The Fireside

I may be a bit late to the game (meant to do this post a few days ago) though the info for The History of Middle-earth: Boxed Sets III & IV have recently come out, seemingly at the same time.  Arriving June 6 (that's the scheduled date as of this post) with an ISBN of  9780008669294, is Box III.  Box III contains: The Return of the the Shadow, The Treason of Isengard, The War of the Ring  and (spoiler alert! Kidding) Sauron Defeated . All of those are immediately associated with Tolkien writing The Lord of the Rings .  Next, and lastly for these History of Middle-earth Boxed Sets, is Boxed Set IV. Arriving on August 15 (again, that date is as of this post) with an ISBN of  9780008669393, is Boxed Set IV. It contains Morgoth's Ring, The War of the Jewels, The  Peoples of Middle-earth  and the very handy Index  to the entire series.  Once History of Middle-earth: Box IV is out, I'll do a post with all their ISBNs collected into one pos...

  Well, as I often think (and often state) when it comes to Tolkien books: 'what next?' I have been a fan of the various editions and versions of Tolkien's works since around 2002. I've often recounted the tale, of seeing 2-3 bookshelves full  of various Tolkien books. Well, it was at least one whole unit at the book shop. What was interesting to me, was seeing the various editions that matched on display; as well as those that didn't  match: 'hmm this copy of The Lord of the Rings  doesn't have a Hobbit  in the same style!' or 'this style offers them as 3 and but not as 1....' Anyway, so it's very early in the year - the year just literally started, in fact - though here is what is, and what might  come (which is speculation on my part) in the calendar year of "2024." In the unjacketed hardback special edition format, there will be an edition of The Silmarillion coming. I fully expect this to complement the corresponding Hobbit  an...

There are some exciting things happening next year with regards to Tolkien.  The main event, is that throughout the year and ending in November, is that the 12-book (13, counting the index book) History of Middle-earth series will be published in hardback format.... as  12 individual hardbacks. This is in celebration of Christopher Tolkien's centenary. There will be other releases throughout the year too, that remain to be seen.  For the sake of this post, I wish to examine two areas or aspects:  - will certain styles of books continue past The Silmarillion? - will there be a 70th Anniversary Edition of The Lord of the Rings ?  Will Unfinished Tales arrive in the special edition format? (Unjacketed hardback collector’s edition) And, illustrated by the author?   That's what I'm curious about. In 2021, the 'illustrated by the author' format began with The Lord of the Rings. Then, next year, The Silmarillion  came out. Lastly, this year, The Hobbit ...

  The History of Middle-earth: Boxed Set II will be published on March 28. It's ISBN is  9780008669232 .  The contents, as you may be able to see from the photo, will be:  ~ The Lays of Beleriand ~ The Shaping of Middle-earth ~ The Lost Road With regards to these sets, I'll post again once the info for Boxed Set III is revealed. That post will follow with the fourth and final set. Possibly, in the same post as Boxed Set IV, I may recap the previous 3, or dedicate a post to all 4.  While not History of Middle-earth related, I'll be sure to post about anything else that comes along or is announced in 2024. 

It's that time of year for me to suggest and feature some particular editions of Tolkien's works. I think this typically happens, because the films were released right around Christmas time. So, I've come to associate that time of the year with Tolkien (and fantasy overall, when there hasn't been much happening, Tolkien-wise). So let's get into it! First we have what I like to call the 'landscape' paperback covers. These are pretty basic, though are the 'footprint' for pretty much all editions and settings of the text. Also, the covers are different then what we typically see for a Tolkien book. Some think in a bad way, others in a good way. I believe it's due to many stating that they resemble general or average fantasy books, self-help books etc, as opposed to what we typically see for a Tolkien cover.  Boxed set ISBN:  9780008387754 The Hobbit  ISBN:  9780008376055 The Fellowship of the Ring  ISBN:  9780008376062 The Two Towers ISBN:  97800083...

  In a few months, there will be a new edition of The Silmarillion  joining the.....I don't know how to call them! Joining the new versions of the 2013 re-issues of The Hobbit , and The Lord of the Rings  (as 3 parts). I am referring to these editions:  What follows is the info. I'm surprised, as I'd thought they were going to put out a boxed set of those editions (now that The Hobbit matches. Remember, with The Hobbit  they reprinted it to match the re-issues (new ISBNs) of The Lord of the Rings ). ISBN:  9780008669140 Special unjacketed hardback edition of the prelude to J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic masterpiece,  The Lord of the Rings . This edition of  The Silmarillion  features the complete work with a unique cover design and black and red endpaper maps. The Silmarillion  is an account of the Elder Days, of the First Age of Tolkien’s World. It is the ancient drama to which the characters in  The Lord of the Rings  look back, and i...

  With the announcement of The History of Middle-earth series, more information has come to light, and I'll share thoughts/opinions afterwards.  Part of HarperCollins' official announcement reads: "B eginning in November, and continuing throughout 2024, a series of four boxed sets of hardbacks will acknowledge Christopher Tolkien’s remarkable literary achievement, with the final set appearing on what would have been his 100 th  birthday in November 2024." So now we know that the fourth and final of the HoM-e (History of Middle-earth) sets will be released then. Once it's been released, I'll showcase the 4 boxed sets here more: between the first and the third, I'll announce them, pass on info, etc; though for my Tolkien Christmas post next  year they'll be featured then, as they'll all be out at that point.  Worthy of note, is that part of the facebook post announcing the sets formally:  These boxed sets will be accompanied by a wealth of exciting n...