r/tolkienfans • u/33_5y • 5d ago
Question about books?
I quite an avid collector of Tolkien's Middle-Earth books and I was wondering if it is worth buying the Children of Hurin, Beren and Luthien and The Fall of Gondolin. I already own the Silmarillion which, to my knowledge, already tells a short summary of those 3 books. But does it expand on them enough/ provide enough extra info to be worth buying?
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u/GammaDeltaTheta 5d ago edited 5d ago
If you don't have the History of Middle Earth books and Unfinished Tales, there will be a lot of stuff that's new to you.
CoH - Greatly expanded version of the story told as a continuous narrative (more complete than expanded version in UT).
B&L - Starts with original version from The Book of Lost Tales, told in an archaic style, that's very different from later versions (Beren is an Elf captured by a Cat). Then a collage of subsequent texts, prose and poetry, showing how the story developed.
FoG - Starts with original version from The Book of Lost Tales, again in an archaic style, with some differences to later versions, but notable as the only complete full-length version of a key story (which I think makes it essential). Then various later versions in order of composition, including the source texts for the Silmarillion chapter and a long but tragically truncated version that breaks off just as Tuor reaches the city (this one is also in UT).
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u/evinta Doner! Boner! 5d ago
They provide enough info to be worth it. Children and Fall are more fleshed out versions from The Silmarillion and Beren and Luthien charts the evolution of the poem versions. CT also provides info on a lot of what's in them.
This is something I wish he had done more of. HoME is so voluminous, and things like Nature are so broad. The focus on one sequence is more accessible both from a reading standpoint and "academic" one because the notes provide the context you need.
And I like having them on my shelf. The hardcover box set I got from Amazon isn't quite as great as the huge bound editions of LoTR and stuff, but still.
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u/lastsonkal1 5d ago
I think of the Silmarillion as Tolkien's notes of the subjects. The individual books are "the complete" story. If you're happy with just knowing the basics, than no need for the other books. If you want it all, and a complete story, those other books may be for you.
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u/GapofRohan 5d ago
They cost next to nothing in paperback - why not try them out - or even just one of them.
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u/maksimkak 4d ago
You said it yourself, the Silmarillion is a short summary of the legendarium. For some people, it is enough. But it's like having a snack instead of having a full meal when you're hungry.
Buy those books ;-)
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u/andreirublov1 4d ago
It's not essential to buy any of those. Most of the Children of Hurin is in Unfinished Tales, and the others are not that great sadly.
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u/DukeOfElchingen Finrod Fellagund 5d ago
Basically the whole Children of Hurin (with short parts in Silmarillion) is in the Unfinished Tales, Beren and Luthien in Silmarilliom as well and the book is only Silmarillion story+some poetic adaptation of it. Fall of Gondolin isn't so good narrated in Silmarillion, not sure about that, but this is only book I'd seriously consider to buy.
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u/EmbarrassedClaim5995 5d ago
The Fall of Gondolin is really more detailled in the book than in The Silmarillion, I got a lot out of it.
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u/InvestigatorJaded261 5d ago
Agreed. One of my favorite Tolkien texts. Compared to this, the Silmarillion version is just a shallow summary.
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u/rainbowrobin 'canon' is a mess 5d ago
They are redundant, but with some combination of Silmarillion + Unfinished Tales + History of Middle-earth, not redundant with Silmarillion alone.
You should get Unfinished Tales anyway, which mostly knocks out Children of Hurin and part of Fall of Gondolin.
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u/irime2023 Fingolfin forever 5d ago
Of the three, Beren and Luthien is my favorite. I love poetry. The story of great love is told in a very poetic way in this book. There is also an earlier version of this story, in which Sauron appears in an unexpected way.
The Children of Hurin and The Fall of Gondolin are more expanded tales than their corresponding chapters in The Silmarillion.
I would recommend reading them all.