The Children of Hurin is a story written by J.R.R. Tolkien and it is referenced in his other published works. His son Christopher Tolkien is the literary executor of his estate. Christopher Tolkien edited the work for publishing as he also did with The Silmarillion, The Unfinished Tales, and The History of Middle-earth.
This story is set in Middle-earth; the same setting as The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. This story predates these stories. It is a story of the son of a human lord who fights the evil Morgoth and is captured in a great battle known as The Battle of Unnumbered Tears. The story follows the life of Turin, the son of the lord Hurin, and his trials, adventures, and heartache. Turin shows great capacity to lead and fight, but his good qualities are countered by his brashness.
This story is a tragedy. It was great to read something that doesn't necessarily have happiness and good luck for the protagonist throughout the story. The beginning of the book was very difficult to read. The story doesn't have the same feel of Tolkien's other more famous works. Thinking about it, the closest experience I can equate reading it to is reading the Old Testament. It had several paragraphs describing genealogies. There were also times that use of pronouns were confusing. These things were all tools in the development of the story and I thought it fit the story well. Some readers will get tired of this though. This said, I recommend this book. Know that sticking it out for a couple chapters will be worth it in the end.
If you would like this book message me. You will only have to pay shipping.
If you would like this book message me. You will only have to pay shipping.
Well that is frustrating...I thought I commented on the post but I have now realized it was a comment attached to the Google+ post - so dagum confusing! Anyway, here is my original comment...
ReplyDeleteYou hit the nail square on the head, David! Equating the early portions of this read to some of the tedious geneologies in the Old Testament is a perfect parallel. I did find myself captivated once the story actually developed (somewhere near the halfway mark) and the ultimate Learish tragedy of it all did wrap up the tale quite well.
I wouldn't suggest it as a casual read for anyone, but Tolkien fans will definitely embrace it. The best part, I thought, was the lightbulb that went on in my head during the opening, genealogical portion, of The Hobbit movie. I was actually able to connect the dots sort-a-speak and where the majority of movie-goers found the opening long, dry, and pointless, I found myself excited by the familial connections I was able to make because I had read this novel.
~Kipling