Unfinished Tales

Unfinished tales 

By J.R.R. Tolkien

This is the last of my posts on the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, for the near future at least…

As I have mentioned enough about Tolkien in previous posts I will not mention more here except for the fact that this book was also published posthumously form a selection of Tolkien’s notes, by Christopher Tolkien, his son and literary executor.

‘Unfinished tales, is the last of the main books of Middle-Earth, starting from ‘The Silmarillion’ to ‘The Hobbit’ and lastly ‘The Lord of the Rings’. It is less well known than the other three, though for no fault of its own. Only the fact that is a sort of a supplementary appendix to the rest of the books might account for this fallacy. The book is a delightful collection of stories, odds and ends, which while being complete in themselves, also help fill in the gaps in the other books. 

The stories are arranged chronologically within the time flow of Middle-Earth, from the First Age to the Third. There is also a section which deals with the origin of the wizards (Gandalf!!), the Palantirs and on the race of the Druedain, whom readers (but not viewers) of ‘The Lord of the Rings’ would recall. As an interesting aside, viewers of the extended edition of the movie might recall the climb of the King of Rohan and Aragorn to the camp in front of the mountain pass which leads to the ‘Paths of the Dead’. The way to the mountain is lined with weather beaten statues of the Druedain or Pukel men.

Highlights:

1.     The history of the Rohirrim and the ride of Eorl

2.     The essays on the Druedain and the Istari

3.     The description of Numenorian soldiers and weaponry.

Verdict:

            Overall 10/10

            High fantasy 10/10

            Ease of readability 10/10

Only drawback – needs prior reading of the other books in the Middle-Earth legendarium for a complete contextual understanding.

Tip – buy and read, if you haven’t already!