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Tales of Middle Earth
The Children of Húrin
The Children of Húrin is the first complete book by J.R.R. Tolkien since the 1977 publication of The Silmarillion. Six thousand years before the One Ring is destroyed, Middle-earth lies under the shadow of the Dark Lord Morgoth. The greatest warriors among elves and men have perished, and all is in darkness and despair. But a deadly new leader rises, Túrin, son of Húrin, and with his grim band of outlaws begins to turn the tide in the war for Middle-earth—awaiting the day he confronts his destiny and the deadly curse laid upon him.
The paperback edition of The Children of Húrin includes eight color paintings by Alan Lee and a black-and-white map.
The paperback edition of The Children of Húrin includes eight color paintings by Alan Lee and a black-and-white map.
317 pages, Paperback
First published April 16, 2007
About the author
J.R.R. Tolkien
1,019 books67.9k 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 4,199 reviews
December 5, 2021
This is one of Tolkien’s best works. Maybe even the best. I never expected Tolkien to write a story as dark and tragic as the one portrayed in The Children of Hurin.
First, a full disclosure that might anger Tolkien fanatics. During the time of writing this review, despite the fact that I’ve watched The Lord of the Rings trilogy more than ten times, I’m sorry to say that I wasn’t able to finish reading The Fellowship of the Rings because I was extremely bored with it. It’s most likely because the movie has tainted me with its fast pacing; I have no idea why but the book was so boring that it drowsed me to sleep several times, not even halfway. I blame Tom Bombadil, really. I also failed to finish The Silmarillion. Twice I almost made it halfway—the first time was more than ten years ago, the second time was just a few days ago—through the book, and twice I gave up.
For the past few years, I have asked some fans of Tolkien whether it’s necessary to read (not watch) the main trilogy and The Silmarillion first or not before attempting the three Great Tales of Middle-Earth. Some answered as long that I’ve watched the movies and I have the basic knowledge from the first half of The Silmarillion or thorough Wikipedia research (which I did on both accounts), they should be enough. Some even said it’s better to not read The Silmarillion first to get the maximum surprise experience of going into the story as blind as possible. Of course, some weren’t keen—some even felt offended, only Morgoth knows why—on the idea that I’m reading The Silmarillion, or attempted this, without actually reading The Lord of the Rings first. Well, guess what? I’m going to offend them more. I finished The Children of Hurin without reading The Silmarillion or The Lord of the Rings trilogy first, and I totally loved it.
I should note, though, that I’ve now finished reading The Silmarillion and The Lord of the Rings, and I enjoyed them both, but this review is written with the knowledge and experience when I haven’t read the two.
Picture: The Land of Bow and Helm by Alan Lee
With that knowledge in mind, until I do a reread, this review will be shorter and less detailed than my usual reviews; a lot of readers have done a better job than me in explaining the importance of The Children of Hurin and its connections to the larger story of Tolkien’s Middle-Earth. The Children of Hurin is one of the three Great Tales of Middle-Earth written by J.R.R. Tolkien and edited by Christopher Tolkien, the son of Tolkien. The Children of Hurin is a relatively short book. Excluding the preface, appendices, and glossary, the main story is only 200 pages long; what’s incredible and interesting, though, is how much depth, impact, and emotions are contained in it. Most of the storyline revolves around the curse bestowed upon the children of Hurin, specifically on the story of Turin Turambar that begins from his childhood.
As I said, I knew close to nothing when I first read this book, and I think it’s the best way to enjoy it. All I did know was that the story was dark, but I never knew how tragic and brutal it gets. Although the beginning felt a bit rough, I still think the prose was able to grab my attention so much more than The Silmarillion did. Don’t get me wrong, the writing style does feel similar, but The Silmarillion felt too much like reading a bible. In my opinion, The Children of Hurin is more approachable, and I found the second half of the book to be full of engaging drama, an intensely gripping narrative, heartbreaking twists and turns, and it’s utterly unputdownable. Also, TúrinTurambar is one of the most memorable protagonists I’ve ever read.
Lastly, I want to praise Alan Lee’s illustrations. The narrative itself already offered a mythical and distinct atmospheric experience, and Lee’s illustrations enhanced the immersion even further. They’re beautifully drawn, placed at the right moments, and it felt easy for me to feel like I was inside a dark tale of Middle-Earth when I was reading through this book.
Picture: Glaurung by Alan Lee
I have no idea whether finishing the ‘required’ reading would enhance or diminish my reading experience. But as far as my first reading goes, knowing nothing about the content has greatly worked in my favor. And I will have to say that I absolutely loved this book. The Children of Hurin is a superbly written tale. A fantastic, mythical, powerful, and atmospheric reading experience. For me, The Children of Hurin is one of Tolkien’s best books, and it’s certainly one of my favorite books now. I look forward to rereading it one day.
You can order the book from: Blackwells (Free International shipping)
You can find this and the rest of my reviews at Novel Notions
First, a full disclosure that might anger Tolkien fanatics. During the time of writing this review, despite the fact that I’ve watched The Lord of the Rings trilogy more than ten times, I’m sorry to say that I wasn’t able to finish reading The Fellowship of the Rings because I was extremely bored with it. It’s most likely because the movie has tainted me with its fast pacing; I have no idea why but the book was so boring that it drowsed me to sleep several times, not even halfway. I blame Tom Bombadil, really. I also failed to finish The Silmarillion. Twice I almost made it halfway—the first time was more than ten years ago, the second time was just a few days ago—through the book, and twice I gave up.
For the past few years, I have asked some fans of Tolkien whether it’s necessary to read (not watch) the main trilogy and The Silmarillion first or not before attempting the three Great Tales of Middle-Earth. Some answered as long that I’ve watched the movies and I have the basic knowledge from the first half of The Silmarillion or thorough Wikipedia research (which I did on both accounts), they should be enough. Some even said it’s better to not read The Silmarillion first to get the maximum surprise experience of going into the story as blind as possible. Of course, some weren’t keen—some even felt offended, only Morgoth knows why—on the idea that I’m reading The Silmarillion, or attempted this, without actually reading The Lord of the Rings first. Well, guess what? I’m going to offend them more. I finished The Children of Hurin without reading The Silmarillion or The Lord of the Rings trilogy first, and I totally loved it.
I should note, though, that I’ve now finished reading The Silmarillion and The Lord of the Rings, and I enjoyed them both, but this review is written with the knowledge and experience when I haven’t read the two.
Picture: The Land of Bow and Helm by Alan Lee
With that knowledge in mind, until I do a reread, this review will be shorter and less detailed than my usual reviews; a lot of readers have done a better job than me in explaining the importance of The Children of Hurin and its connections to the larger story of Tolkien’s Middle-Earth. The Children of Hurin is one of the three Great Tales of Middle-Earth written by J.R.R. Tolkien and edited by Christopher Tolkien, the son of Tolkien. The Children of Hurin is a relatively short book. Excluding the preface, appendices, and glossary, the main story is only 200 pages long; what’s incredible and interesting, though, is how much depth, impact, and emotions are contained in it. Most of the storyline revolves around the curse bestowed upon the children of Hurin, specifically on the story of Turin Turambar that begins from his childhood.
“A man that flies from his fear may find that he has only taken a short cut to meet it.”
As I said, I knew close to nothing when I first read this book, and I think it’s the best way to enjoy it. All I did know was that the story was dark, but I never knew how tragic and brutal it gets. Although the beginning felt a bit rough, I still think the prose was able to grab my attention so much more than The Silmarillion did. Don’t get me wrong, the writing style does feel similar, but The Silmarillion felt too much like reading a bible. In my opinion, The Children of Hurin is more approachable, and I found the second half of the book to be full of engaging drama, an intensely gripping narrative, heartbreaking twists and turns, and it’s utterly unputdownable. Also, TúrinTurambar is one of the most memorable protagonists I’ve ever read.
“False hopes are more dangerous than fears.”
Lastly, I want to praise Alan Lee’s illustrations. The narrative itself already offered a mythical and distinct atmospheric experience, and Lee’s illustrations enhanced the immersion even further. They’re beautifully drawn, placed at the right moments, and it felt easy for me to feel like I was inside a dark tale of Middle-Earth when I was reading through this book.
Picture: Glaurung by Alan Lee
I have no idea whether finishing the ‘required’ reading would enhance or diminish my reading experience. But as far as my first reading goes, knowing nothing about the content has greatly worked in my favor. And I will have to say that I absolutely loved this book. The Children of Hurin is a superbly written tale. A fantastic, mythical, powerful, and atmospheric reading experience. For me, The Children of Hurin is one of Tolkien’s best books, and it’s certainly one of my favorite books now. I look forward to rereading it one day.
You can order the book from: Blackwells (Free International shipping)
You can find this and the rest of my reviews at Novel Notions
July 11, 2021
The Children of Húrin by J.R.R. Tolkien
That's a very impactful tragic story which was set in the extraordinary world (Middle-Earth) Tolkien had crafted!! But Tolkien's classic writing was difficult for me to grasp the story and for that, I had to take some time to understand the tale better. However, the more the story moves, the brutal it gets. And this book is much darker, more depressing, more painful than the 'Lord of the Ring'.
Tragically beautiful.
That's a very impactful tragic story which was set in the extraordinary world (Middle-Earth) Tolkien had crafted!! But Tolkien's classic writing was difficult for me to grasp the story and for that, I had to take some time to understand the tale better. However, the more the story moves, the brutal it gets. And this book is much darker, more depressing, more painful than the 'Lord of the Ring'.
A man that flies from his fear may find that he has only taken a short cut to meet it.
Tragically beautiful.
May 13, 2020
The Children of Hurin is a tragic tale of love and loss, of remorseful earth-shattering revelations; consequently, it is also one of the most moving stories Tolkien ever devised. The execution never fully delivered it though, only because Tolkien never finished editing it. It just needs a little bit of polishing to remove a couple of tarnishes, and then it would be perfection.
The Ancient Greeks understood exactly how to evoke sorrow, pity and despair all in one powerful moment within their plays. And here Tolkien follows suit. The Children of Hurin could no longer live with themselves after what they discovered; it was enough to send the sanest of men mad. Tolkien captures all this within his narrative. The final scenes were majestic and terrible to behold, dramatic and memorable in their awesomeness. There’s no optimism here, this is dark and beautiful, easily the saddest thing Tolkien penned. The plot is so strong, and with swift final strokes the death blow of an ending is delivered eloquently and mercilessly.
And, of course, an edition illustrated by Allan Lee helps to give Tolkien’s words even more life:
“He was dark-haired as his mother, and promised to be like her in mood also; for he was not merry, and spoke little, though he learned to speak early and ever seemed older than his years. Túrin was slow to forget injustice or mockery; but the fire of his father was also in him, and he could be sudden and fierce. Yet he was quick to pity, and the hurts or sadness of living things might move him to tears.”
That being said though, this, most certainly, has one of the worse opening chapters I’ve ever read in fiction. Tolkien goes into extreme depth about Hurin’s lineage with the microscopic lens that is appropriate only in The Sillmarillion. I was bombarded with names, so many names, that I was so confused. It seemed a very odd way to begin things considering Tolkien eventually pulls this story into a traditional narrative and loses this authoritative authorial tone he began the book with. Perhaps, again, this is because he never finished editing it. So I recommend pushing through those first few chapters because this does eventually begin to pull itself together.
And it really begins with Turin, a young warrior cursed by Morgoth. The curse has come indirectly through his father’s lineage, from the man who once dared to oppose the original dark lord. He is haunted by black magic, his destiny shaped, leading to the tragic ending that befall the children of Hurin. Turin’s prideful nature sets it off somewhat so his destiny and own personality set him on the road to his marvellously grim ending, though Morgoth’s power is to blame: his revenge is realised.
“The doom lies in yourself, not in your name.”
“Then Morgoth stretching out his long arm towards Dor-lomin cursed Hurin and Morwen and their offspring, saying: 'Behold! The shadow of my thought shall lie upon them wherever they go, and my hate shall pursue them to the ends of the world.”
The Children of Hurin lacks consistency. The tone changed and the writing was far too complex and loaded with history for it to be approachable; it was so unlike the mastery of tone in The Lord of the Rings. It lacked a certain sense of balance between storytelling and the insertion of history that makes the trilogy so grand. However, it is a vastly important work in the middle-earth cannon. On par with the brilliant Beren and Lúthien, Tolkien tells the tale of an equally as powerful, yet much more complex and conflicted (to say the least), romance. Not to be missed.
________________________________
You can connect with me on social media via My Linktree.
__________________________________
The Ancient Greeks understood exactly how to evoke sorrow, pity and despair all in one powerful moment within their plays. And here Tolkien follows suit. The Children of Hurin could no longer live with themselves after what they discovered; it was enough to send the sanest of men mad. Tolkien captures all this within his narrative. The final scenes were majestic and terrible to behold, dramatic and memorable in their awesomeness. There’s no optimism here, this is dark and beautiful, easily the saddest thing Tolkien penned. The plot is so strong, and with swift final strokes the death blow of an ending is delivered eloquently and mercilessly.
And, of course, an edition illustrated by Allan Lee helps to give Tolkien’s words even more life:
“He was dark-haired as his mother, and promised to be like her in mood also; for he was not merry, and spoke little, though he learned to speak early and ever seemed older than his years. Túrin was slow to forget injustice or mockery; but the fire of his father was also in him, and he could be sudden and fierce. Yet he was quick to pity, and the hurts or sadness of living things might move him to tears.”
That being said though, this, most certainly, has one of the worse opening chapters I’ve ever read in fiction. Tolkien goes into extreme depth about Hurin’s lineage with the microscopic lens that is appropriate only in The Sillmarillion. I was bombarded with names, so many names, that I was so confused. It seemed a very odd way to begin things considering Tolkien eventually pulls this story into a traditional narrative and loses this authoritative authorial tone he began the book with. Perhaps, again, this is because he never finished editing it. So I recommend pushing through those first few chapters because this does eventually begin to pull itself together.
And it really begins with Turin, a young warrior cursed by Morgoth. The curse has come indirectly through his father’s lineage, from the man who once dared to oppose the original dark lord. He is haunted by black magic, his destiny shaped, leading to the tragic ending that befall the children of Hurin. Turin’s prideful nature sets it off somewhat so his destiny and own personality set him on the road to his marvellously grim ending, though Morgoth’s power is to blame: his revenge is realised.
“The doom lies in yourself, not in your name.”
“Then Morgoth stretching out his long arm towards Dor-lomin cursed Hurin and Morwen and their offspring, saying: 'Behold! The shadow of my thought shall lie upon them wherever they go, and my hate shall pursue them to the ends of the world.”
The Children of Hurin lacks consistency. The tone changed and the writing was far too complex and loaded with history for it to be approachable; it was so unlike the mastery of tone in The Lord of the Rings. It lacked a certain sense of balance between storytelling and the insertion of history that makes the trilogy so grand. However, it is a vastly important work in the middle-earth cannon. On par with the brilliant Beren and Lúthien, Tolkien tells the tale of an equally as powerful, yet much more complex and conflicted (to say the least), romance. Not to be missed.
________________________________
You can connect with me on social media via My Linktree.
__________________________________
October 6, 2021
Narnichin Hurin: The Children of Húrin (Middle-Earth Universe), J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (Editor), Alan Lee (Illustrator)
The Children of Húrin is an epic fantasy novel which forms the completion of a tale by J. R. R. Tolkien. He wrote the original version of the story in the late 1910's, revised it several times later, but did not complete it before his death in 1973.
His son, Christopher Tolkien, edited the manuscripts to form a consistent narrative, and published it in 2007 as an independent work. The book contains 33 illustrations by Alan Lee, eight of which are full-page and in color.
عنوانهای چاپ شده در ایران: «فرزندان هورین»، «بچه های هورین»، نویسنده: جی.آر.آر تالکین؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش: پانزدهم ماه آوریل سال2010میلادی
عنوان: فرزندان هورین، به پیوست حدیث تور و آمدن او به گوندولین؛ نویسنده: جی.آر.آر تالکین؛ مترجم: رضا علیزاده، ابراهیم تقوی؛ تهران، روزنه، سال1388؛ در432ص؛ چاپ سوم 1394؛ شابک9789643342920؛ موضوع داستانهای نویسندگان بریتانیا - سده 21م
عنوان: بچه های هورین؛ نویسنده: جی.آر.آر تالکین؛ مترجم: فرهاد سیدلو؛ تهران، پیام امروز، هستان، 1386، در256ص؛ شابک9789645706416؛
داستان در دوران نخست، و در سرزمین میانه میگذرد، و ماجرای «هورین تالیون» و فرزندان او (تورین تورامبار، و نیه نور) را باز میگوید؛ داستان «تورین تورامبار»، حکایت اندوهباری از فرزندان «هورین» است؛ «هورین» پسر «گالدور»، از خاندان «هادور»، سومین خاندان از انسانها بود، و این سه خاندان از یاوران «الف»ها بودند، که در جنگ علیه «مورگوت»، در دوران نخست شرکت میجستند؛ در نبرد بزرگ، و به راستی اشکبار «اشکهای بیشمار»، «هورین» فرماندهی «اداین» را، در جنگ بر داشتند، که پس از شکست سپاه، و با رشادتهای فراوان، به اسارت «مورگوت» درمیآید، و او را به چالش میکشد؛ «مورگوت» نیز او و خاندانش را نفرین میکند، و «هورین» را به بند میکشد، او میخواهد «هورین»، بتواند از بالای «تانگورودریم»، برج مخوف «مورگوت»، سرنوشت شوم فرزندان خود را بنگرد؛ «هورین» به مدت بیست و هشت سال، زندانی بود، و در این مدت، تباهی همسر و فرزندان، و زجر آنها را، با چشمان «مورگوت» دید، و با گوشهای او شنید؛ کتاب «فرزندان هورین» روایتی ��ست، از ماجراهای زندگی خانواده «هورین»، با سرکردگی فرزند بزرگش، «تورین»، نامدار به «تورامبار»، یا ارباب سرنوشت، که چگونه با تقدیر شوم خود، دست و پنجه نرم میکند؛ باید این داستانها را با داستانهای م��بوط به «هورین» در کتاب «سیلماریلیون» نیز مقایسه کنم
تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 03/11/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 13/07/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی
The Children of Húrin is an epic fantasy novel which forms the completion of a tale by J. R. R. Tolkien. He wrote the original version of the story in the late 1910's, revised it several times later, but did not complete it before his death in 1973.
His son, Christopher Tolkien, edited the manuscripts to form a consistent narrative, and published it in 2007 as an independent work. The book contains 33 illustrations by Alan Lee, eight of which are full-page and in color.
عنوانهای چاپ شده در ایران: «فرزندان هورین»، «بچه های هورین»، نویسنده: جی.آر.آر تالکین؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش: پانزدهم ماه آوریل سال2010میلادی
عنوان: فرزندان هورین، به پیوست حدیث تور و آمدن او به گوندولین؛ نویسنده: جی.آر.آر تالکین؛ مترجم: رضا علیزاده، ابراهیم تقوی؛ تهران، روزنه، سال1388؛ در432ص؛ چاپ سوم 1394؛ شابک9789643342920؛ موضوع داستانهای نویسندگان بریتانیا - سده 21م
عنوان: بچه های هورین؛ نویسنده: جی.آر.آر تالکین؛ مترجم: فرهاد سیدلو؛ تهران، پیام امروز، هستان، 1386، در256ص؛ شابک9789645706416؛
داستان در دوران نخست، و در سرزمین میانه میگذرد، و ماجرای «هورین تالیون» و فرزندان او (تورین تورامبار، و نیه نور) را باز میگوید؛ داستان «تورین تورامبار»، حکایت اندوهباری از فرزندان «هورین» است؛ «هورین» پسر «گالدور»، از خاندان «هادور»، سومین خاندان از انسانها بود، و این سه خاندان از یاوران «الف»ها بودند، که در جنگ علیه «مورگوت»، در دوران نخست شرکت میجستند؛ در نبرد بزرگ، و به راستی اشکبار «اشکهای بیشمار»، «هورین» فرماندهی «اداین» را، در جنگ بر داشتند، که پس از شکست سپاه، و با رشادتهای فراوان، به اسارت «مورگوت» درمیآید، و او را به چالش میکشد؛ «مورگوت» نیز او و خاندانش را نفرین میکند، و «هورین» را به بند میکشد، او میخواهد «هورین»، بتواند از بالای «تانگورودریم»، برج مخوف «مورگوت»، سرنوشت شوم فرزندان خود را بنگرد؛ «هورین» به مدت بیست و هشت سال، زندانی بود، و در این مدت، تباهی همسر و فرزندان، و زجر آنها را، با چشمان «مورگوت» دید، و با گوشهای او شنید؛ کتاب «فرزندان هورین» روایتی ��ست، از ماجراهای زندگی خانواده «هورین»، با سرکردگی فرزند بزرگش، «تورین»، نامدار به «تورامبار»، یا ارباب سرنوشت، که چگونه با تقدیر شوم خود، دست و پنجه نرم میکند؛ باید این داستانها را با داستانهای م��بوط به «هورین» در کتاب «سیلماریلیون» نیز مقایسه کنم
تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 03/11/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 13/07/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی
October 30, 2022
(The beautiful artwork is not mine. Credit to whoever made it)
‘Nonetheless, I will be the captain of my own host,’ said Túrin; ‘and if I fall, then I fall. ’
This review contains spoilers, so beware.
Tolkien did tragedy and incest before George R.R. Martin and did it better. Before Jaime and Cersei Lannister, there were Túrin Turambar and Niënor Níniel. Though, the latter two didn't know they were siblings. So, I guess it's not as bad?
Eh, it's still bad.
Tolkien gets criticized for his convenient denouements and happy endings. I guess those people never read The Children of Húrin. Or The Silmarillion. Even the Lord of the Rings trilogy doesn't have a typical happy ending. Especially the appendices.
To borrow a quote from Aretha Franklin "Lies, lies and more lies, and lies on top of lies."
The Children of Húrin is Tolkien's most tragic work. It has dragons, elves, orcs, evil lords, beautiful landscapes, and family drama. The story takes place in the First Age, thousands of years before heroes from Lord of the Rings were even born.
It is set in during the reign of Morgoth. For those unfamiliar with the lore, Morgoth was an Ainur (immortal spirit) of great power. He is one of the main characters in The Silmarillion. He was essentially Sauron's (the main villain in Lord of the Rings) boss. Húrin was a great warrior who fought against Morgoth's evil forces. He and his wife, Morwen, had three children - Túrin, Lalaith, and Niënor. Right off the first chapter, the reader connects with this family. It doesn't take long before tragedy strikes. Lalaith, the joy of the family, dies of 'The Evil Breath' at three years old. Húrin gets captured by Morgoth at Nirnaeth Arnoediad. Túrin is sent to live with the elves in Doriath. Alone and without her family members, Morwen gives birth to Niënor.
Túrin is raised in the kingdom of Doriath, ruled by Thingol and Melian. Those who read the Silmarillion may remember their names. Thingol was the High King of the Sindar elves. His queen, Melian, was a powerful Maia (angelic spirit). Thingol and Melian were the parents of Lúthien Tinúviel. Lúthien was the most beautiful elf who ever lived. She fell in love with a mortal man named Beren. Elrond, Arwen, and Aragorn are descendants of Lúthien and Beren. You may remember Arwen's quote from LOTR-
"For I am the daughter of Elrond. I shall not go with him when he departs to the Havens: for mine is the choice of Lúthien, and as she so have I chosen, both the sweet and the bitter."
Túrin is treated kindly by Thingol, who grows to love him like a son. Still, with each passing year, his restlessness grows. It all comes crashing down when he kills an elf named Saeros in self-defense. He goes into a self-imposed exile. Thingol exonerates Túrin, but Túrin refuses to go back. He joins a band of outlaws. Because why not at this point?
He becomes best friends with Beleg Cúthalion, one of the Sindar elves. A few chapters later, he accidentally kills Beleg. That man literally can't catch a break.
Meanwhile, the dragon Glaurung, much like George R.R. Martin's Vhagar, is causing mayhem across Middle-earth.
Niënor, determined to find her long-lost brother, comes face to face with the fearsome dragon. He works some weird dragon voodoo on her, which causes her to get amnesia. She is rescued briefly before getting lost in a forest. Túrin, now the Captain of the Elven underground fortress Nargothrond, finds and rescues her. Gradually the two fall in love, unaware they are siblings. They get married.
I'm skipping over many things in between. Glaurung continues to wreak havoc on unsuspecting villagers. Túrin, tired of all this drama, sets out to find and kill him. He stabs him with his sword, mortally wounding him. Túrin passes out from exhaustion. Niënor finds them, and, with his dying breath, Glaurung tells her Túrin is her brother. Niënor is horrified at the realization her brother is her husband and the father of her unborn child. She throws herself from a cliff into a river. Brandir, who was in love with Niënor, tells Túrin what happened. He tells him he and Niënor were siblings. Enraged, Túrin thinks he's only trying to cause drama and executes him. The truth is, however, later confirmed by Mablung, a Sindar elf. Túrin kills himself with his own sword.
The story ends with an old Húrin finding the graves of his children. There he finds his wife Morwen as well. Overcome with grief and old age, Morwen, also known as Lady of Dor-lómin, dies in his arms.
Then the people murmured, wondering at his speech, and some said that he was mad; but Brandir cried: ‘Hear me to the end! Níniel too is dead, Níniel the fair whom you loved, whom I loved dearest of all. She leaped from the brink of the Deer’s Leap, and the teeth of Teiglin have taken her. She is gone, hating the light of day. For this she learned before she fled: Húrin’s children were they both, sister and brother. The Mormegil he was called, Turambar he named himself, hiding his past: Túrin son of Húrin. Níniel we named her, not knowing her past: Niënor she was, daughter of Húrin. To Brethil they brought their dark doom’s shadow. Here their doom has fallen, and of grief this land shall never again be free. Call it not Brethil, not the land of the Halethrim, but Sarch nia Chîn Húrin, Grave of the Children of Húrin!’
I highly recommend this book, whether you're into the fantasy genre or not. I am left with a deep sense of melancholy each time I re-read it. I suppose that's not a bad thing. The worst feeling a book could give is indifference. That is something I never felt while reading Tolkien's work.
June 5, 2008
It has been said that all good things must come to an end. In this case, the end of Children of Hurin also marks the end of my quest to read a book by each of my five favorite authors. It seems like a fitting way to end this journey, in that Tolkien is the oldest of my favorites, and if there was ever a modern author suited to end-of-quest tales, it was Tolkien. He was also the author on my list that gave me the greatest concern—not only has he passed away, but his body of published work is relatively small. I didn’t want to re-read the Hobbit or Lord of the Rings, not because I don’t love them, but because I wanted to be able to read something new, just as I had with the other authors. Having read the Silmarillion several months earlier, I was hard pressed to think of what else to read. Sure, I could have gone for Letters From Father Christmas, or Farmer Giles of Ham, but neither of those somehow felt right. Tolkien’s tales of Middle-Earth were what cemented him as one of my favorite writers, and I wanted to go back to Middle-Earth as part of this project.
Fortunately, the publishing gods smiled upon me, and gave me Children of Hurin. This is another in a line of books composed by Tolkien’s estate, taken from various notes, fragments, and other unfinished writings and molded into a coherent whole. In that respect, for the record, it’s very well done. The text flows seamlessly from chapter to chapter, and I never once had the sense that I was reading something out of place or inauthentic. This feels like Tolkien’s writing, and if it isn’t exactly what he intended, I have to believe it’s pretty damn close.
But what of the story itself?
The story of Hurin and his offspring is told as part of the Silmarillion, but not in the detail that Tolkien intended. Tolkien believed that this story was one that could be told apart from the Silmarillion as a whole—that it was strong enough and vibrant enough to stand on it’s own. And he is absolutely correct.
Children of Hurin is an epic. It’s also a tragedy. If you come into this book expecting glorious battles and happy endings, you will be sorely disappointed (though if you come to Tolkien expecting nothing but happiness and light, I submit you haven’t read Tolkien very often or carefully). This is not a tale of good triumphing over evil, but a tale of a family brought down by an epic curse. More Macbeth than Star Wars, in other words.
The writing itself is epic—Children of Hurin reads a lot like Beowulf or the Iliad. Tolkien apparently originally tried to write the tale as an actual epic poem, but was never quite able to make it work. Still, his prose captures that same spirit, rhythm, and cadence. As a huge fan of epic and epic poem, I love it.
Despite the epic prose and tragic scope, the characters of Children of Hurin are very well crafted, and ultimately, very human. Their actions, while not always rational, are often understandable, and while the tragedy has its origins in the supernatural (it is Morgoth who curses the line of Hurin), there is not a strong sense that the plot is forced simply by supernatural means. Instead, we get the sense that these are perhaps well meaning, but ultimately deeply flawed people, who suffer for their choices, and the choices of others. The final scene of the book, when Hurin is finally reunited with his dying wife, is absolutely heartbreaking.
There’s also a wonderful scene, much earlier, which really stuck with me, and I need to mention it here just because it’s so wonderfully crafted. It occurs shortly after Hurin’s capture by Morgoth, when Morwen, his wife, is trying to figure out what to do with herself and her children. Turin, the son, says something to the effect of “I know my father is dead. He must be, because I know that his love for us is so strong that if he were alive, no chains could hold him, and no amount of enemies could keep him from returning to us.”
And Morwen’s answer is “I do not think either of those things is true, my son.”
It’s a wonderful, if completely heartbreaking moment, where a child-like view of heroism clashes completely with the harsh realities of the world. It strikes me as a very Tolkien-esque moment; in many ways much of Tolkien’s work deals with the interplay between heroics, and the personal cost or realities of those heroics. At least, that’s my initial thought. In any case, it’s an immensely powerful scene.
The text of the book is aided by the wonderful illustrations done by Alan Lee, who has done a lot of Tolkien-related art in the past. His illustrations are interspersed in no particular order throughout the book, but each one of them is gorgeous, and really adds to the flavor of the text. It would have been neat to see some more of them.
This is yet another Tolkien book I’ll be re-reading in the future. It’s a fine addition to the Middle Earth canon.
Fortunately, the publishing gods smiled upon me, and gave me Children of Hurin. This is another in a line of books composed by Tolkien’s estate, taken from various notes, fragments, and other unfinished writings and molded into a coherent whole. In that respect, for the record, it’s very well done. The text flows seamlessly from chapter to chapter, and I never once had the sense that I was reading something out of place or inauthentic. This feels like Tolkien’s writing, and if it isn’t exactly what he intended, I have to believe it’s pretty damn close.
But what of the story itself?
The story of Hurin and his offspring is told as part of the Silmarillion, but not in the detail that Tolkien intended. Tolkien believed that this story was one that could be told apart from the Silmarillion as a whole—that it was strong enough and vibrant enough to stand on it’s own. And he is absolutely correct.
Children of Hurin is an epic. It’s also a tragedy. If you come into this book expecting glorious battles and happy endings, you will be sorely disappointed (though if you come to Tolkien expecting nothing but happiness and light, I submit you haven’t read Tolkien very often or carefully). This is not a tale of good triumphing over evil, but a tale of a family brought down by an epic curse. More Macbeth than Star Wars, in other words.
The writing itself is epic—Children of Hurin reads a lot like Beowulf or the Iliad. Tolkien apparently originally tried to write the tale as an actual epic poem, but was never quite able to make it work. Still, his prose captures that same spirit, rhythm, and cadence. As a huge fan of epic and epic poem, I love it.
Despite the epic prose and tragic scope, the characters of Children of Hurin are very well crafted, and ultimately, very human. Their actions, while not always rational, are often understandable, and while the tragedy has its origins in the supernatural (it is Morgoth who curses the line of Hurin), there is not a strong sense that the plot is forced simply by supernatural means. Instead, we get the sense that these are perhaps well meaning, but ultimately deeply flawed people, who suffer for their choices, and the choices of others. The final scene of the book, when Hurin is finally reunited with his dying wife, is absolutely heartbreaking.
There’s also a wonderful scene, much earlier, which really stuck with me, and I need to mention it here just because it’s so wonderfully crafted. It occurs shortly after Hurin’s capture by Morgoth, when Morwen, his wife, is trying to figure out what to do with herself and her children. Turin, the son, says something to the effect of “I know my father is dead. He must be, because I know that his love for us is so strong that if he were alive, no chains could hold him, and no amount of enemies could keep him from returning to us.”
And Morwen’s answer is “I do not think either of those things is true, my son.”
It’s a wonderful, if completely heartbreaking moment, where a child-like view of heroism clashes completely with the harsh realities of the world. It strikes me as a very Tolkien-esque moment; in many ways much of Tolkien’s work deals with the interplay between heroics, and the personal cost or realities of those heroics. At least, that’s my initial thought. In any case, it’s an immensely powerful scene.
The text of the book is aided by the wonderful illustrations done by Alan Lee, who has done a lot of Tolkien-related art in the past. His illustrations are interspersed in no particular order throughout the book, but each one of them is gorgeous, and really adds to the flavor of the text. It would have been neat to see some more of them.
This is yet another Tolkien book I’ll be re-reading in the future. It’s a fine addition to the Middle Earth canon.
September 26, 2017
This book in one gif:
I heard a lot of people say that Tolkien is the merry brother of George R.R. Martin. But anyone thinking that has clearly not read The Children of Hurin. To say that this story is tragic would be an understatement.
This might be the saddest thing I’ve ever read. And I actually knew the story beforehand, because a shortened version of it is present in The Silmarillion.
The book chronicles mostly the life of Turin, son of Hurin. The events take place after Morgoth, one of the Valar (creators of the world) and the greatest dark lord of all times (basically the Lucifer of Middle-Earth) defeats the armies of men and elves and puts Beleriand (a land west of Middle-Earth) under his dominion. Hurin is taken prisoner and upon him and all his kin Morgoth lays a curse.
Turin, his son, grows to be a great warrior, but his life is an unhappy one. This is closer to a Nordic mythological saga or a Greek tragedy than it is to The Lord of the Rings. But that doesn’t make it any less of a great story! We get a lot of insight into the times before LOTR and how all of that came to be. And elves are much more present here.
The book also has some truly stunning illustrations by Alan Lee, like the one below. Plus a lot of thoughts and input on the story and its evolution by Christoper, the son of J.R.R. Tolkien. And he did a very good job bringing this tale together from his father’s drafts.
Now, I got a few people asking in what order they should read Tolkien’s work and the truth is it might be hard for some to comprehend what is going on in The Children of Hurin without reading The Silmarillion first.
Basically, in my opinion, if you have read nothing by Tolkien, I would say the order should be:
- The Silmarillion
- The Children of Hurin
- The Hobbit
- The Lord of the Rings
Now if you want to get deeper into Tolkien’s work, there is a lot of other material out there. But these are his main works. And while some might struggle with Silmarillion, I suggest you push forward. The Silmarillion is basically an epic history of Middle-earth. It’s like reading Greek myths. I found it extremely fascinating, but not everyone thinks so apparently.
The Children of Hurin is much more akin to LOTR and The Hobbit in terms of how it is written. So it might be more accessible to someone unfamiliar with Tolkien in that way. But it has a big ass backstory behind it. And while Cristopher tries to explain some events at the beginning of the book, it might get confusing to be faced with so many names and events so fast. That is why I recommend starting with The Silmarillion.
I heard a lot of people say that Tolkien is the merry brother of George R.R. Martin. But anyone thinking that has clearly not read The Children of Hurin. To say that this story is tragic would be an understatement.
This might be the saddest thing I’ve ever read. And I actually knew the story beforehand, because a shortened version of it is present in The Silmarillion.
The book chronicles mostly the life of Turin, son of Hurin. The events take place after Morgoth, one of the Valar (creators of the world) and the greatest dark lord of all times (basically the Lucifer of Middle-Earth) defeats the armies of men and elves and puts Beleriand (a land west of Middle-Earth) under his dominion. Hurin is taken prisoner and upon him and all his kin Morgoth lays a curse.
Turin, his son, grows to be a great warrior, but his life is an unhappy one. This is closer to a Nordic mythological saga or a Greek tragedy than it is to The Lord of the Rings. But that doesn’t make it any less of a great story! We get a lot of insight into the times before LOTR and how all of that came to be. And elves are much more present here.
The book also has some truly stunning illustrations by Alan Lee, like the one below. Plus a lot of thoughts and input on the story and its evolution by Christoper, the son of J.R.R. Tolkien. And he did a very good job bringing this tale together from his father’s drafts.
Now, I got a few people asking in what order they should read Tolkien’s work and the truth is it might be hard for some to comprehend what is going on in The Children of Hurin without reading The Silmarillion first.
Basically, in my opinion, if you have read nothing by Tolkien, I would say the order should be:
- The Silmarillion
- The Children of Hurin
- The Hobbit
- The Lord of the Rings
Now if you want to get deeper into Tolkien’s work, there is a lot of other material out there. But these are his main works. And while some might struggle with Silmarillion, I suggest you push forward. The Silmarillion is basically an epic history of Middle-earth. It’s like reading Greek myths. I found it extremely fascinating, but not everyone thinks so apparently.
The Children of Hurin is much more akin to LOTR and The Hobbit in terms of how it is written. So it might be more accessible to someone unfamiliar with Tolkien in that way. But it has a big ass backstory behind it. And while Cristopher tries to explain some events at the beginning of the book, it might get confusing to be faced with so many names and events so fast. That is why I recommend starting with The Silmarillion.
April 29, 2022
⋇⋆✦⋆⋇I have officially died of grief⋇⋆✦⋆⋇
“Then Morgoth stretching out his long arm toward Dor-lómin cursed Húrin and Morwen and their offspring, saying: ‘Behold! The shadow of my thought shall lie upon them wherever they go, and my hate shall pursue them to the ends of the world… Upon all whom you love my thought shall weigh as a cloud of Doom, and it shall bring them down into darkness and despair. Wherever they go, evil shall arise. Whenever they speak, their words shall bring ill counsel. Whatsoever they do shall turn against them. They shall die without hope, cursing both life and death.” - J.R.R. Tolkien, The Children of Húrin
This is going to be a long and passionate review (maybe sometimes bordering on ranting...) so please sit back and relax (if you can!). I really do hope this helps to ignite some curiosity toward Tolkien’s works at large, if not in particular with the First Age of Middle-earth, and give those of you who are already familiar with the Elder Days some new ideas to think about.
The Children of Húrin is by far one of Tolkien’s darkest and most twisted tales. If one simply skims it or reads it without much thought, it may not even seem like much, but the more one pays attention, the more one realizes the anguish and the struggle within. While The Hobbit and even the first third or so of The Lord of the Rings is quite pleasant (at least in comparison with everything else), Tolkien’s “greater” works, especially The Silmarillion and The Children of Húrin have a vastly different style, one that hints that even while the written story is being told in glory and in eloquence, it is only a shadow of the "true" and complete tale.
By the way, this is going to come off as really random, but for those who are familiar with The Lord of the Rings but not with anything from the Elder Days, did you know that Túrin (the MC of this book) was Elrond of Rivendell’s great uncle? Weird, huh? Also, Celeborn and Thranduil were closely related to King Thingol of Doriath (another character in the book) and Legolas may or may not have been inspired by an even greater elven bowman by the name of Beleg Cúthalion (who was close friends with Túrin). Anyway, I hope that piqued your interest a bit!
The Children of Húrin tells the story of Túrin and his sister Nienor, who are, not surprisingly, Húrin’s two children. When Húrin was taken captive by Morgoth (the "Satan" of Middle-earth, basically), he defied him and Morgoth became angry and cursed his entire family. Unfortunately, the curse worked out quite well in the end, but I strongly believe that things didn’t go the way they went only because of the curse. Perhaps Morgoth's malice played a part in the decisions of the characters, but when it comes down to it, their decisions were still their own.
Túrin was the tragic hero of the story (I like him much better in that role than say… Romeo… I don’t even know…) and his story is based loosely on pagan legends, particularly on a work called The Kaleva about a man named Kullervo. Most of Tolkien’s stories illustrate how while darkness seems to win, light will eventually still triumph and overcome the darkness. The Children of Húrin, however, is exactly the opposite. Sometimes Túrin thinks he has overcome his fate and escaped Morgoth’s shadow, but every single time, he is dragged down once more until Morgoth’s ultimate plan is finally achieved.
On the surface, it seems like Túrin simply has horribly bad luck, but Tolkien may actually have something deeper going on here. In one passage, Túrin argued with Gwindor in Nargothrond’s court (p. 160-161), and Gwindor told him that they should all look to the Valar for help and wait for them to deliver them because Morgoth was much to strong for Elves and Men alone to defeat. Túrin immediately scoffed at this and said that the Valar had abandoned them all and that the only power they had to do with was Morgoth himself. He then went on to speak proudly of taking everything into his own hands and wanting his own way. This, in some ways, made me feel like it was almost like Túrin was, in a manner, denying God Himself and ultimately saying that God was dead and so everyone should be free to do whatsoever everyone pleased to do. And so if this theory is true, and it may well be since Tolkien was a devout Catholic, then The Children of Húrin is ultimately an illustration of the utter senselessness of life when God is not in the picture. Similarly, in The Silmarillion, even with all the glory and prowess of the Valinorian Elves, their war against Morgoth was
One more thing I have to say concerning The Children of Húrin in general is the lesson it has concerning pride. This message rang out the loudest above all others for me both times when I read the book. It is like Tolkien is telling us over and over and over again, "See how Túrin made this decision out of pride? See how Morwen made that decision because of pride? See how Niënor only did this because she was proud?" And so on and so forth. This was actually scary for me because I most definitely struggle with pride at times, and we can all sometimes be proud/arrogant/self-seeking.
I'll give you some examples to illustrate this theme of pride throughout The Children of Húrin. Húrin was proud in believing that he could withstand Morgoth’s evil, but instead he ended up falling into despair and utter hopelessness (not described in this book but it is in The Silmarillion) and even gave the location to Gondolin on accident to Morgoth because of it. Morwen was also proud and refused to go to Doriath for years because she didn’t want to humble herself to ask Thingol for leave to stay there. She was also too proud to listen to basically everyone else’s counsel and just had to go her own way because she didn’t want to admit she was wrong about her previous stance. Her actions ended up with her two children (Túrin and Nienor) . Saeros was proud and arrogant because he was a councilor to King Thingol, and this pride got him killed eventually. And of course, Túrin himself hardened his heart and ignored fair counsel over and over again. When Beleg begged him to return to Doriath, Túrin refused because he didn’t want to even humble himself a little bit and seek out Thingol’s pardon. When he ended up in the fortress of Nargothrond, he wanted his own way in everything and ended up revealing the fortress’s location to Morgoth. This initiated the fall of Nargothrond. Túrin’s pride in particular (as well as the curse on him), hurt/killed a lot of the people around him . Even Morgoth, who bragged to Húrin that he had made the world in the beginning of time (which he did not) and called himself the “Elder King” (which he was not), was eventually cast from his throne and into the Doors of Night. I just thought this was interesting to note!
Okay, now comes some thoughts I have about a few of the main characters (not all of them, just the ones I’m most fascinated about). Please note the from here on, what I have written, I haven't had a chance yet to proofread.
Túrin - I loved Túrin’s childhood so very much, he was a sweet and curious boy even though he thought more than he talked. I loved the friendship he had with Labadal (awww, isn’t it so adorable he named him “Hop-a-foot”?) but I do strongly believe that Morwen and Húrin could’ve done a better job of raising the kid. Túrin barely ever even saw his father and his mother was often cold and distant and hard on Túrin as well. As he grew up, he gained more ambition and strongly wanted to make a difference in the world (by fighting against Morgoth’s troops). I enjoyed the first half of Túrin’s life more than the second half and that’s probably because the former is somewhat less depressing than the latter. I also found that I resonated deeply with him in the first half of the book (up through the fall of Nargothrond, actually). It’s a bit scary, but a lot of his thoughts are like my thoughts at times and even our personalities matched to some extent. I don’t feel like going into particular examples of this (the review is already too long) but I really, really hope my end will be different than poor Túrin’s was! See, this book made me think about myself as much as it did about others and our world. And if I blamed or put down Túrin’s actions earlier on during this review, it’s not because I think that he was an especially awful person or that I think none of us would have a similar thought process as he did but that all of us have a bit of “Túrin'' in us and I’m rebuking myself as well as him.
Morwen - Morwen was proud, beautiful, and elegant, the very picture of a Lady of the Edain. However, at times she seemed like she was only hard on the outside to hide the softness on the inside. She seemed to be extremely afraid of being vulnerable (I’m not sure why unless it’s because she thought it was going to ruin her pride). It was really, really sad to see how broken and small she became in the end.
Beleg - Beleg Cúthalion is my most favorite character in this book (and one of my favorites in all of The Silmarillion) by far!!! He was the captain of the march-wardens of Doriath and one of King Thingol’s most trusted subjects as well as a very good friend to Túrin (even when Túrin did a bad job of showing his love back). Beleg was literally so sweet and so wise and so selfless (and so tragic…), it just makes you want to be a better person just reading about him! And I’m so angry that he was only in like half of the book! That’s not even close to enough! I could talk forever about Beleg but probably no one wants to hear about it so… *sad face*
Mablung - Mablung was a captain of the guard and the chief hunter of Doriath. I totally agree with Beleg’s title for him as the “friend of truth” above all others (including Túrin). This was referring to Mablung speaking of what he had seen in front of Thingol’s court for a trial. However, in the end, Mablung said that he loved Túrin and that “thus with words have I slain [him],” which was referencing back to Beleg’s title for him and him always speaking the truth. I don’t know what exactly that entailed but it gave me shivers.
Melian - Queen Melian the Maia was, to put it simply, one of the lesser “gods” of Tolkien’s world but she took on a physical form permanently because of her love for Thingol. Melian’s counsel is always, always, always good but what frustrates me is that barely anyone listens to her! Not Túrin, not Morwen, not even Beleg! So I feel quite bad for her because she has foresight (meaning she knows at least in part of some of what is going to happen in the future) and although she can’t really force anyone into doing what is right, she still counsels them dutifully but they don’t listen!!! Which is so annoying! So annoying! Did I already say it was annoying?
Gwindor - Awww I don’t even know what to say about Gwindor... Personally, I pitied him very much and his counsel almost always proved to be wiser than Túrin’s except everyone always listened to Túrin instead of him because Túrin was younger and stronger (so stupid!). And yet even though Gwindor had suffered for years and years at Morgoth’s hand and was shamed because of it after he escaped, he still endured and fought bravely and stood up for what he believed was right, which I found very admirable. I just wish his life could’ve been happier! I mean, the first part probably was, but all the rest was nearly all torment!
Sorry if I ranted a bit with the characters! Ultimately, The Children of Húrin is a tale masterfully told as well as one that readers can go back to again and again and never tire of. I don’t think any of us will ever figure out how in the world Tolkien managed to make his characters and his world so real, so deep, and so beautiful, but he did and so we should most certainly seek to draw inspiration from all of it. This book won be for everyone and personally it took me multiple tries to get The Silmarillion down but it was more than worth it. So if you are thinking you want to give this book or any of the professor’s works a try, I would highly encourage that you do! Don’t be afraid, just do it! And if you have any questions about anything relating to Middle-earth (anything at all!), feel free to message me about it here and I will be more than happy to try to help you out.
I'm always open to conversations for anyone with thoughts on this book or anything Tolkien-related. Namárië, nai aurelya nauva mára.
««Recommended for those who love...»»
☐ High fantasy
☐ The Lord of the Rings and/or The Silmarillion
☐ Epics and/or dragons
☐ Tragedies and tragic heroes
☐ Books that make them depressed?
“Then Morgoth stretching out his long arm toward Dor-lómin cursed Húrin and Morwen and their offspring, saying: ‘Behold! The shadow of my thought shall lie upon them wherever they go, and my hate shall pursue them to the ends of the world… Upon all whom you love my thought shall weigh as a cloud of Doom, and it shall bring them down into darkness and despair. Wherever they go, evil shall arise. Whenever they speak, their words shall bring ill counsel. Whatsoever they do shall turn against them. They shall die without hope, cursing both life and death.” - J.R.R. Tolkien, The Children of Húrin
This is going to be a long and passionate review (maybe sometimes bordering on ranting...) so please sit back and relax (if you can!). I really do hope this helps to ignite some curiosity toward Tolkien’s works at large, if not in particular with the First Age of Middle-earth, and give those of you who are already familiar with the Elder Days some new ideas to think about.
The Children of Húrin is by far one of Tolkien’s darkest and most twisted tales. If one simply skims it or reads it without much thought, it may not even seem like much, but the more one pays attention, the more one realizes the anguish and the struggle within. While The Hobbit and even the first third or so of The Lord of the Rings is quite pleasant (at least in comparison with everything else), Tolkien’s “greater” works, especially The Silmarillion and The Children of Húrin have a vastly different style, one that hints that even while the written story is being told in glory and in eloquence, it is only a shadow of the "true" and complete tale.
By the way, this is going to come off as really random, but for those who are familiar with The Lord of the Rings but not with anything from the Elder Days, did you know that Túrin (the MC of this book) was Elrond of Rivendell’s great uncle? Weird, huh? Also, Celeborn and Thranduil were closely related to King Thingol of Doriath (another character in the book) and Legolas may or may not have been inspired by an even greater elven bowman by the name of Beleg Cúthalion (who was close friends with Túrin). Anyway, I hope that piqued your interest a bit!
The Children of Húrin tells the story of Túrin and his sister Nienor, who are, not surprisingly, Húrin’s two children. When Húrin was taken captive by Morgoth (the "Satan" of Middle-earth, basically), he defied him and Morgoth became angry and cursed his entire family. Unfortunately, the curse worked out quite well in the end, but I strongly believe that things didn’t go the way they went only because of the curse. Perhaps Morgoth's malice played a part in the decisions of the characters, but when it comes down to it, their decisions were still their own.
Túrin was the tragic hero of the story (I like him much better in that role than say… Romeo… I don’t even know…) and his story is based loosely on pagan legends, particularly on a work called The Kaleva about a man named Kullervo. Most of Tolkien’s stories illustrate how while darkness seems to win, light will eventually still triumph and overcome the darkness. The Children of Húrin, however, is exactly the opposite. Sometimes Túrin thinks he has overcome his fate and escaped Morgoth’s shadow, but every single time, he is dragged down once more until Morgoth’s ultimate plan is finally achieved.
On the surface, it seems like Túrin simply has horribly bad luck, but Tolkien may actually have something deeper going on here. In one passage, Túrin argued with Gwindor in Nargothrond’s court (p. 160-161), and Gwindor told him that they should all look to the Valar for help and wait for them to deliver them because Morgoth was much to strong for Elves and Men alone to defeat. Túrin immediately scoffed at this and said that the Valar had abandoned them all and that the only power they had to do with was Morgoth himself. He then went on to speak proudly of taking everything into his own hands and wanting his own way. This, in some ways, made me feel like it was almost like Túrin was, in a manner, denying God Himself and ultimately saying that God was dead and so everyone should be free to do whatsoever everyone pleased to do. And so if this theory is true, and it may well be since Tolkien was a devout Catholic, then The Children of Húrin is ultimately an illustration of the utter senselessness of life when God is not in the picture. Similarly, in The Silmarillion, even with all the glory and prowess of the Valinorian Elves, their war against Morgoth was
One more thing I have to say concerning The Children of Húrin in general is the lesson it has concerning pride. This message rang out the loudest above all others for me both times when I read the book. It is like Tolkien is telling us over and over and over again, "See how Túrin made this decision out of pride? See how Morwen made that decision because of pride? See how Niënor only did this because she was proud?" And so on and so forth. This was actually scary for me because I most definitely struggle with pride at times, and we can all sometimes be proud/arrogant/self-seeking.
I'll give you some examples to illustrate this theme of pride throughout The Children of Húrin. Húrin was proud in believing that he could withstand Morgoth’s evil, but instead he ended up falling into despair and utter hopelessness (not described in this book but it is in The Silmarillion) and even gave the location to Gondolin on accident to Morgoth because of it. Morwen was also proud and refused to go to Doriath for years because she didn’t want to humble herself to ask Thingol for leave to stay there. She was also too proud to listen to basically everyone else’s counsel and just had to go her own way because she didn’t want to admit she was wrong about her previous stance. Her actions ended up with her two children (Túrin and Nienor) . Saeros was proud and arrogant because he was a councilor to King Thingol, and this pride got him killed eventually. And of course, Túrin himself hardened his heart and ignored fair counsel over and over again. When Beleg begged him to return to Doriath, Túrin refused because he didn’t want to even humble himself a little bit and seek out Thingol’s pardon. When he ended up in the fortress of Nargothrond, he wanted his own way in everything and ended up revealing the fortress’s location to Morgoth. This initiated the fall of Nargothrond. Túrin’s pride in particular (as well as the curse on him), hurt/killed a lot of the people around him . Even Morgoth, who bragged to Húrin that he had made the world in the beginning of time (which he did not) and called himself the “Elder King” (which he was not), was eventually cast from his throne and into the Doors of Night. I just thought this was interesting to note!
Okay, now comes some thoughts I have about a few of the main characters (not all of them, just the ones I’m most fascinated about). Please note the from here on, what I have written, I haven't had a chance yet to proofread.
Túrin - I loved Túrin’s childhood so very much, he was a sweet and curious boy even though he thought more than he talked. I loved the friendship he had with Labadal (awww, isn’t it so adorable he named him “Hop-a-foot”?) but I do strongly believe that Morwen and Húrin could’ve done a better job of raising the kid. Túrin barely ever even saw his father and his mother was often cold and distant and hard on Túrin as well. As he grew up, he gained more ambition and strongly wanted to make a difference in the world (by fighting against Morgoth’s troops). I enjoyed the first half of Túrin’s life more than the second half and that’s probably because the former is somewhat less depressing than the latter. I also found that I resonated deeply with him in the first half of the book (up through the fall of Nargothrond, actually). It’s a bit scary, but a lot of his thoughts are like my thoughts at times and even our personalities matched to some extent. I don’t feel like going into particular examples of this (the review is already too long) but I really, really hope my end will be different than poor Túrin’s was! See, this book made me think about myself as much as it did about others and our world. And if I blamed or put down Túrin’s actions earlier on during this review, it’s not because I think that he was an especially awful person or that I think none of us would have a similar thought process as he did but that all of us have a bit of “Túrin'' in us and I’m rebuking myself as well as him.
Morwen - Morwen was proud, beautiful, and elegant, the very picture of a Lady of the Edain. However, at times she seemed like she was only hard on the outside to hide the softness on the inside. She seemed to be extremely afraid of being vulnerable (I’m not sure why unless it’s because she thought it was going to ruin her pride). It was really, really sad to see how broken and small she became in the end.
Beleg - Beleg Cúthalion is my most favorite character in this book (and one of my favorites in all of The Silmarillion) by far!!! He was the captain of the march-wardens of Doriath and one of King Thingol’s most trusted subjects as well as a very good friend to Túrin (even when Túrin did a bad job of showing his love back). Beleg was literally so sweet and so wise and so selfless (and so tragic…), it just makes you want to be a better person just reading about him! And I’m so angry that he was only in like half of the book! That’s not even close to enough! I could talk forever about Beleg but probably no one wants to hear about it so… *sad face*
Mablung - Mablung was a captain of the guard and the chief hunter of Doriath. I totally agree with Beleg’s title for him as the “friend of truth” above all others (including Túrin). This was referring to Mablung speaking of what he had seen in front of Thingol’s court for a trial. However, in the end, Mablung said that he loved Túrin and that “thus with words have I slain [him],” which was referencing back to Beleg’s title for him and him always speaking the truth. I don’t know what exactly that entailed but it gave me shivers.
Melian - Queen Melian the Maia was, to put it simply, one of the lesser “gods” of Tolkien’s world but she took on a physical form permanently because of her love for Thingol. Melian’s counsel is always, always, always good but what frustrates me is that barely anyone listens to her! Not Túrin, not Morwen, not even Beleg! So I feel quite bad for her because she has foresight (meaning she knows at least in part of some of what is going to happen in the future) and although she can’t really force anyone into doing what is right, she still counsels them dutifully but they don’t listen!!! Which is so annoying! So annoying! Did I already say it was annoying?
Gwindor - Awww I don’t even know what to say about Gwindor... Personally, I pitied him very much and his counsel almost always proved to be wiser than Túrin’s except everyone always listened to Túrin instead of him because Túrin was younger and stronger (so stupid!). And yet even though Gwindor had suffered for years and years at Morgoth’s hand and was shamed because of it after he escaped, he still endured and fought bravely and stood up for what he believed was right, which I found very admirable. I just wish his life could’ve been happier! I mean, the first part probably was, but all the rest was nearly all torment!
Sorry if I ranted a bit with the characters! Ultimately, The Children of Húrin is a tale masterfully told as well as one that readers can go back to again and again and never tire of. I don’t think any of us will ever figure out how in the world Tolkien managed to make his characters and his world so real, so deep, and so beautiful, but he did and so we should most certainly seek to draw inspiration from all of it. This book won be for everyone and personally it took me multiple tries to get The Silmarillion down but it was more than worth it. So if you are thinking you want to give this book or any of the professor’s works a try, I would highly encourage that you do! Don’t be afraid, just do it! And if you have any questions about anything relating to Middle-earth (anything at all!), feel free to message me about it here and I will be more than happy to try to help you out.
I'm always open to conversations for anyone with thoughts on this book or anything Tolkien-related. Namárië, nai aurelya nauva mára.
««Recommended for those who love...»»
☐ High fantasy
☐ The Lord of the Rings and/or The Silmarillion
☐ Epics and/or dragons
☐ Tragedies and tragic heroes
☐ Books that make them depressed?
February 10, 2017
Gandolf, Poul Anderson, J.R.R. Tolkien, Tom Bombadil and Ozzy Osbourne sit in the Green Dragon pub in Murfreesboro Tennessee and discuss Tolkien’s book The Children of Hurin.
Gandolf: Yes, Tom thank you, I will have some more of this delightful mead, what did you call it?
Tom: Melkor Mead, and here (offers a sample glass) try some of our Meriodoc Barleywine, we make them both here at Green Dragon.
Ozzy: Tahh, whassott faugh toouken majjes?
Tom: Thanks, Ozzy! I’ll let the kitchen know you like the soup. Poul how’re you doing with your beer, like another Shadowfax Shandy?
Poul: I’m good for now, thanks Tom, so Ronald, it seems you’ve been published more after you passed than before…
Tolkien: Oh, for goodness sakes, Poul, are you still jealous?
Poul: Jealous? Me? Just because your prequel, trilogy and background works have outsold my life’s work many times over?
Tolkien: Poul, Poul, you are a wonderful writer, I mean, I loved, loved! your book Two Hearts and Three Leopards …
Poul: Three Hearts and Three Lions.
Tolkien: Yes, whatever, but …
Poul: I mean, Children of Hurin was not even a completed work, just thrown together by Christopher to make some coin.
Ozzy: Aw wooght looos a con!
Poul: Oh be quiet Prince of Darkness!
Gandolf: Oh, I say, Poul, Children of Hurin is a fine work, magnificent work.
Tom: Really more Silmarillion than Hobbit.
Tolkien: True, this was actually one of my earliest conceptions, not just as a first age story from middle-earth but an early idea I had and came back to many times. Of course my experiences in the Great War would have a significant influence on how I formed the text.
Poul: True, true, your world building is a great accomplishment. Turin’s tale is steeped in ancient myth and legend and you have, again, crafted a great work, I must admit.
Tolkien: Well, thank you Paul …
Poul: Poul.
Tolkien: Poul, yes, whatever, but I mean, I WISH I could write a fantasy as good as yours.
Poul: Do not patronize me, Ronald, OK so you’ve sold more books than me, fine!
Ozzy: Feeegh moow, Rawoool!!
Tom: You can say that again, Oz!
Poul: Ok, ok, I give – Tom how about another craft beer.
Tom: Yes sir, here you go try our Radagast Red Ale, you’ll love it, and make sure you all come in next Tuesday night, we’re having our Hobbits in Space night.
(all stare at him)
Tom: That was Lyn’s idea.
Lyn: What?
Gandolf: Yes, Tom thank you, I will have some more of this delightful mead, what did you call it?
Tom: Melkor Mead, and here (offers a sample glass) try some of our Meriodoc Barleywine, we make them both here at Green Dragon.
Ozzy: Tahh, whassott faugh toouken majjes?
Tom: Thanks, Ozzy! I’ll let the kitchen know you like the soup. Poul how’re you doing with your beer, like another Shadowfax Shandy?
Poul: I’m good for now, thanks Tom, so Ronald, it seems you’ve been published more after you passed than before…
Tolkien: Oh, for goodness sakes, Poul, are you still jealous?
Poul: Jealous? Me? Just because your prequel, trilogy and background works have outsold my life’s work many times over?
Tolkien: Poul, Poul, you are a wonderful writer, I mean, I loved, loved! your book Two Hearts and Three Leopards …
Poul: Three Hearts and Three Lions.
Tolkien: Yes, whatever, but …
Poul: I mean, Children of Hurin was not even a completed work, just thrown together by Christopher to make some coin.
Ozzy: Aw wooght looos a con!
Poul: Oh be quiet Prince of Darkness!
Gandolf: Oh, I say, Poul, Children of Hurin is a fine work, magnificent work.
Tom: Really more Silmarillion than Hobbit.
Tolkien: True, this was actually one of my earliest conceptions, not just as a first age story from middle-earth but an early idea I had and came back to many times. Of course my experiences in the Great War would have a significant influence on how I formed the text.
Poul: True, true, your world building is a great accomplishment. Turin’s tale is steeped in ancient myth and legend and you have, again, crafted a great work, I must admit.
Tolkien: Well, thank you Paul …
Poul: Poul.
Tolkien: Poul, yes, whatever, but I mean, I WISH I could write a fantasy as good as yours.
Poul: Do not patronize me, Ronald, OK so you’ve sold more books than me, fine!
Ozzy: Feeegh moow, Rawoool!!
Tom: You can say that again, Oz!
Poul: Ok, ok, I give – Tom how about another craft beer.
Tom: Yes sir, here you go try our Radagast Red Ale, you’ll love it, and make sure you all come in next Tuesday night, we’re having our Hobbits in Space night.
(all stare at him)
Tom: That was Lyn’s idea.
Lyn: What?
December 15, 2008
As a general rule I try to write my reviews "in a vacuum" as much as possible, that is, before I read through the other reviews already here. I am not going to be able to do that here. I have spent more than twenty years with this story (since my mother first read the Unfinished Tales version aloud to me when I was eight years old), and if Christopher Tolkien had not put this volume together, I might have eventually had the hubris to do so myself.
Let me start by making a couple of points. First: this is not a new book in any sense of the word, other than it is now standing on its own between two covers and without visible editorial apparatus for the first time. Second: Christopher Tolkien cannot be said to have written any portion of the narrative of this book, despite many reviewers intimations to the contrary. The bulk of this text appeared in Unfinished Tales, with significant gaps; Tolkien the son has filled in these gaps using the relevant sections from the (much more concise) version that was used in assembling The Silmarillion, as well as framing material at the beginning and end of the current volume, also from The Silmarillion. Christopher Tolkien has done little more here than the literary equivalent of very carefully stitching a few patches to mend the gaping holes in an otherwise noble and beautiful garment.
On to the story itself, then. This is, as so many others have already noted with varying degrees of enthusiasm, a very dark tale. If you don't like very dark tales, well then, you will quite likely not like this. It is also in a prose style, as is the vast bulk of Tolkien's work, that is very susceptible to being called "stilted", because compared to contemporary prose, it is. But as at least one reviewer here has wisely noted the tone is in keeping with the tone of the Nordic sagas of which Tolkien was so fond of and inspired by. And like so many ancient sagas and myths, this tale is about an entire family haunted by a doom they cannot escape.
Or is it? I think that Tolkien has done a wonderful job here of subverting the curse of Morgoth and the doom of Húrin and his kin with another motif: free will. Tolkien, who strenuously avoids almost any hint of allegory throughout his vast imaginative work, nevertheless imbued almost every corner of that world with reflections of his own deeply-held Catholic convictions and sensibilities. The core of the story is the tension between doom/fate on the one hand and free will on the other. Túrin makes decision after decision that invariably lead to tragic consequences. But does he do so because he is doomed to do so? Or because he is a man of haughty pride who stubbornly refuses to consider any viewpoint but his own, using his considerable gifts (natural charisma and rightfully-legendary physical/martial prowess) to charge willfully forward regardless of even foreseeable consequences to anyone and everyone around him? I believe that it is very much the latter, but without necessarily completely repudiating the former.
The malice of such a being as Morgoth is a very real force in the tale of the Silmarils, and such malevolence bent upon a single family, and largely upon a single individual as Túrin rises to prominence, can be understood to have tangible effect on individuals and events. And even on a more mundane level, the incursions and aggressive actions of Morgoth's forces, both the marauding armies of Orcs and the Easterlings who occupy Túrin's childhood homeland, can be understood to push Túrin in a particular direction in his life that he might not have gone had circumstances in his life and in his world been otherwise. So there is some range to the senses in which Morgoth can be said to have cursed the children of Húrin.
But Túrin has also grown up the proud child of a proud mother; effectively orphaned from the age of nine, he receives ostensibly every advantage, yet the pride instilled in him from the earliest age tragically unravels every opportunity he is presented with from his youthful fostering in the halls of Thingol onwards. It is his human choices, not the supernatural force of an evil will, that guide him on his tragic path, and this complex narrative thread is what makes this, to my mind, one of the greatest of all of Tolkien's tales.
Let me start by making a couple of points. First: this is not a new book in any sense of the word, other than it is now standing on its own between two covers and without visible editorial apparatus for the first time. Second: Christopher Tolkien cannot be said to have written any portion of the narrative of this book, despite many reviewers intimations to the contrary. The bulk of this text appeared in Unfinished Tales, with significant gaps; Tolkien the son has filled in these gaps using the relevant sections from the (much more concise) version that was used in assembling The Silmarillion, as well as framing material at the beginning and end of the current volume, also from The Silmarillion. Christopher Tolkien has done little more here than the literary equivalent of very carefully stitching a few patches to mend the gaping holes in an otherwise noble and beautiful garment.
On to the story itself, then. This is, as so many others have already noted with varying degrees of enthusiasm, a very dark tale. If you don't like very dark tales, well then, you will quite likely not like this. It is also in a prose style, as is the vast bulk of Tolkien's work, that is very susceptible to being called "stilted", because compared to contemporary prose, it is. But as at least one reviewer here has wisely noted the tone is in keeping with the tone of the Nordic sagas of which Tolkien was so fond of and inspired by. And like so many ancient sagas and myths, this tale is about an entire family haunted by a doom they cannot escape.
Or is it? I think that Tolkien has done a wonderful job here of subverting the curse of Morgoth and the doom of Húrin and his kin with another motif: free will. Tolkien, who strenuously avoids almost any hint of allegory throughout his vast imaginative work, nevertheless imbued almost every corner of that world with reflections of his own deeply-held Catholic convictions and sensibilities. The core of the story is the tension between doom/fate on the one hand and free will on the other. Túrin makes decision after decision that invariably lead to tragic consequences. But does he do so because he is doomed to do so? Or because he is a man of haughty pride who stubbornly refuses to consider any viewpoint but his own, using his considerable gifts (natural charisma and rightfully-legendary physical/martial prowess) to charge willfully forward regardless of even foreseeable consequences to anyone and everyone around him? I believe that it is very much the latter, but without necessarily completely repudiating the former.
The malice of such a being as Morgoth is a very real force in the tale of the Silmarils, and such malevolence bent upon a single family, and largely upon a single individual as Túrin rises to prominence, can be understood to have tangible effect on individuals and events. And even on a more mundane level, the incursions and aggressive actions of Morgoth's forces, both the marauding armies of Orcs and the Easterlings who occupy Túrin's childhood homeland, can be understood to push Túrin in a particular direction in his life that he might not have gone had circumstances in his life and in his world been otherwise. So there is some range to the senses in which Morgoth can be said to have cursed the children of Húrin.
But Túrin has also grown up the proud child of a proud mother; effectively orphaned from the age of nine, he receives ostensibly every advantage, yet the pride instilled in him from the earliest age tragically unravels every opportunity he is presented with from his youthful fostering in the halls of Thingol onwards. It is his human choices, not the supernatural force of an evil will, that guide him on his tragic path, and this complex narrative thread is what makes this, to my mind, one of the greatest of all of Tolkien's tales.
September 20, 2019
One of Tolkien's best!
GLAURUNG RULES!
I know that the other villains of Middle-Earth like Sauron, Melkor, Smaug, Saruman, the Witch-King, etc... are far more popular and certainly more often commented as the favorite villain of Tolkien's fans,...
...BUT...
...in my humble, very personal case, I have to say that the dragon Glaurung won the top position for me in Middle-Earth villains, since he is not just evil, but malicious, since any decent Middle-Earth villain can kill and obliterate villages, entire cities, but the things that the dragon Glaurung does with his magic (yes, it's a dragon who uses magic!)... uff!!! He's wicked, and also, not matter what, he will have the final word, and what things he says!
TURIN AND NIENOR
I think that this book, instead of being titled just The Children of Húrin, it should be called, The Tragedy of the Children of Húrin, because if you think that Aragorn, Frodo, Bilbo and others had it harsh on their own adventures... ha! pfft! You can (and will) gone mad if you'd have to face what those poor souls have to deal with.
It's almost like Tolkien would have a morbid wish to see how much he can throw to them until break them, and the real awfful thing is that they are fictious character under control of the author, so they will suffer once and again, since they are pawns of the imagination of Tolkien.
I can say that I hadn't suffer so much in a reading experience since the fifth book of Harry Potter.
This Tolkien's book is certainly dark and not for the faint of heart.
But certainly one of the Tolkien's book with the better prose and strong development.
GLAURUNG RULES!
I know that the other villains of Middle-Earth like Sauron, Melkor, Smaug, Saruman, the Witch-King, etc... are far more popular and certainly more often commented as the favorite villain of Tolkien's fans,...
...BUT...
...in my humble, very personal case, I have to say that the dragon Glaurung won the top position for me in Middle-Earth villains, since he is not just evil, but malicious, since any decent Middle-Earth villain can kill and obliterate villages, entire cities, but the things that the dragon Glaurung does with his magic (yes, it's a dragon who uses magic!)... uff!!! He's wicked, and also, not matter what, he will have the final word, and what things he says!
TURIN AND NIENOR
I think that this book, instead of being titled just The Children of Húrin, it should be called, The Tragedy of the Children of Húrin, because if you think that Aragorn, Frodo, Bilbo and others had it harsh on their own adventures... ha! pfft! You can (and will) gone mad if you'd have to face what those poor souls have to deal with.
It's almost like Tolkien would have a morbid wish to see how much he can throw to them until break them, and the real awfful thing is that they are fictious character under control of the author, so they will suffer once and again, since they are pawns of the imagination of Tolkien.
I can say that I hadn't suffer so much in a reading experience since the fifth book of Harry Potter.
This Tolkien's book is certainly dark and not for the faint of heart.
But certainly one of the Tolkien's book with the better prose and strong development.
November 20, 2022
In the 1980s, I suggested more than a few times that all religious texts on planet Earth should be replaced by The Lord of Rings. J.R.R. Tolkien's best known epic (and The Hobbit) and the works of Robert E. Howard interested a twelve year-old Zahler in reading fiction and playing RPGs, two pursuits that profoundly impacted my life. Despite my fondness for Tolkien's mythic trilogy and its prequel, I found The Two Towers a bit of a chore when compared to the excellent first book and the emotional third part...and I was never able to make it through The Simarillion as a kid. Long have I associated this author with his well-known works and considered the door to Middle-earth closed.
I've not read Tolkien in over thirty years, and I didn't know how much I would or wouldn't enjoy the posthumously published Middle-earth novel, The Children of Húrin.
This book is excellent.
Once I transcended the nigh unintelligible profusion of proper nouns that flooded the first three pages, I was transported to a deeply melancholic and incredibly rich otherworld. This novel has the mythic, fabular quality of Lord Dunsany and the heavy atmosphere of Clark Ashton Smith (my favorite fantasist), as well as the exotic names and dense history that Tolkien is known for creating.
The story centers on a house cloven by war, an oppressive evil that threatens Humans and Elves, and the adventures, skirmishes, battles, relationships, intrigues, and tragedies that branch out from these dark events. The tale is deftly plotted, gorgeously painted with words, and very emotional.
The scope of CoH covers several decades, and it has a rich philosophical depth akin to treasured fables, albeit told entirely underneath black clouds in a charcoal grey sky. "For a man that flies from his fear may find that he has only taken a short cut to meet it." Tolkien's book evinces plenty of worldly wisdom.
It wouldn't be wrong to make both Shakespearean and biblical comparisons when discussing Tolkien's prose and dialogue, but the most important things to note are how remote, true, and consistent his writing feels. "A shadow is over you. When we meet again, may it be no darker." Who but Dunsany, Smith, and Howard aimed for and achieved such otherworldly authenticity?
The Children of Húrin ranks very highly on my list of all-time favorite fantasy books, which includes: Zothique (Clark Ashton Smith), The Averoigne Chronicles (Clark Ashton Smith), Dreamquest of Unknown Kadath (H.P. Lovecraft), Tigana (Guy Gavriel Kay), The Lord of the Rings (J.R.R. Tolkien), A Song of Ice and Fire (George R.R. Martin), Sword of Welleran and Other Stories (Lord Dunsany), The Coming of Conan of Cimmeria (Robert E. Howard), The Savage Tales of Solomon Kane (Robert E. Howard), Magician: Apprentice/Master (Raymond E. Feist), The Pastel City (M. John Harrison), Throne of Bones (Brian McNaughton), Eye of Sounnu (Schuyler Hernstrom), Thune's Vision (Schuyler Hernstrom), At the Earth's Core (Edgar Rice Burroughs), The Sword of Rhiannon (Leigh Brackett), Black Company (Glen Cook), and Nifft the Lean (Michael Shea).
Adventurers who seek the glories and sorrows of vanished times and rarely seen places are advised to visit The Children of Húrin. This smaller tale is less ambitious than Tolkien's better known works, but it lacks the flaws of those pieces and in some ways is larger in scope and more emotional.
I've not read Tolkien in over thirty years, and I didn't know how much I would or wouldn't enjoy the posthumously published Middle-earth novel, The Children of Húrin.
This book is excellent.
Once I transcended the nigh unintelligible profusion of proper nouns that flooded the first three pages, I was transported to a deeply melancholic and incredibly rich otherworld. This novel has the mythic, fabular quality of Lord Dunsany and the heavy atmosphere of Clark Ashton Smith (my favorite fantasist), as well as the exotic names and dense history that Tolkien is known for creating.
The story centers on a house cloven by war, an oppressive evil that threatens Humans and Elves, and the adventures, skirmishes, battles, relationships, intrigues, and tragedies that branch out from these dark events. The tale is deftly plotted, gorgeously painted with words, and very emotional.
The scope of CoH covers several decades, and it has a rich philosophical depth akin to treasured fables, albeit told entirely underneath black clouds in a charcoal grey sky. "For a man that flies from his fear may find that he has only taken a short cut to meet it." Tolkien's book evinces plenty of worldly wisdom.
It wouldn't be wrong to make both Shakespearean and biblical comparisons when discussing Tolkien's prose and dialogue, but the most important things to note are how remote, true, and consistent his writing feels. "A shadow is over you. When we meet again, may it be no darker." Who but Dunsany, Smith, and Howard aimed for and achieved such otherworldly authenticity?
The Children of Húrin ranks very highly on my list of all-time favorite fantasy books, which includes: Zothique (Clark Ashton Smith), The Averoigne Chronicles (Clark Ashton Smith), Dreamquest of Unknown Kadath (H.P. Lovecraft), Tigana (Guy Gavriel Kay), The Lord of the Rings (J.R.R. Tolkien), A Song of Ice and Fire (George R.R. Martin), Sword of Welleran and Other Stories (Lord Dunsany), The Coming of Conan of Cimmeria (Robert E. Howard), The Savage Tales of Solomon Kane (Robert E. Howard), Magician: Apprentice/Master (Raymond E. Feist), The Pastel City (M. John Harrison), Throne of Bones (Brian McNaughton), Eye of Sounnu (Schuyler Hernstrom), Thune's Vision (Schuyler Hernstrom), At the Earth's Core (Edgar Rice Burroughs), The Sword of Rhiannon (Leigh Brackett), Black Company (Glen Cook), and Nifft the Lean (Michael Shea).
Adventurers who seek the glories and sorrows of vanished times and rarely seen places are advised to visit The Children of Húrin. This smaller tale is less ambitious than Tolkien's better known works, but it lacks the flaws of those pieces and in some ways is larger in scope and more emotional.
February 6, 2013
Instead of The Children or Húrin, this book should be entitled The story in which by J.R.R. Tolkien. Oh. My. God. And here I thought only Shakespeare wrote good Renaissance tragedies. Really. This story is so tragically sad I forget it was written by Tolkien.
I won't write a summary for the story but I'll write down some things about it that might persuade you to read this amazing book:
1. Elves and more Elves! If you like wise, brave elves who like to fight (a lot) and are good with a sword and a bow, read this!
2. Dragons! Evil, fire-breathing monsters that destroy everything in their path, kill half of the characters and torture the main character-check!
3. Revenge! Always a good reason to ruin your life.
4. Stubborn, flawed, cursed main (anti) hero! Who suffers a lot.
5. Middle-Earth! A nice little walk across the Middle Earth west of the Blue Mountains.
5. It's Tolkien, ok?! Do you need more reasons?
Ok, ok. Here, maybe these nice pictures convince you to read this:
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September 29, 2020
Aunque soy un fan absoluto de "El Señor de los anillos", en este libro me perdí completamente entre los miles de nombres e historias que se narran. No conseguí entender bien todo el inicio de la saga. Sólo pude hacerme una idea general y algo confusa.
Para auténticos "frikis".
Although I am an absolute fan of "The Lord of the rings ", in this book I completely lost myself among the thousands of names and stories that are told. I could not understand well the whole beginning of the saga. I could only get a general and somewhat confused idea.
For real "geeks".
Para auténticos "frikis".
Although I am an absolute fan of "The Lord of the rings ", in this book I completely lost myself among the thousands of names and stories that are told. I could not understand well the whole beginning of the saga. I could only get a general and somewhat confused idea.
For real "geeks".
December 23, 2022
به نام اِرو ایلوواتار، خدای خدایان، خالق آردا و پدر آینور.
تالکین یکی از نابغه ترین، باهوش ترین، خلاق ترین و دانشمند ترین نویسنده هاییه تاحالا شناختم. توی زندگیم تا امروز، تعدادی نویسنده هستن که انقدر عاشقشونم، و آنقدر روشون تعصب دارم که هرچیزی نوشته باشن، حتی نخونده، بهشون امتیاز بالا میدم و مطمعنم عالی ان. یکی از اونها سلین عه، و یکی هم پادشاه دنیای فانتزی و پادشاه قلب من، تالکین.
در بین کتاب های تالکین (اگر شماهم فانتزی خون و تالکین خون باشید حتما اینارو میدونید) بزرگترین، خفن ترین، پرماجرا ترین و سخت ترین کتابش، «سیلماریلیون» هستش که کتاب مقدس فانتزی خون هاست و احتمالا خیلی ها برای شروع این نویسنده، اون رو پیشنهاد می کنن. چون هرچیزی که قراره توی آثار تالکین بخونید و ببنید، استارتش از اونجا زده شده و توضیح داده شده؛ یعنی از لحظه صفر تا ابد. خب این منطقی به نظر میرسه که از اونجا شروع کنید. ولی نظر شخصی من اینه که اگه تاحالا تالکین نخوندین، از سیلماریلیون شروع نکنید و بیایید اول ««فرزندان هورین» رو بخونید.
این کتاب که بعد مرگ تالکین بزرگ، توسط پسرش ویرایش و آماده چاپ شده، یکی از داستان های فرعی سیلما رو تعریف میکنه اما خودش میتونه بعنوان یک داستان مستقل و عالی و بدون بک گراند هم خونده بشه. یعنی تالکین پسر، این کتابو رسماً از یادداشت های کتاب چاپ و ویرایش نشده تالکین پدر جمع کرده و بهم دوخته و جاهای خالی رو با دست نوشته های سیلماریلیون و کتابای دیگه پرکرده تا شده این چیزی که میبینید. به همین خاطر وقتی این فانتزی حماسی رو شروع میکنید، متوجه میشید این کتاب کاملا لحن آشنای جی.جی رو نداره و فرق های ظریفی داره که اگر تالکین خونده باشید قبلا، متوجهش میشید، و اگر هم نخونده باشید فرقی نمیکنه و لذت کافی رو میبرید بهرحال.
🌐اما داستان فرزندان هورین درباره چیه؟
🐾حاوی اسپویل شدید:
کتاب فرزندان هورین, به طور خاص، درباره پسرش تورین عه.
گفته شد که این، کتاب یک داستان فرعی از کتاب سیلماریلیون عه؛ یک داستان غم انگیز پر از اشک و آه و یک تراژدی کامل، تراژیک تر از سرنوشت اودیپوس و پیچ در پیچ تر از هزار و یک شب. این داستان بخشی از افسانه «برن و لوتین» هستش که از شورانگیز ترین و زیباترین داستان های سیلما ست.
داستان فرزندان هورین در دوران اول سیلما اتفاق می افته، یعنی هزاران سال قبل از اینکه قهرمانان ارباب حلقه ها به دنیا بیان. ماجراهای این کتاب در زمان سلطنت مورگوت بر سرزمین میانه اتفاق میوفته. توی پیشگفتار کتاب، یک بک گراند مفصل و شجره نامه کامل شخصیت ها رو میتونید بخونید که صد در صد برای ردیابی بقیه کتاب لازمه، اما آنقدر شلوغه که مجبورتون میکنه برای اون اوایل کتاب بخصوص، بخش هایی رو هایلایت یا یادداشت کنید.
{آخر ریویوو لینک ریویوو خودم از سیلماریلیون رو میذارم، که اگه کسی احتمالا مشتاق خوندن بیشتر درباره پیشینه جهان فانتزی تالکین بود، بهش سربزنه}
خب! برای کسایی که سیلما رو نخوندن عرض کنم که مورگوت یا ملکور، یکی از بزرگترین و قدرتمندترین آینور ها (روح فناناپذیر) و رئیس سائورون ( شخصیت بد اصلی ارباب حلقه ها) هست. اسم کتاب فرزندان هورین عه، و هورین یکی از جنگجویانی عه که علیه مورگوت و ارتش شیطانی اون جنگید. هورین با مورون ازدواج میکنه و صاحب سه تا بچه میشه به نام های تورین، لالایت و نیهنور، که نیه نور هرگز باباشو نمیبینه.
مثل همه تراژدی ها، همه چی خوب و خوش بود که یهوو فاجعه میباره.
در جریان یه بیماری به اسم «نفس شیطانی»، لالایت می میره در سه سالگی، بعدش هورین به جنگ میره و توسط مورگوت دستگیر و نفرین می شه، مورون برای محافظت از تورین اون رو به سوی سرزمین الف ها در دوریات میفرسته و مطمعنه به خاطر خدمات پدرش در جنگی که باعث نجات پادشاه الف ها شد، و همچنین بخاطر اینکه هورین و هور(برادرش که در همین جنگ کشته شده) در کودکی مدتی در دوریات زندگی کردن و مورد لطف قرار گرفتن،ازش استقبال و نگهداری میشه. البته دوریات یک سرزمین مخفیه و مورون فقط مسیر احتمالی رو به تورین یاد میده، بقیش دست سرنوشته. بعد رفتن تورین، مورون به تنهایی و در فلاکت، دخترش نیهنور رو به دنیا میاره. اینجا لازمه بدونید اون نفرینی که هورین گرفتارش میشه چیه، چون بعد از این تمام بلاهایی که سر این خانواده میاد بخاطر اونه. مورگوت هورین رو محکوم میکنه که توی کوهستان تانگودریم باقی بمونه و همه حوادث و وقایعی که بر سرزمین میانه و خانواده اش میگذره رو از چشم مورگوت ببینه و با گوش اون بشنوه تا عذاب بکشه، و سایه سیاهی بر سرنوشت اعضای خانواده اش بخصوص تورین میندازه که باعث میشه همه کارهاش غلط پیش بره و هیچوقت نتونه به نتیجه خوبی توی تصمیماتش برسه. این نفرین تنها وقتی ممکنه شکسته بشه که تورین به قدرتی بزرگتر از مورگوت دست پیدا کنه.
خب! تورین توی دوریات تحت سرپرستی دو الف به نام های تینگول و ملیان بزرگ میشه. تینگول پادشاه الفهای سیندار عه و ملیان که یک مایا (روح فرشته) قدرتمنده، ملکه اونه. تینگول و ملیان والدین لوتین هستن که رقم زننده داستان شورانگیز برن، زیباترین داستان عاشقانه تالکین هستن.
لوتین زیباترین الفی که تاحالا وجود داشته، عاشق یه فانی به نام برن میشه و باهم ازدواج می کنند (اما این خودش داستان داره، موقع خوندنش توی سیلماریلیون دستمال و آب قند یادتون نره). {الروند، آرون و آراگورن که توی سه گانه ارباب حلقه ها ازشون میخونیم یا توی فیلم سینمایی اش میبینید، از نوادگان لوتین و برن هستن.}
تورین توی دوریات تمرین نظامی میبینه، درس میخونه و تبدیل به جنگجوی بزرگی میشه که هیچ انسانی نمیتونه باهاش روبرو بشه، اما یک ایراد اساسی اخلاقی داره و اون اینه که مودی عه و غرور زیادی داره و به نصیحت کسی گوش نمیده. این ایراد باعث میشه اون توی درگیری یک الف سرشناس رو به قتل برسونه و بعد در غیبت تینگول و ملیان فرار کنه از سرزمین الف ها برای همیشه خارج بشه و این میشه مقدمه بدبختی و آوارگی ابدیش.
تورین توی سال های طولانی مرتب عضو گروه های راهزنی و خلافکار میشه و به سختی زندگی میکنه، اما تینگول (پدرخونده الفی اش) بیکار نمونده و یک الف رو برای برگرداندن اون میفرسته. اما این الف که دوست صمیمی تورین و مربیش هم بوده توی یک اتفاق خیلی عجیب، اشتباها توسط تورین کشته میشه و باعث میشه دیگه تورین دیوونه و مجنون آواره بشه. از اون طرف مورون و نیه نور که حالا دیگه بزرگ شده، به دنبال تورین به دوریات میرن و چون داستان فرار اونو میشنون، میرن تا پیداش کنن. اما توی مسیر اژدهای بزرگ ترسناک و خونخوار تحت امر مورگوت به نام گلائرونگ قرار میگیرن. توی این رودررویی، مورون گم میشه و نیه نور حافظه شو از دست داده و توی جنگل مثل دیوانه ها آواره میشه. در همین حین میرسه به سرزمینی که از قضا تورین اونجا پناه برده، با اسم مستعار، و چون تحت تاثیر طلسم اژدها گذشته اش یادش نمیاد، نمیتونه از خانواده اش اطلاعاتی بده. بعد مدتی این دوتا عاشق میشن و ازدواج میکنن درحالیکه نمیدونن خواهر و برادرند. بعد هم ته داستان تورین میره تا گلائرونگ رو بکشه و خودش به شدت مجروح میشه. وقتی نیهنور میره بالاسر تورین، اژدها راز خانواده رو فاش میکنه. نیه نور که حامله هم هست از شدت شرمساری خودشو توی رودخانه میندازه، تورین هم بعد به هوش اومدن و فهمیدن داستان خودشو با شمشیر هاراگیری میکنه و هردو میمیرن و مردم براشون اونجا مقبره میسازن. توی آخر داستان، هورین از بند اسارت مورگوت نجات پیدا میکنه و میاد سر قبر بچه هاش، اونجا مورون رو میبینه که شکسته و داغون و در حال مرگه، بعد اونجا در آغوش هم میمیرن.
🌐نظر نسبتا شخصی یا تایید شده:
کتاب فرزندان هورین بیشتر از هرچیز، شبیه تراژدی های یونانی عه، مثل ایلیاد و اودیسه، یا قبلا هم گفتم شبیه اودیپوس؛ البته با ماجرا ها و حوادث بیشتر و موجودات فرازمینی بیشتر تر و باحال تر مثل اژدها و اورک ها، الف ها و هابیت ها.
این یک داستان درباره یک خانواده بدبخت زجر کشیده است که ظاهراً زیر سایه شوم یک نفرین قرار گرفتن. اما در اصل، این داستان انتخاب و اراده است و درباره افرادیه که به خاطر غرور و بی فکری شون باعث بدبختی خودشون و همه کسانی میشن که از اونا پیروی میکنند. این به نظر من، یک داستان آموزنده درباره قدرت اراده است که یادمون میده مسولیت پذیر و دوراندیش باشیم.
.......
من این کتاب رو توی گروه همخوانی خوندم، اما زودتر از بقیه یعنی سعید، سینا و یارا تموم کردم و ریویوو نوشتم. برای این ریویوو هم از منابعی که سعید میفرستاد تقلب کردم. ( با ادای احترام به همه همگروهی های خفنم که باسواد ترین آدمایی ان که تاحالا شناختم و همه کسانی که تاحالا باهاشون کتاب خوندم، سعید بهترین همخوان تمام دوران هاست، تضمینی 🤤)
احتمالا بعد از نظرات اونها، این قسمت رو کاملتر میکنم.
اینهم لینک ریویوو من روی سیلماریلیون که خوبه اگه بخونیدش.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
تالکین یکی از نابغه ترین، باهوش ترین، خلاق ترین و دانشمند ترین نویسنده هاییه تاحالا شناختم. توی زندگیم تا امروز، تعدادی نویسنده هستن که انقدر عاشقشونم، و آنقدر روشون تعصب دارم که هرچیزی نوشته باشن، حتی نخونده، بهشون امتیاز بالا میدم و مطمعنم عالی ان. یکی از اونها سلین عه، و یکی هم پادشاه دنیای فانتزی و پادشاه قلب من، تالکین.
در بین کتاب های تالکین (اگر شماهم فانتزی خون و تالکین خون باشید حتما اینارو میدونید) بزرگترین، خفن ترین، پرماجرا ترین و سخت ترین کتابش، «سیلماریلیون» هستش که کتاب مقدس فانتزی خون هاست و احتمالا خیلی ها برای شروع این نویسنده، اون رو پیشنهاد می کنن. چون هرچیزی که قراره توی آثار تالکین بخونید و ببنید، استارتش از اونجا زده شده و توضیح داده شده؛ یعنی از لحظه صفر تا ابد. خب این منطقی به نظر میرسه که از اونجا شروع کنید. ولی نظر شخصی من اینه که اگه تاحالا تالکین نخوندین، از سیلماریلیون شروع نکنید و بیایید اول ««فرزندان هورین» رو بخونید.
این کتاب که بعد مرگ تالکین بزرگ، توسط پسرش ویرایش و آماده چاپ شده، یکی از داستان های فرعی سیلما رو تعریف میکنه اما خودش میتونه بعنوان یک داستان مستقل و عالی و بدون بک گراند هم خونده بشه. یعنی تالکین پسر، این کتابو رسماً از یادداشت های کتاب چاپ و ویرایش نشده تالکین پدر جمع کرده و بهم دوخته و جاهای خالی رو با دست نوشته های سیلماریلیون و کتابای دیگه پرکرده تا شده این چیزی که میبینید. به همین خاطر وقتی این فانتزی حماسی رو شروع میکنید، متوجه میشید این کتاب کاملا لحن آشنای جی.جی رو نداره و فرق های ظریفی داره که اگر تالکین خونده باشید قبلا، متوجهش میشید، و اگر هم نخونده باشید فرقی نمیکنه و لذت کافی رو میبرید بهرحال.
🌐اما داستان فرزندان هورین درباره چیه؟
🐾حاوی اسپویل شدید:
کتاب فرزندان هورین, به طور خاص، درباره پسرش تورین عه.
گفته شد که این، کتاب یک داستان فرعی از کتاب سیلماریلیون عه؛ یک داستان غم انگیز پر از اشک و آه و یک تراژدی کامل، تراژیک تر از سرنوشت اودیپوس و پیچ در پیچ تر از هزار و یک شب. این داستان بخشی از افسانه «برن و لوتین» هستش که از شورانگیز ترین و زیباترین داستان های سیلما ست.
داستان فرزندان هورین در دوران اول سیلما اتفاق می افته، یعنی هزاران سال قبل از اینکه قهرمانان ارباب حلقه ها به دنیا بیان. ماجراهای این کتاب در زمان سلطنت مورگوت بر سرزمین میانه اتفاق میوفته. توی پیشگفتار کتاب، یک بک گراند مفصل و شجره نامه کامل شخصیت ها رو میتونید بخونید که صد در صد برای ردیابی بقیه کتاب لازمه، اما آنقدر شلوغه که مجبورتون میکنه برای اون اوایل کتاب بخصوص، بخش هایی رو هایلایت یا یادداشت کنید.
{آخر ریویوو لینک ریویوو خودم از سیلماریلیون رو میذارم، که اگه کسی احتمالا مشتاق خوندن بیشتر درباره پیشینه جهان فانتزی تالکین بود، بهش سربزنه}
خب! برای کسایی که سیلما رو نخوندن عرض کنم که مورگوت یا ملکور، یکی از بزرگترین و قدرتمندترین آینور ها (روح فناناپذیر) و رئیس سائورون ( شخصیت بد اصلی ارباب حلقه ها) هست. اسم کتاب فرزندان هورین عه، و هورین یکی از جنگجویانی عه که علیه مورگوت و ارتش شیطانی اون جنگید. هورین با مورون ازدواج میکنه و صاحب سه تا بچه میشه به نام های تورین، لالایت و نیهنور، که نیه نور هرگز باباشو نمیبینه.
مثل همه تراژدی ها، همه چی خوب و خوش بود که یهوو فاجعه میباره.
در جریان یه بیماری به اسم «نفس شیطانی»، لالایت می میره در سه سالگی، بعدش هورین به جنگ میره و توسط مورگوت دستگیر و نفرین می شه، مورون برای محافظت از تورین اون رو به سوی سرزمین الف ها در دوریات میفرسته و مطمعنه به خاطر خدمات پدرش در جنگی که باعث نجات پادشاه الف ها شد، و همچنین بخاطر اینکه هورین و هور(برادرش که در همین جنگ کشته شده) در کودکی مدتی در دوریات زندگی کردن و مورد لطف قرار گرفتن،ازش استقبال و نگهداری میشه. البته دوریات یک سرزمین مخفیه و مورون فقط مسیر احتمالی رو به تورین یاد میده، بقیش دست سرنوشته. بعد رفتن تورین، مورون به تنهایی و در فلاکت، دخترش نیهنور رو به دنیا میاره. اینجا لازمه بدونید اون نفرینی که هورین گرفتارش میشه چیه، چون بعد از این تمام بلاهایی که سر این خانواده میاد بخاطر اونه. مورگوت هورین رو محکوم میکنه که توی کوهستان تانگودریم باقی بمونه و همه حوادث و وقایعی که بر سرزمین میانه و خانواده اش میگذره رو از چشم مورگوت ببینه و با گوش اون بشنوه تا عذاب بکشه، و سایه سیاهی بر سرنوشت اعضای خانواده اش بخصوص تورین میندازه که باعث میشه همه کارهاش غلط پیش بره و هیچوقت نتونه به نتیجه خوبی توی تصمیماتش برسه. این نفرین تنها وقتی ممکنه شکسته بشه که تورین به قدرتی بزرگتر از مورگوت دست پیدا کنه.
خب! تورین توی دوریات تحت سرپرستی دو الف به نام های تینگول و ملیان بزرگ میشه. تینگول پادشاه الفهای سیندار عه و ملیان که یک مایا (روح فرشته) قدرتمنده، ملکه اونه. تینگول و ملیان والدین لوتین هستن که رقم زننده داستان شورانگیز برن، زیباترین داستان عاشقانه تالکین هستن.
لوتین زیباترین الفی که تاحالا وجود داشته، عاشق یه فانی به نام برن میشه و باهم ازدواج می کنند (اما این خودش داستان داره، موقع خوندنش توی سیلماریلیون دستمال و آب قند یادتون نره). {الروند، آرون و آراگورن که توی سه گانه ارباب حلقه ها ازشون میخونیم یا توی فیلم سینمایی اش میبینید، از نوادگان لوتین و برن هستن.}
تورین توی دوریات تمرین نظامی میبینه، درس میخونه و تبدیل به جنگجوی بزرگی میشه که هیچ انسانی نمیتونه باهاش روبرو بشه، اما یک ایراد اساسی اخلاقی داره و اون اینه که مودی عه و غرور زیادی داره و به نصیحت کسی گوش نمیده. این ایراد باعث میشه اون توی درگیری یک الف سرشناس رو به قتل برسونه و بعد در غیبت تینگول و ملیان فرار کنه از سرزمین الف ها برای همیشه خارج بشه و این میشه مقدمه بدبختی و آوارگی ابدیش.
تورین توی سال های طولانی مرتب عضو گروه های راهزنی و خلافکار میشه و به سختی زندگی میکنه، اما تینگول (پدرخونده الفی اش) بیکار نمونده و یک الف رو برای برگرداندن اون میفرسته. اما این الف که دوست صمیمی تورین و مربیش هم بوده توی یک اتفاق خیلی عجیب، اشتباها توسط تورین کشته میشه و باعث میشه دیگه تورین دیوونه و مجنون آواره بشه. از اون طرف مورون و نیه نور که حالا دیگه بزرگ شده، به دنبال تورین به دوریات میرن و چون داستان فرار اونو میشنون، میرن تا پیداش کنن. اما توی مسیر اژدهای بزرگ ترسناک و خونخوار تحت امر مورگوت به نام گلائرونگ قرار میگیرن. توی این رودررویی، مورون گم میشه و نیه نور حافظه شو از دست داده و توی جنگل مثل دیوانه ها آواره میشه. در همین حین میرسه به سرزمینی که از قضا تورین اونجا پناه برده، با اسم مستعار، و چون تحت تاثیر طلسم اژدها گذشته اش یادش نمیاد، نمیتونه از خانواده اش اطلاعاتی بده. بعد مدتی این دوتا عاشق میشن و ازدواج میکنن درحالیکه نمیدونن خواهر و برادرند. بعد هم ته داستان تورین میره تا گلائرونگ رو بکشه و خودش به شدت مجروح میشه. وقتی نیهنور میره بالاسر تورین، اژدها راز خانواده رو فاش میکنه. نیه نور که حامله هم هست از شدت شرمساری خودشو توی رودخانه میندازه، تورین هم بعد به هوش اومدن و فهمیدن داستان خودشو با شمشیر هاراگیری میکنه و هردو میمیرن و مردم براشون اونجا مقبره میسازن. توی آخر داستان، هورین از بند اسارت مورگوت نجات پیدا میکنه و میاد سر قبر بچه هاش، اونجا مورون رو میبینه که شکسته و داغون و در حال مرگه، بعد اونجا در آغوش هم میمیرن.
🌐نظر نسبتا شخصی یا تایید شده:
کتاب فرزندان هورین بیشتر از هرچیز، شبیه تراژدی های یونانی عه، مثل ایلیاد و اودیسه، یا قبلا هم گفتم شبیه اودیپوس؛ البته با ماجرا ها و حوادث بیشتر و موجودات فرازمینی بیشتر تر و باحال تر مثل اژدها و اورک ها، الف ها و هابیت ها.
این یک داستان درباره یک خانواده بدبخت زجر کشیده است که ظاهراً زیر سایه شوم یک نفرین قرار گرفتن. اما در اصل، این داستان انتخاب و اراده است و درباره افرادیه که به خاطر غرور و بی فکری شون باعث بدبختی خودشون و همه کسانی میشن که از اونا پیروی میکنند. این به نظر من، یک داستان آموزنده درباره قدرت اراده است که یادمون میده مسولیت پذیر و دوراندیش باشیم.
.......
من این کتاب رو توی گروه همخوانی خوندم، اما زودتر از بقیه یعنی سعید، سینا و یارا تموم کردم و ریویوو نوشتم. برای این ریویوو هم از منابعی که سعید میفرستاد تقلب کردم. ( با ادای احترام به همه همگروهی های خفنم که باسواد ترین آدمایی ان که تاحالا شناختم و همه کسانی که تاحالا باهاشون کتاب خوندم، سعید بهترین همخوان تمام دوران هاست، تضمینی 🤤)
احتمالا بعد از نظرات اونها، این قسمت رو کاملتر میکنم.
اینهم لینک ریویوو من روی سیلماریلیون که خوبه اگه بخونیدش.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
September 4, 2007
The Children of Hurin is not a for people who saw the Lord of the Rings movies and then read the book. It's for hardcore fans. The people who remember all the names from the The Silmarillion. Or for the few people out there who reread Beowulf a lot. The Children of Hurin reads like a Nordic Saga.
As a self proclaimed Tolkien Fanatic I enjoyed The Children or Hurin. The Heroic, epic and ultimately tragic life of Turin and his sisters. It's not more The Lord of the Rings but it continues to paint a more vivid tapestry for the Fellowships stories to play out against.
There are a number or jarring transitions in the book. Evidence of the unfinished state Tolkien left the tale in. But this actually gives a more authentic feeling to the story. Like a recovered Saga or Epic that is missing a few passages.
Hurin is high fantasy and if it were not set in the world of Tolkien's other stories it would be as unaccessible as the Kalevala. Even with it's grounding in the world of hobbits it is a book for the few not the many.
As a self proclaimed Tolkien Fanatic I enjoyed The Children or Hurin. The Heroic, epic and ultimately tragic life of Turin and his sisters. It's not more The Lord of the Rings but it continues to paint a more vivid tapestry for the Fellowships stories to play out against.
There are a number or jarring transitions in the book. Evidence of the unfinished state Tolkien left the tale in. But this actually gives a more authentic feeling to the story. Like a recovered Saga or Epic that is missing a few passages.
Hurin is high fantasy and if it were not set in the world of Tolkien's other stories it would be as unaccessible as the Kalevala. Even with it's grounding in the world of hobbits it is a book for the few not the many.
January 18, 2023
Tolkien non ha bisogno di alcuna presentazione ed ogni sua opera è una tappa obbligata per ogni lettore che ama questo genere.
Se avete letto il Silmarillion, che rappresenta le fondamenta al suo vasto mondo, già sapete che questa ne è una delle storie principali in esso narrate.
Questo libro, come indicato nella prefazione, è stato curato dal figlio di Tolkien, Christopher, utilizzando gli scritti del padre ampliando e arricchendo la storia già narrata nel Silmarillion.
Un dramma oscuro che ha pochi eguali, la storia di Turin, figlio di Hurin, che maledetto da Melkor subirà sconvolgimenti nella sua vita e in quelle di chi gli sta vicino.
Oscuro, drammatico e magnifico.
Se avete letto il Silmarillion, che rappresenta le fondamenta al suo vasto mondo, già sapete che questa ne è una delle storie principali in esso narrate.
Questo libro, come indicato nella prefazione, è stato curato dal figlio di Tolkien, Christopher, utilizzando gli scritti del padre ampliando e arricchendo la storia già narrata nel Silmarillion.
Un dramma oscuro che ha pochi eguali, la storia di Turin, figlio di Hurin, che maledetto da Melkor subirà sconvolgimenti nella sua vita e in quelle di chi gli sta vicino.
Oscuro, drammatico e magnifico.
February 6, 2013
After watching Hobbit, I desperately wanted to get some Tolkien fare, and I was (strangely enough) not up to reading LOTR for a thirteenth time (though I plan to soon enough). So I turned to the Children of Hurin and boy, was it fun.
Deriving from the Finnish national epic Kalevala and the tragic Kullervo, The Children of Hurin proves again what Tolkien can do with ancient legends and myths. I have to confess that I was looking for parallels with Beowulf through most of my readings and found many, only to be informed later about the Finnish origins of the tale. Goes to show my ignorance as well as how easy it is to mix these things up.
Tolkien infuses such grandeur into every story, taking them to almost mythic proportions, it is always thrilling and we just want more and more. It would be a pity if it takes another splendid movie to bring this book too into public spotlight.
Deriving from the Finnish national epic Kalevala and the tragic Kullervo, The Children of Hurin proves again what Tolkien can do with ancient legends and myths. I have to confess that I was looking for parallels with Beowulf through most of my readings and found many, only to be informed later about the Finnish origins of the tale. Goes to show my ignorance as well as how easy it is to mix these things up.
Tolkien infuses such grandeur into every story, taking them to almost mythic proportions, it is always thrilling and we just want more and more. It would be a pity if it takes another splendid movie to bring this book too into public spotlight.
March 27, 2019
The Children of Hurin is a brilliant if a deeply tragic novel. It tells the story of the cursed Hurin's children. As the title indicates, Hurin's children are the protagonists of this novel, and the plot itself mostly follows his son Turin, who is the force setting most events in motion. At the start of the novel, Hurin is imprisoned by Morgoth, and thus his wife and children are forced to fend for themselves. Hurin's family members do find help with friends, but it is not an easy life for them. To make matters worse, Morgoth has placed a heavy course upon them, and if you have read The Silmarillion, you know that his curses are no figures of speech. Moreover, the readers of The Silmarillion will also know about the plot. From all of Tolkien's works set in this world, The Children of Hurin (not surprisingly) resembles the Simarillion the most, being in fact, a part of it. It is quite darker in tone than the LOTR thrilogy and the Hobbit. The Children of Hurin is more reminiscent of the tragic Scandinavian lore Tolkien was inspired by. In fact, this story quite resembles one of stories found in the Finnish epic poem Kalevala. Some parallels can also be drawn with Sigmund and the Volsunga saga. Fans of Tolkien probably know that he was partly inspired by European mythology, and being a scholar, we can assume that Tolkien's had an intimate knowledge of history.
I've loved Tolkien's writing since I was a little girl, and I don't think that will ever change. However, my initial expectations for this book weren't sky high. Having read Silmarillion a couple of times, I thought that The Children of Hurin will not be that interesting because I already knew the plot. I was quite wrong. Despite the fact that I was already familiar with the story and the plot, I enjoyed it as much as any book by Tolkien, that is - immensely. Everything I've always admired about Tolkien's writing is there: the beautiful prose, the mind-blowing attention to details, the intense emotions, the epic quests. The protagonist of this book is Turin and he makes for quite a tragic hero: “He was dark-haired as his mother, and promised to be like her in mood also; for he was not merry, and spoke little, though he learned to speak early and ever seemed older than his years. Túrin was slow to forget injustice or mockery; but the fire of his father was also in him, and he could be sudden and fierce. Yet he was quick to pity, and the hurts or sadness of living things might move him to tears.”
Among the other stories in Silmarillion, this one seems to me to be the saddest and the darkest one, with a heavy curse flying over its pages, filling every part of it with a sense of impending doom. Reading the longer version only highlighted that impression. In comparison with the shorter version, this book seems more personal, probably because there was more space to explore and portray the characters. Highly recommended, especially if you happen to be a fan of Tolkien.
I've loved Tolkien's writing since I was a little girl, and I don't think that will ever change. However, my initial expectations for this book weren't sky high. Having read Silmarillion a couple of times, I thought that The Children of Hurin will not be that interesting because I already knew the plot. I was quite wrong. Despite the fact that I was already familiar with the story and the plot, I enjoyed it as much as any book by Tolkien, that is - immensely. Everything I've always admired about Tolkien's writing is there: the beautiful prose, the mind-blowing attention to details, the intense emotions, the epic quests. The protagonist of this book is Turin and he makes for quite a tragic hero: “He was dark-haired as his mother, and promised to be like her in mood also; for he was not merry, and spoke little, though he learned to speak early and ever seemed older than his years. Túrin was slow to forget injustice or mockery; but the fire of his father was also in him, and he could be sudden and fierce. Yet he was quick to pity, and the hurts or sadness of living things might move him to tears.”
Among the other stories in Silmarillion, this one seems to me to be the saddest and the darkest one, with a heavy curse flying over its pages, filling every part of it with a sense of impending doom. Reading the longer version only highlighted that impression. In comparison with the shorter version, this book seems more personal, probably because there was more space to explore and portray the characters. Highly recommended, especially if you happen to be a fan of Tolkien.
February 20, 2017
I can’t deny that Tolkien was master of his craft. However, this book missed the drive and compactness that his other books possessed and I didn’t like it as much as I hoped I would.
Was it because this book consists of small parts (scenes) of bigger picture put together after Tolkien’s death by someone else than master himself? Most probably.
Either way, this is a must-read for all true fans of Middle-earth!
Was it because this book consists of small parts (scenes) of bigger picture put together after Tolkien’s death by someone else than master himself? Most probably.
Either way, this is a must-read for all true fans of Middle-earth!
June 27, 2021
Remek delo!
Nakon Kalevale i Kulerva ova knjiga je jos zanimljivija za citanje.
Obozavam je!
Nakon Kalevale i Kulerva ova knjiga je jos zanimljivija za citanje.
Obozavam je!
July 3, 2019
I'm finally getting around to reading the Silmarillion side tales Tolkien worked on but never published in his lifetime, and I can say this for certain:
This one is a lot smoother than Beren and Luthien.
In fact, it just comes across as a collection of quite readable short stories following the line of Húrin from the First Age fighting Melkor in the north with its dragons, balrogs, and orcs action to the later days when all the grey elves were cut off from their folk and had to deal with the rise of man.
Primarily, however, we get a very character-oriented tale of misunderstood heroism and bullish pride and survival in hostile lands. A tale of falling from a great height, winding up lower than anyone else. :)
Quite good. Fascinating. But I wouldn't really recommend this for anyone other than fans of LotR and the Silmarillion. It's quite readable, but the story might come off as ... something usual. :)
This one is a lot smoother than Beren and Luthien.
In fact, it just comes across as a collection of quite readable short stories following the line of Húrin from the First Age fighting Melkor in the north with its dragons, balrogs, and orcs action to the later days when all the grey elves were cut off from their folk and had to deal with the rise of man.
Primarily, however, we get a very character-oriented tale of misunderstood heroism and bullish pride and survival in hostile lands. A tale of falling from a great height, winding up lower than anyone else. :)
Quite good. Fascinating. But I wouldn't really recommend this for anyone other than fans of LotR and the Silmarillion. It's quite readable, but the story might come off as ... something usual. :)
March 14, 2023
The Children Of Hurin was a perfect read for when I wanted to dive back into Tolkien’s world, but fancied exploring some of the ”Elder Days”, rather re-reading The Hobbit or the LOTR trilogy for the umpteenth time.
I’m a fan of dark literature, obviously as a huge horror fan. This is full of despair, death lurking around every corner, written in Tolkien’s engaging way. Despite the way it is written, it almost begs to be read slowly and savoured. Which I’m glad that I did.
Everything in the First Age is described to be bigger; more evil villains, taller Elves with stronger magic, and man being even more heroic.
The setting of Middle Earth is described to be even richer; more vibrant and spectacular. One could even reach the paradise location of Valinor with ease, a run-of-the-mill boat.
The main hero of the story, Túrin, was well-liked by me. I always click with the brooding and mysterious types.
It is one of those books where you aren’t to expect a happy ending, this is a tragedy. And a bloody brilliantly written one at that.
I believe that J.R.R. Tolkien was one of the main (if not the main) influences during my childhood that kickstarted me being an avid reader. And aspire to write.
I used to give all that credit to JKR and Harry Potter, but upon reflection, I was always more of a LOTR fan that tried to convince myself that Harry Potter was more important and influential because I believed that was the “right” thing to think as a young reader.
I outgrew Hogwarts, but I will never outgrow The Shire.
”But upon all whom you love my thought shall weigh as a cloud of Doom, and it shall bring them down into darkness and despair. Wherever they go, evil shall arise. Whenever they speak their words shall bring ill counsel. Whatsoever they do shall turn against them. They shall die without hope, cursing both life and death”.
5 stars.
I’m a fan of dark literature, obviously as a huge horror fan. This is full of despair, death lurking around every corner, written in Tolkien’s engaging way. Despite the way it is written, it almost begs to be read slowly and savoured. Which I’m glad that I did.
Everything in the First Age is described to be bigger; more evil villains, taller Elves with stronger magic, and man being even more heroic.
The setting of Middle Earth is described to be even richer; more vibrant and spectacular. One could even reach the paradise location of Valinor with ease, a run-of-the-mill boat.
The main hero of the story, Túrin, was well-liked by me. I always click with the brooding and mysterious types.
It is one of those books where you aren’t to expect a happy ending, this is a tragedy. And a bloody brilliantly written one at that.
I believe that J.R.R. Tolkien was one of the main (if not the main) influences during my childhood that kickstarted me being an avid reader. And aspire to write.
I used to give all that credit to JKR and Harry Potter, but upon reflection, I was always more of a LOTR fan that tried to convince myself that Harry Potter was more important and influential because I believed that was the “right” thing to think as a young reader.
I outgrew Hogwarts, but I will never outgrow The Shire.
”But upon all whom you love my thought shall weigh as a cloud of Doom, and it shall bring them down into darkness and despair. Wherever they go, evil shall arise. Whenever they speak their words shall bring ill counsel. Whatsoever they do shall turn against them. They shall die without hope, cursing both life and death”.
5 stars.
September 6, 2013
This a much darker tale than Lord of the Rings or the Hobbit. Curses, deceit and never ending woe seem to make up this tome. This being a reread I found that I was having a much easier time of keeping the characters names straight. His world and history building really helped me understand the two more popular books which I already love. I'm just sorry I didn't reread The Silmarillion first as it has the history for this book. Call George R.R. Martin a world builder if you like but I'm pretty sure he borrowed a lot of pages from Tolkien.
Not only do I see the influence of Norse Sagas I also feel there are a few influences from Shakespeare and foremost comes to mind Romeo and Juliet. Turin and Nienor may not have been star crossed lovers but they were star crossed none the less. Glarung is far more evil then his Kindred Smaug. To enslave an entire people shows the cunning of this most wicked dragon. The mention of Sauron was a nice foreshadowing.
I think Christopher did a fine job of putting this together from all his Father's notes and writings. I will say that I don't recommend this for anyone but Tolkien fans.
Not only do I see the influence of Norse Sagas I also feel there are a few influences from Shakespeare and foremost comes to mind Romeo and Juliet. Turin and Nienor may not have been star crossed lovers but they were star crossed none the less. Glarung is far more evil then his Kindred Smaug. To enslave an entire people shows the cunning of this most wicked dragon. The mention of Sauron was a nice foreshadowing.
I think Christopher did a fine job of putting this together from all his Father's notes and writings. I will say that I don't recommend this for anyone but Tolkien fans.
September 19, 2017
There's so much to say about Tolkien's mastery of language and myth.
But what's important and powerful about CoH is that it stands (stylistically) somewhere in between Silmarillion and LotR. There are no anachronisms in Silmarillion, which are present in LotR (and the Hobbit, of course). CoH is blissfully free of them, but is also less "macro" than Sil. CoH treads on solid (Middle) earth, but is not quite as intimate as LotR (E.g., with Frodo & the other hobbits).
This is such a grim tale and setting, with such anguish and personal horror. This reveals Tolkien's darker view of mythology and the suffering we often endure.
But what's important and powerful about CoH is that it stands (stylistically) somewhere in between Silmarillion and LotR. There are no anachronisms in Silmarillion, which are present in LotR (and the Hobbit, of course). CoH is blissfully free of them, but is also less "macro" than Sil. CoH treads on solid (Middle) earth, but is not quite as intimate as LotR (E.g., with Frodo & the other hobbits).
This is such a grim tale and setting, with such anguish and personal horror. This reveals Tolkien's darker view of mythology and the suffering we often endure.
April 12, 2012
The Children of Hurin provides some great historical material to Tolkien's world of Middle-Earth and adds even more richness to the Lord of the Rings. This addition to Tolkien's extensive historical background of Middle-earth fills in the gaps and fleshes out stories that have been mentioned and hinted at in other works by giving us a detailed and colorful look at the tragic story surrounding Túrin and Niënor (Hurin's children) and the ongoing battle against Morgoth, the master of the Lord of the Rings' evil character, Sauron.
This is a well-told tale with engaging characters and plenty of action that keeps the reader interested throughout. While not as enthralling as the Lord of the RIngs Trilogy, or as entertaining and wonderful as The Hobbit, The Children of Hurin is a worthy addition to the Middle-Earth cannon and is a more complete novel than most other source material that is out there. It stands on it's own well and one does not need to have read any of the other histories to follow along with what is going on here.
Overall, a solid work that I'd recommend to fans of Tolkien's works or epic fantasy in general.
This is a well-told tale with engaging characters and plenty of action that keeps the reader interested throughout. While not as enthralling as the Lord of the RIngs Trilogy, or as entertaining and wonderful as The Hobbit, The Children of Hurin is a worthy addition to the Middle-Earth cannon and is a more complete novel than most other source material that is out there. It stands on it's own well and one does not need to have read any of the other histories to follow along with what is going on here.
Overall, a solid work that I'd recommend to fans of Tolkien's works or epic fantasy in general.
April 28, 2023
In my opinion, this is one of Tolkien's best. Also his most diverse compared to his other stories. What. A. Book.
October 4, 2022
هورین پسر گالدور از خاندان هادور، سومین خاندان انسانهای فانی در جهان تالکین است. این خاندانها از یاوران الفها بودند در جنگ علیه مورگوت. در نبرد «اشکهای بیشمار» هورین فرماندهی اداین را عهدهدار بود و پس از شکست به اسارت مورگوت در آمد. مورگوت او ��ا نمیکشد و خاندان او را نفرین میکند و هورین مجبور میشود از چشم مورگوت سرگذشت شوم خاندان نفرین شدهی خود را ببیند. هورین یک پسر به نام تورین �� دو دختر داشت که سرنوشت آنها در این کتاب اومده با محوریت تورین. به نظرم این کتاب متفاوتترین کتاب تالکین از نظر پایان هست، یک تراژدی عالی.ه
گالدور پسر دیگری هم داشت به نام هور، و هور پسری به نام تور، که در قسمت دیگری از کتاب داستان تور و راه یافتن اون به سرزمین پنهانی گوندولین رو میخونیم.ه
این کتاب آخرین کتاب از جهان تالکین بود که در دسترس من بود و باید با این جهان هیجان انگیز خداحافظی کنم...ه
گالدور پسر دیگری هم داشت به نام هور، و هور پسری به نام تور، که در قسمت دیگری از کتاب داستان تور و راه یافتن اون به سرزمین پنهانی گوندولین رو میخونیم.ه
این کتاب آخرین کتاب از جهان تالکین بود که در دسترس من بود و باید با این جهان هیجان انگیز خداحافظی کنم...ه
March 24, 2020
Now I will sing the doom song.
This is probably the grimmest tale of Middle-earth, filled with treachery and betrayal and evil glamours and shocking revelations and all other manner of doom and tragedy. If you read The Silmarillion, you know the gist of the story. (If you didn't read The Silmarillion I'm not sure why you're reading this book in the first place.) This volume presents the tale of Túrin Turambar in a longer, more complete narrative (although it's still relatively short by modern standards). Per the afterword by Christopher Tolkien, this isn't quite the same as the version he assembled for publication in Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-Earth -- partly because he added in bridging text that he'd excluded from the Unfinished Tales version (because it essentially duplicated passages already found in The Silmarillion) and partially because he's had an additional quarter century to further decipher and analyze his father's papers.
Stylistically, this is probably a little closer to The Silmarillion than to Lord of the Rings -- it has the same kind of formal prose that at times almost echoes the cadences of the King James Bible.
Probably recommended only for completists or super-fans, of which I am unabashedly one.
This is probably the grimmest tale of Middle-earth, filled with treachery and betrayal and evil glamours and shocking revelations and all other manner of doom and tragedy. If you read The Silmarillion, you know the gist of the story. (If you didn't read The Silmarillion I'm not sure why you're reading this book in the first place.) This volume presents the tale of Túrin Turambar in a longer, more complete narrative (although it's still relatively short by modern standards). Per the afterword by Christopher Tolkien, this isn't quite the same as the version he assembled for publication in Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-Earth -- partly because he added in bridging text that he'd excluded from the Unfinished Tales version (because it essentially duplicated passages already found in The Silmarillion) and partially because he's had an additional quarter century to further decipher and analyze his father's papers.
Stylistically, this is probably a little closer to The Silmarillion than to Lord of the Rings -- it has the same kind of formal prose that at times almost echoes the cadences of the King James Bible.
Probably recommended only for completists or super-fans, of which I am unabashedly one.
October 11, 2019
3.5 🌟
The Children of Hurin is a book set in Tolkien’s Middle-Earth(Arda) and is set in the a First Age which did mean that the war and all sorts of lore about Morgoth was fairly central to the story beyond it just being about Hurin’s kids. I absolutely love Tolkien’s work and consider The Lord of the Rings to be in my top 5 and it will probably remain there for a good long while, if not forever. That being said, I’m not the biggest Tolkien geek out there and there are so many of his books that I have to read. Before this book, I had only read LotR, the Hobbit and the Silmarillion(which I loved).
One of the main things as to why I am drawn to his books is mainly because of the world that he made as even today, with all of the new fantasy authors out there like Martin, Sanderson or Erikson, Middle Earth is still one of the most deeply explored worlds with so much lore, history and myths that would make any fantasy fan a happy person.
This book is on a much smaller scale than many of his other works, the actual story is only a little over two hundred pages, which is not long at all. Another thing, the writing style is quite similar to that of the Silmarillion which was meant to be the ‘bible’ of Middle-Earth. That being said, I still throughly enjoyed it despite the fact that the writing style is much more like it is giving a history rather than telling a story compared to modern writers, if that makes any sense.
One thing that I did really enjoy looking at was the artwork which was honestly so beautiful and accompanied the book extremely well(I’m always a sucker for artwork in my fantasy books). This book is actually a very sad and bittersweet tale though I did wish that the chapter name would not spoil was was about to happen as it ended up sort of ruining the story for a few pages at a time.
7/10
The Children of Hurin is a book set in Tolkien’s Middle-Earth(Arda) and is set in the a First Age which did mean that the war and all sorts of lore about Morgoth was fairly central to the story beyond it just being about Hurin’s kids. I absolutely love Tolkien’s work and consider The Lord of the Rings to be in my top 5 and it will probably remain there for a good long while, if not forever. That being said, I’m not the biggest Tolkien geek out there and there are so many of his books that I have to read. Before this book, I had only read LotR, the Hobbit and the Silmarillion(which I loved).
One of the main things as to why I am drawn to his books is mainly because of the world that he made as even today, with all of the new fantasy authors out there like Martin, Sanderson or Erikson, Middle Earth is still one of the most deeply explored worlds with so much lore, history and myths that would make any fantasy fan a happy person.
This book is on a much smaller scale than many of his other works, the actual story is only a little over two hundred pages, which is not long at all. Another thing, the writing style is quite similar to that of the Silmarillion which was meant to be the ‘bible’ of Middle-Earth. That being said, I still throughly enjoyed it despite the fact that the writing style is much more like it is giving a history rather than telling a story compared to modern writers, if that makes any sense.
One thing that I did really enjoy looking at was the artwork which was honestly so beautiful and accompanied the book extremely well(I’m always a sucker for artwork in my fantasy books). This book is actually a very sad and bittersweet tale though I did wish that the chapter name would not spoil was was about to happen as it ended up sort of ruining the story for a few pages at a time.
7/10
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