New Tolkien Books:updates

[The Squatter of Amon Rûdh]

I'm going to miss the impressionistic approach. Everything's so literal and representational in the world of Tolkien art; we need the fresh perspective offered by illustrators who haven't had their interpretations coloured by reading the books.

I'm glad that they chose this picture of Turin. The depiction of him killing Glaurung tended to reduce him to that one event, whereas that's arguably one of his less important acts . However, this does tend to focus the attention rather on Turin than the other players in this drama. Perhaps some depiction of Turin's first meeting with Nienor might have fitted the bill better, although that's just nitpicking.

It's good to think that the Dragon Helm will be gracing bookshelves in full fig rather than as bare-armed action hero: that depiction lends him a dignity that some of his other guises lack.