also stories that fill in what happened during the Hunt for the Ring, including a confrontation between the Nazgûl and Grima Wormtongue, and the other goings about that the Dark Riders conducted.

The Battle for the Fords of Isen is background, merging with the story in The Two Towers just as Théoden and his troops arrive at Helm's Deep. It also deals with Théodred's death, and the valor that he, Elfhelm, Grimbold, Erkenbrand, and Éomer and other generals showed during the decline of Rohan's kingdom.

Part four deals quickly with three things: The Drúedain (the forest-dwellers briefly seen in Return of the King book, and also the originators of the Púkal-men), the Istari, and the Palantiri. All three fill a mere forty pages, but still provide many interesting and awesome facts about the Seeing-stones, Gandalf's arrival upon the shores of Middle-Earth, etc.

There's also a large index of names and places in the back.

This book is fundamental for hard-core, book-reading fans of Tolkien. You can learn all sorts of behind-the-scenes events that took place in Middle-Earth, and then shock (or repulse) your friends, or just fill out your knowledge of Tolkienology with peripheral information. It's not quite as enjoyable to read as the linear, completed works like the trilogy, the Hobbit, or even the Silmarillion provide, but still very useful. Most likely the fact that you're looking this book up means you should buy it, and I recommend you do.