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slferg's review against another edition
4.0
Tolkien's early effort and rendering the stories of the Silmarillion in some sort of order for publishing. His mythology was still being worked out and developed. Not the final form, but it's interesting to see it in progress.
bookaneer's review against another edition
4.0
Well, the reason I read this book is because Richard Armitage, the actor who plays Thorin in The Hobbit, has read it. If he is fluent in Tolkien lores, then why can't I? :-)
The story that I wanted to read is actually the Nauglafring (Necklace of the Dwarves). But it was interesting as well to read a more thorough version (at least from the version told in The Silmarillion) of Beren-Luthien's and Turin Turambar's stories. I found out that Beren was a gnome (don't freak out yet, gnome here apparently means that he was one of the Noldors) and that he was helpless without Luthien went to rescue him and left her kingdom shattered, broke her parents' hearts and her brother lost. Spoiled brat. Melian should have put her girdle around that girl. Anyway, Turin's story is awesome, it's always is. Children of Hurin, if you haven't read it then fly you fools to the nearest book store! Sad, extremely harrowing. Tolkien at his best.
And then came the story of Nauglafring. A bit shorter that what I expected but alright. It explained to me the origin of the enmity between the elves and the dwarves. Both sides were wrong, that's the gist. The elves were ungrateful SOBs and the dwarves clearly overreacted. Alliance with the orcs? Seriously, guys.
Then the book went downhill for me. The Tale of Earendil was really boring. Or maybe because there were just so many versions of it in one chapter so it became hellishly repetitive. And I still didn't understand why he got separated from Elwing and why she drowned.
The weirdest part from the book to me is not the scholarly remarks and analysis given by Christopher Tolkien on various subjects from etymology of names to different versions of poems, but it was the fact that Elves became fairies. So while Men were getting more evil and stuff, Elves were fading, became transparent and smaller, until finally Men could not see them. I had a feeling by then that there would be some connection made with the real (our) world. And I was right. So apparently Tol Eressea is now the modern day England! Weird huh? So that confirms the theory that Middle Earth is now the modern day continental Europe. Ha! Can you guess which country is Hobbitton? Mordor?
Anyway, this is not a book for everyone. You have to at least read The Silmarillion first. And you gotta love Tolkien alot.
The story that I wanted to read is actually the Nauglafring (Necklace of the Dwarves). But it was interesting as well to read a more thorough version (at least from the version told in The Silmarillion) of Beren-Luthien's and Turin Turambar's stories. I found out that Beren was a gnome (don't freak out yet, gnome here apparently means that he was one of the Noldors) and that he was helpless without Luthien went to rescue him and left her kingdom shattered, broke her parents' hearts and her brother lost. Spoiled brat. Melian should have put her girdle around that girl. Anyway, Turin's story is awesome, it's always is. Children of Hurin, if you haven't read it then fly you fools to the nearest book store! Sad, extremely harrowing. Tolkien at his best.
And then came the story of Nauglafring. A bit shorter that what I expected but alright. It explained to me the origin of the enmity between the elves and the dwarves. Both sides were wrong, that's the gist. The elves were ungrateful SOBs and the dwarves clearly overreacted. Alliance with the orcs? Seriously, guys.
Then the book went downhill for me. The Tale of Earendil was really boring. Or maybe because there were just so many versions of it in one chapter so it became hellishly repetitive. And I still didn't understand why he got separated from Elwing and why she drowned.
The weirdest part from the book to me is not the scholarly remarks and analysis given by Christopher Tolkien on various subjects from etymology of names to different versions of poems, but it was the fact that Elves became fairies. So while Men were getting more evil and stuff, Elves were fading, became transparent and smaller, until finally Men could not see them. I had a feeling by then that there would be some connection made with the real (our) world. And I was right. So apparently Tol Eressea is now the modern day England! Weird huh? So that confirms the theory that Middle Earth is now the modern day continental Europe. Ha! Can you guess which country is Hobbitton? Mordor?
Anyway, this is not a book for everyone. You have to at least read The Silmarillion first. And you gotta love Tolkien alot.
amandasbookreview's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
“And now is the end of the fair times come very nigh,
and behold, all the beauty that yet was on earth–
fragments of the unimagined loveliness of Valinor
whence came the folk of the Elves long, long ago
now goeth, it all up in smoke…”
and behold, all the beauty that yet was on earth–
fragments of the unimagined loveliness of Valinor
whence came the folk of the Elves long, long ago
now goeth, it all up in smoke…”
THE BOOK OF LOST TALES VOLUME 2
The final Tolkien Tuesday post for The Book of Lost Tales Vol. 2
https://amandasbookreviewsite.wordpress.com/2022/06/28/tolkien-tuesday-the-book-of-lost-tales-vol-2eriol/
The final Tolkien Tuesday post for The Book of Lost Tales Vol. 2
https://amandasbookreviewsite.wordpress.com/2022/06/28/tolkien-tuesday-the-book-of-lost-tales-vol-2eriol/
aparuive's review against another edition
reflective
sad
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
nwhyte's review against another edition
3.0
https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/1654508.html
Second in the series edited by Christopher Tolkien. Here we are looking at two of the core stories of The Silmarillion, and several other narratives which were largely or completely set aside as Tolkien's work developed. I found the very first story, "The Tale of Tinúviel", particularly interesting. For the first time I was struck that it is a tale if love between one character with a short name starting with B and another with a longer name starting with T, whose father opposes the romance just as Tolkien's own guardian opposed his relationship with Edith Bratt. Beren goes off to prove himself in battle and returns maimed, as Tolkien returned with trench fever from the Great War (though after his marriage rather than before). And of course Tolkien was himself always explicit that Tinúviel's dancing in the forest was inspired by Edith dancing for him one day in 1917 when they were out in the woods near his base. His personal identification with this particular story can be seen on his tombstone. I was always a bit disappointed that the version in The Silmarillion doesn't convey much emotional freight, but The Book of Lost Tales is worth getting for this chapter alone.
(We also meet the earliest version of Sauron, as Tivaldo the evil king of cats and servant of Melko, a counterpart to Beren's heroic dog.)
The other story treated in depth here is "Turambar and the Foalókë", which however has since been published in a pretty definitive format as The Children of Húrin; I found the joins between Beowulf, Kullervo and Tolkien's own imagination much more visible here.
The most interesting of the other chapters is "The Tale of Eärendel", another story which is curiously flat in The Silmarillion, a lost tale that underlies a fair bit of Middle Earth mythology but never seems to have found a definite written form; one almost senses Tolkien feeling more comfortable with it inside his head, so that Bilbo and Aragorn could make in-jokes about it in Rivendell, rather than spoiling it by putting too much down on paper.
(Also a shout out for "The Fall of Gondolin", with its gripping account of hand-to-hand combat as the city is taken.)
Despite the density of the prose I have found both Lost Tales volumes fairly quick reading, Tolkien's prose being as fluent in his twenties as it was later in his life, and Christopher Tolkien's annotations being complete enough to satisfy curiosity without being overwhelming. I'm glad to have got back into this series of books.
Second in the series edited by Christopher Tolkien. Here we are looking at two of the core stories of The Silmarillion, and several other narratives which were largely or completely set aside as Tolkien's work developed. I found the very first story, "The Tale of Tinúviel", particularly interesting. For the first time I was struck that it is a tale if love between one character with a short name starting with B and another with a longer name starting with T, whose father opposes the romance just as Tolkien's own guardian opposed his relationship with Edith Bratt. Beren goes off to prove himself in battle and returns maimed, as Tolkien returned with trench fever from the Great War (though after his marriage rather than before). And of course Tolkien was himself always explicit that Tinúviel's dancing in the forest was inspired by Edith dancing for him one day in 1917 when they were out in the woods near his base. His personal identification with this particular story can be seen on his tombstone. I was always a bit disappointed that the version in The Silmarillion doesn't convey much emotional freight, but The Book of Lost Tales is worth getting for this chapter alone.
(We also meet the earliest version of Sauron, as Tivaldo the evil king of cats and servant of Melko, a counterpart to Beren's heroic dog.)
The other story treated in depth here is "Turambar and the Foalókë", which however has since been published in a pretty definitive format as The Children of Húrin; I found the joins between Beowulf, Kullervo and Tolkien's own imagination much more visible here.
The most interesting of the other chapters is "The Tale of Eärendel", another story which is curiously flat in The Silmarillion, a lost tale that underlies a fair bit of Middle Earth mythology but never seems to have found a definite written form; one almost senses Tolkien feeling more comfortable with it inside his head, so that Bilbo and Aragorn could make in-jokes about it in Rivendell, rather than spoiling it by putting too much down on paper.
(Also a shout out for "The Fall of Gondolin", with its gripping account of hand-to-hand combat as the city is taken.)
Despite the density of the prose I have found both Lost Tales volumes fairly quick reading, Tolkien's prose being as fluent in his twenties as it was later in his life, and Christopher Tolkien's annotations being complete enough to satisfy curiosity without being overwhelming. I'm glad to have got back into this series of books.
zlwrites's review against another edition
3.0
I read as much as I'm going to. With outlines of the chapters Tolkien never gets to, I gave up. I enjoyed the Silmarillion, but this is almost too much. I'm putting these on hold for a while. Perhaps after the kiss is born. Way after.
gameofmo's review against another edition
5.0
A nice introduction to all three great tales for those not familiar with them. But the highlight is certainly “The History of Eriol or Ælfwine and the End of the Tales.” This is arguably where the early conceptions most drastically differed from the later ones, making this a particularly interesting stage of the mythology’s evolution.
dernichtraucherin's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
annarien's review against another edition
4.0
The first versions of the Great Tales are very entertaining and amusing to read. Especially in the case of Gondolin, where the account in this book is the only full and detailed one we get.
The last part of this book, however, makes me thankful that Tolkien later dropped it like a hot potato. While his efforts to incorporate the Elves into the history and mythology of England are laudable, the atempted reconstruction of his notes into a coherent narative always makes me skim the pages. It is simply too convoluted and contradictory a tale to try to retain. Perhaps if it had gotten polished and if it had been given a narrative form, the whole tie in with real human history would have made sense. But as it is... better to leave it a lost tale.
The last part of this book, however, makes me thankful that Tolkien later dropped it like a hot potato. While his efforts to incorporate the Elves into the history and mythology of England are laudable, the atempted reconstruction of his notes into a coherent narative always makes me skim the pages. It is simply too convoluted and contradictory a tale to try to retain. Perhaps if it had gotten polished and if it had been given a narrative form, the whole tie in with real human history would have made sense. But as it is... better to leave it a lost tale.