Christopher Tolkien to finish lost Middle Earth novel - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

davem · 03-25-2007, 02:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hyarion

Dang, davem beat me to it

Not sure about you but the first link doesn't work for me:
http://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/The_C..._Release_Party

No- it doesn't work for me now, either. Thanks for the updated link.

Sardy · 03-26-2007, 08:10 AM

From: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070325...ainmentbritain

Quote:

New Tolkien book to be published next month: report

LONDON (AFP) - An unfinished book by "Lord of the Rings" author J.R.R. Tolkien, which was completed by his son, will go on sale on next month, a newspaper said.

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"The Children of Hurin", which Tolkien began in 1918, will be in bookshops on April 17, the Independent on Sunday added. The author's son, Christopher, spent 30 years completing the story from the many drafts produced by his father.

Publisher HarperCollins is keeping exact details of the story under close wraps but its description as "an epic story of adventure, tragedy, fellowship and heroism" will be familiar to the legions of Tolkien fans.

Artist Alan Lee has provided 25 pencil sketches and eight paintings for the book.

Lee won an Oscar for art direction on Peter Jackson's "The Return of the King", the third blockbuster film based on the "Lord of Rings" trilogy that brought the stories to a worldwide audience.

"The Children of Hurin" is the first "new" Tolkien book since a collection of his works -- "The Silmarillion" -- was published posthumously in 1977, four years after the writer's death. It was also edited by Christopher Tolkien.

The chairman of the Tolkien Society, Chris Crawshaw, was quoted by the Independent on Sunday as saying: "It ('The Children of Hurin') would probably make a very good movie, if anyone can secure the film rights."

William Cloud Hicklin · 03-26-2007, 06:01 PM

Quote:

"The Children of Hurin", which Tolkien began in 1918, will be in bookshops on April 17, the Independent on Sunday added. The author's son, Christopher, spent 30 years completing the story from the many drafts produced by his father.

Publisher HarperCollins is keeping exact details of the story under close wraps...

Don't you love the press?

(Just in case there are any newbies reading this, JRRT worked on the Narn i*Chin Hurin between about 1955 and 1959, although the earliest version of Turin's story was written as part of The Book of Lost Tales during or just after WWI. Christopher Tolkien has only been working on this particular book for about 2 years, although he has been editing his father's papers generally for over 30. And of course "details of the story" have been well-known since 1980, if not 1977).

davem · 03-27-2007, 03:51 PM

http://tolkiennews.net/article.php?s...70327164529601

Barnes & Noble in New York were originally limiting sales of CoH signed by Christopher Tolkien & Alan Lee to five copies per person. They've now reduced it to two copies per person.

So how many copies have been signed - one assumes that it was a good few dozen, if not a few score, if B&N could make so many signed copies available to each customer - if they only had 10 or 20 copies surely they would have set a limit of one per person.

The other thing that I personally find deeply annoying is that this seems to be the only place (apart from the Tolkien Library competition linked to above) where copies signed by CT & AL will be available. So it would seem that B&N have bought up all the signed copies for their customers.

Now, this seems deeply wrong - & I'm not being chauvinistic here - most of us fans (even in the US) do not live in, or have access to B&N in New York on that day. It strikes me that 'market forces' have played a very nasty part in this & it leaves a bit of a nasty taste in the mouth......

Of course, it may be that other places have copies signed by both CT & AL, but I've not heard of it.

I didn't want anything mar the appearance of this major work, but this is not fair - imo.

I'm grateful for the chance to get a copy (however slim that chance may be) via the efforts of the Tolkien Library/Tolkien Gateway, but the idea that the rest of us have to take our chances in a competition while New Yorkers can stroll into B&N & pick a couple off the shelf seems too wrong for words...

Hyarion · 03-27-2007, 08:08 PM

davem, thanks for the link

I believe Megan of Houghton Mifflin stated the number of copies was in the hundreds, but not thousands. I would assume these were split between HM and HC, which would have me guess at a max of 500 total, 250 for HM (if they were split evenly), but I don't know if HM would give them all to B&N.

I think the limit of 5 per person was simply a B&N standard and was not considered for the specific event or based on how many were available, and then when all those phone calls started pouring in they began to realize what the demand would be like

I definitely think there is going to be more than 10 or 20, but I can't imagine more than 200/250. Which means if you're past number 100 in line, you won't have much luck.

The fact that there haven't been any other announced events makes me think the number is so small, that they didn't bother giving some away in LA or some place as well, so it could very well be they have more like 100 to give away.

However, our copies are from HarperCollins, not Houghton Mifflin, so this leads me to believe that HC still has their share, why they haven't announced anything is beyond me, as I haven't heard of any other events either.

I'm in the same boat as you regarding feeling a bit upset about this whole situation. I've had people from NY tell me they will be going to B&N, and they saw the films but haven't read the books yet...so obviously these copies are probably not going to be distributed to the biggest fans. And selling for loads on eBay is simply going to disperse them to the rich.

I think the other 2 copies we give away will be based on a trivia contest, or at least one will be, that way at least those who know a lot about the stories will have a higher chance of winning.

Best of luck in getting one

davem · 03-28-2007, 12:28 AM

Hyarion I can see, as you say, some very rich collectors ending up with most of the signed copies - which seems completely unfair. These copies should go to serious collectors (& while I would love a copy myself I just feel that people like my friend geordie over at the Plaza ought to have a copy signed by CT, given the amount of time & effort he's put into his collection - though if one of your copies is available to the winner of a Tolkien trivia competition he has a pretty good chance!).

I wish this part of the launch (small though it be) had been better organised by the publishers. This is a unique event in publishing, & the appearance of this book is so significant to so many, that to simply 'dump' so many of the signed copies in one store seems WRONG.

Mind you, what you say about Harper Collins having some gets me thinking - they are about to launch their re-vamped Tolkien.co.uk site .... might we expect a 'Site launch competition, with a few hundred signed copies on offer?????

The Squatter of Amon Rûdh · 03-28-2007, 03:53 AM

I'm reassured to hear that, Hyarion. I agree with davem that there are some people who are so dedicated to Tolkien that they seem to deserve to have the latest collectables. A trivia competition seems a better way of finding out who they are than blind luck. However, market forces being what they are, I can see that only the the rich or the very dedicated will be able to get hold of one of these once the initial round of sales and competitions is over.

Naturally I've not been working on my Tolkien collection long enough to count among the meritorious, but I'll be taking every chance to get hold of a signed copy anyway for obvious reasons. I doubt that CRT will be available to sign any copies I might buy in the near future.

It's tempting to think of a HarperCollins competition to give away some goodies. Judging by some of the items that crop up on collectors' sites they keep back some rare Tolkien publications, like signed first impressions of LR, but such retention would still leave them with a good few dozen copies to give away or offer for sale at a higher rate. Only time will tell what they mean to do.

03-27-2007, 03:51 PM	#4
davem Illustrious Ulair Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: In the home of lost causes, and forsaken beliefs, and unpopular names,and impossible loyalties Posts: 4,240	Bit of a rant..... http://tolkiennews.net/article.php?s...70327164529601 Barnes & Noble in New York were originally limiting sales of CoH signed by Christopher Tolkien & Alan Lee to five copies per person. They've now reduced it to two copies per person. So how many copies have been signed - one assumes that it was a good few dozen, if not a few score, if B&N could make so many signed copies available to each customer - if they only had 10 or 20 copies surely they would have set a limit of one per person. The other thing that I personally find deeply annoying is that this seems to be the only place (apart from the Tolkien Library competition linked to above) where copies signed by CT & AL will be available. So it would seem that B&N have bought up all the signed copies for their customers. Now, this seems deeply wrong - & I'm not being chauvinistic here - most of us fans (even in the US) do not live in, or have access to B&N in New York on that day. It strikes me that 'market forces' have played a very nasty part in this & it leaves a bit of a nasty taste in the mouth...... Of course, it may be that other places have copies signed by both CT & AL, but I've not heard of it. I didn't want anything mar the appearance of this major work, but this is not fair - imo. I'm grateful for the chance to get a copy (however slim that chance may be) via the efforts of the Tolkien Library/Tolkien Gateway, but the idea that the rest of us have to take our chances in a competition while New Yorkers can stroll into B&N & pick a couple off the shelf seems too wrong for words... __________________ “Everything was an object. If you killed a dwarf you could use it as a weapon – it was no different to other large heavy objects."

03-27-2007, 08:08 PM	#5
Hyarion Pile O'Bones Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 16	davem, thanks for the link I believe Megan of Houghton Mifflin stated the number of copies was in the hundreds, but not thousands. I would assume these were split between HM and HC, which would have me guess at a max of 500 total, 250 for HM (if they were split evenly), but I don't know if HM would give them all to B&N. I think the limit of 5 per person was simply a B&N standard and was not considered for the specific event or based on how many were available, and then when all those phone calls started pouring in they began to realize what the demand would be like I definitely think there is going to be more than 10 or 20, but I can't imagine more than 200/250. Which means if you're past number 100 in line, you won't have much luck. The fact that there haven't been any other announced events makes me think the number is so small, that they didn't bother giving some away in LA or some place as well, so it could very well be they have more like 100 to give away. However, our copies are from HarperCollins, not Houghton Mifflin, so this leads me to believe that HC still has their share, why they haven't announced anything is beyond me, as I haven't heard of any other events either. I'm in the same boat as you regarding feeling a bit upset about this whole situation. I've had people from NY tell me they will be going to B&N, and they saw the films but haven't read the books yet...so obviously these copies are probably not going to be distributed to the biggest fans. And selling for loads on eBay is simply going to disperse them to the rich. I think the other 2 copies we give away will be based on a trivia contest, or at least one will be, that way at least those who know a lot about the stories will have a higher chance of winning. Best of luck in getting one __________________ Tolkien Encyclopedia / Wiki TolkienNews.net

03-28-2007, 12:28 AM	#6
davem Illustrious Ulair Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: In the home of lost causes, and forsaken beliefs, and unpopular names,and impossible loyalties Posts: 4,240	Hyarion I can see, as you say, some very rich collectors ending up with most of the signed copies - which seems completely unfair. These copies should go to serious collectors (& while I would love a copy myself I just feel that people like my friend geordie over at the Plaza ought to have a copy signed by CT, given the amount of time & effort he's put into his collection - though if one of your copies is available to the winner of a Tolkien trivia competition he has a pretty good chance!). I wish this part of the launch (small though it be) had been better organised by the publishers. This is a unique event in publishing, & the appearance of this book is so significant to so many, that to simply 'dump' so many of the signed copies in one store seems WRONG. Mind you, what you say about Harper Collins having some gets me thinking - they are about to launch their re-vamped Tolkien.co.uk site .... might we expect a 'Site launch competition, with a few hundred signed copies on offer????? __________________ “Everything was an object. If you killed a dwarf you could use it as a weapon – it was no different to other large heavy objects."

03-28-2007, 03:53 AM	#7
The Squatter of Amon Rûdh Spectre of Decay Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Bar-en-Danwedh Posts: 2,178	Economy of merit? I'm reassured to hear that, Hyarion. I agree with davem that there are some people who are so dedicated to Tolkien that they seem to deserve to have the latest collectables. A trivia competition seems a better way of finding out who they are than blind luck. However, market forces being what they are, I can see that only the the rich or the very dedicated will be able to get hold of one of these once the initial round of sales and competitions is over. Naturally I've not been working on my Tolkien collection long enough to count among the meritorious, but I'll be taking every chance to get hold of a signed copy anyway for obvious reasons. I doubt that CRT will be available to sign any copies I might buy in the near future. It's tempting to think of a HarperCollins competition to give away some goodies. Judging by some of the items that crop up on collectors' sites they keep back some rare Tolkien publications, like signed first impressions of LR, but such retention would still leave them with a good few dozen copies to give away or offer for sale at a higher rate. Only time will tell what they mean to do. __________________ Man kenuva métim' andúne?