Narn I Chin Hurin: The Tale of the Children of Hurin
by J.R.R. Tolkien
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Book Reviews of Narn I Chin Hurin: The Tale of the Children of Hurin
Book Review: a review for the curious LOTR fan
Summary: 5 Stars
Taking place in the distant past of the Middle Earth most people know from the "Lord of the Rings," the "Children of Hurin" is a poignantly beautiful gem from JRR Tolkien's literary world. Before great cataclysms that altered the very substance of Middle Earth, the High Elves were allied with three great Houses of Men in a proud and hopeless struggle against the original Dark Enemy. "The Children of Hurin" begins with the most disastrous defeat of Elves and Men in that war, and how Turin, son of the greatest warrior in the history of Men, tries to take up his father's responsibility and reverse the damage.
One of JRR Tolkien's greatest achievements was the world of Middle Earth itself, which contained endless layers of history and backstory that informed the origin and actions of its characters. What can be easy to miss in reading LOTR is that Middle Earth is a desolate shadow of what it used to be, before time and the mistakes of foolish pride wore down the greatness of Elves and Men to almost nothing. This book takes place in a part of Middle Earth that was later destroyed, to be remembered only in the sad songs and anecdotes that pop up here and there in the background of LOTR. This and the book's maps may initially confuse fans of LOTR, but the journey into unfamiliar territory is more than worth it: "The Children of Hurin" is great all by itself, but will do a lot to help you understand the world of LOTR in general. Fans who have trouble with the drier, historical tone of the "Silmarillion" might be better served with this fleshed-out piece of its story. If you have ever wondered why the Elves are such a small, sad, and reclusive bunch in LOTR, you'll see a bit of the answer here, and did you know the great Sauron was once just a servant of the true and original Dark Enemy? You'll meet the dark god Melkor here, and understand why Sauron was just carrying on a legacy. Be prepared also for the diabolical Father of Dragons, Glaurung. If you enjoyed the combination of guile and physical might that Smaug brought to the table, you'll get more than you bargained for from this dragon.
"Children of Hurin" may also surprise fans that are used to the "plain Hobbit sense" and sober steadfastness of more well-known Tolkien protagonists. The central character, Turin, is in many senses the complete opposite of a Hobbit: a great and proud warrior, born for leadership, but doomed to make poor, rash decisions in the heat of emotion. You might be reminded a bit of Boromir, and rightly so. Turin struggles with moral choices and his pride often gets the better of him. Whereas you could trust the Bagginses to use logic, see the big picture, and keep their heads cool enough to defeat despair... or even the cunning wits and words of a dragon... you'll be horrified to see Turin falter. He's the essence of a tragic hero, and although he'll frustrate you, you might see more of yourself in him than in the nearly-unbreakable Hobbits.
It's altogether a different flavor from LOTR or the Hobbit, but it's no less great, and anyone interested in the world of Middle Earth should give it a go.
Book Review: Philosophy as mythology
Summary: 5 Stars
This sad tale of Turin, the anti-hero, matches the best of any great literary mythology both in its scope and style. Beware though, this is no children's bedtime story.
The central theme of the book is that of fate and destiny versus Man's free will.
Tolkien presents us a dismal Middle-Earth in the grips of formidable evil: Morgoth, one of the original beings present long before the Earth's creation and whose unimaginable powers turned to pure hatred. The heroes of the age are no more, vanquished by evil and dispersed. The "good" forces of this period remain fractured and isolated with a foreboding of their impending doom. These are the times and circumstances during which Turin, fatherless, grows to manhood. More details are plentiful, and will not be repeated.
Tolkien's genius in telling this story lies in his controlled narration and skillful character development. Let's face it, Turin is a most unlikable fellow, but he is not altogether despicable either. At some point in the book he almost ceases to be a credible character and we realize just how expertly Tolkien transformed him into a symbol of man's failures. He thus avoids portraying Turin as a ridiculous caricature of failure, especially in the latter part of his story.
Understanding the "curse" cast by Morgoth on Hurin and all his kin represents the crux of this tragic tale. As Chris Tolkien states in his introduction, Morgoth's true power lies in his ability to create specific confrontations and circumstances and *not* through direct control of any man's actions. He can easily discern a person's innate character and weakness, and through treachery and lies bend his future. Ultimately however, it is Man's free will, his strength of character and the wisdom of his decisions and actions which determine the outcome. Morgoth merely casts a net to entwine the unsuspecting but there is always the distant chance and hope that escape is possible.
Think of it as a chess game against a true master who foresees every possible move based on his opponent's ability. He does not control the other player's moves, but anticipates and plans for them precisely. And Turin was a very poor chess player indeed: each move he made brought him closer to an inevitable check-mate.
Just one brief and easily overlooked passage in the book illustrates the frailty of Morgoth's scheme. When Turin seemingly settled down and for once heeded wise counsel Morgoth fears for the first time that his plan may not bear fruition.
And so Turin in his life stumbles through many catastrophes brought on by his own carelessness, impetuousness, obstinance and pride. He rarely learns, and what little he does learn is quickly forgotten. To some degree Turin's mother and sister share these same traits; their decisions in the face of choices essentially clinch their own doom.
In Turin, Tolkien concentrated all of humanity's tragic flaws portrayed in all the great mythologies and literary works, and which, sadly, remain within all of us to this day.
Book Review: Modern-day Epic in classic style perfect for fans of Tolkien + Classic Literature: Beowulf, Medieval Romances, Iliad, Odyessy
Summary: 4 Stars
The Children of Hurin (COH)is quite simply a great addition to Tolkien's body of work. The style of writing is similar to the other complete works, but without the subtle humor. The story as whole is much darker than LOTR and the Hobbit, but this mood fits the setting very well. Not that evil doesn't always lurk in the background of Third Age (the time of the Hobbit/LOTR), but in COH and the Simarillion, this evil is faced more directly and is almost ever present. The evil is also much grander in scale. Sauron from LOTR is only a servant of the dark lord in COH: Morgoth (Morgoth is a fallen god, Sauron is a fallen demi-god)and Glaurung is the father of the dragons, even more insidious than Smaug from the Hobbit.
Yes, because it is a Tolkien book there are lots of characters, geneologies and place names. Not all of the names are critical for keeping up with the story, so those that are important are repeated and it's not the hard to quickly filter out what you might need. It does require a little more concentration than some books that I can mention but it isn't a daunting task. If the first chapter is difficult for those who don't have a knowledge of Tolkien's histories, stick with it and it is rewarding as the book continues to unfold.
What I admire most about the book is the similarity to classical works, making very epic in tone. First of all, you have the a sense of history, show in part from the geneology. To truly know who someone is you have to know where they come from. The importants of a person's ancestor is demonstrated many times in epics and also many holy works, (the Bible, etc.)
Another essential element is the tragic hero, Hurin. Growing up in the middle of the ongoing war with Morgoth and his minions, even as a child he knows little but war and sorrow. He is stubborn and pround, which gives him the confidences to be on the offense during various battles, and is able to perfom great feats in battle. but Despite Tuirn's success, the cleverness and guile of Morgoth and Glaurung often get the best of him. Everyone that Hurin gets close to suffers because of his pride and his willingness to fight no matter the odds.
The story does focus on war and grief but also looks at the relationships between people. In the backdrop of ancient middle-earth, the characters have become friends, fall in love, become jealous, backstab each other and of course face heartache and regret. The humanity behind the epic scope of the tale is what makes all great fantasy books worthwhile.
The book is gift to the expanding library of Tolkien's work. It would be amazing if Christopher Tolkien was able to flesh out all of Tolkien's tales like COH to reach out to a wider audience. For example, the tale of Beren and Luthien, only just hinted at in LOTR, is an exciting story that has personal meaning for Tolkien. I hope Christopher lives awhile longer to gift us with more books. For now we have LOTR, The Hobbit, and COH.
Book Review: A Worthy Succesor To The Lord Of The Rings
Summary: 5 Stars
As a person who read the previous incarnations of this tale in The Silmarillion and The Unfinished Tales, it's safe to say that I was already a fan of this book before it was ever released. However, I'm pleased to see that this was more than just a cheap attempt to milk the cow by putting out the same story multiple times as George Lucas keeps doing with his Star Wars re-releases. The Children of Hurin contains several never before seen chapters and illustrations which help to further expand the story.
As it goes, this is probably the darkest of the tales J.R.R. Tolkien ever wrote. It's very bleak and grim, but that's where the magic of this story takes place. Rather than manufacture artificial escapes for the heroes of this book as he did in The Lord of the Rings, the heroes in this book really get their butts handed to them. The heroism of the good guys in this story stems from their resilience in the face of overwhelming odds, not necessarily their victories. The one thing I truly love about Tolkien's fantasy universe is that evil is not this single entity that you can confront and destroy. It's built into the very fabric of the world and proves to be indestructible by any means known to the inhabitants of Middle-earth.
The main character Turin, is as complex a character as has ever been devised in fantasy. Because of his father's defiance of Morgoth, the original dark lord of Middle-earth, Turin spends the better part of his life trying to dodge the curse that has been called down upon him by Morgoth. Turin's family suffers dearly because of Morgoth's curse. Turin's greatest defense against the power of Morgoth, is his resilience, which proves to be the highest level of valor that he can acheive in the face of Morgoth's unrelenting evil.
This is a tragedy not unlike Hamlet or Oedipus, except it draws upon familiar Tolkienesque conventions for its impact. This book takes place during the First Age of the Middle-earth when the world was just taking shape and the race of men had just been introduced into it. The world is ruled by all-powerful gods called Valar. Hence, the battle between good and evil is more primeval than in the later ages of the world.
As in Tolkien's previous books, Middle-earth proves to be a world rich with history. It's a joy to be able to take a glimpse into his world in its founding days long before Hobbits or Ring Wraiths roamed the earth. It's a showcase of the best that Tolkien has to offer and clearly points to the fact that his tales are less about magic than they are about the power of the human spirit and our role in the unfolding of the world's history.
I would recommend The Children of Hurin to any lover of classic fantasy, especially since it's unlikely we'll ever see books like this written again by any writer of our generation.
Book Review: For the aficianados only!
Summary: 2 Stars
I hate to write a negative review. After finishing the Silmarillion, I was so excited to receive this book that I ripped open the box from Amazon and started reading immediately.
While reading Children of Hurin, I kept thinking that if this book were released by a new author it would not get published. It would get panned by the reviewers. It does not stand on its own. At all. It doesn't even stand well with the LOTR and The Hobbit. If you are a recreational reader, and have not read and digested the Silmarillion, if you do not want to study a fictional story as you would a dense history textbook, then avoid this book. Read Dune or Game of Thrones, both complex and intelligent books, but also written to be read and enjoyed rather than deciphered.
Children of Hurin starts with background from the Silmarillion. Name upon name is thrown at the reader, at least three per paragraph, but without the aesthetic and lyrical beauty of the opening chapters of the Silmarillion. For those who are not already initiated into the arcana of the Biblical-in-scope Silmarillion, this will be overwhelming. Enthusiastic reviewers saying you don't need to have read the Silmarillion first have already read the Silmarillion, and show a fairly vast knowledge of that book. I have read, and simply loved, the Silmarillion, but Children of Hurin is a weak reflection of that great work.
Unfortunately, the narrative proper is the same way. For example, it starts with about five pages of names and geography which you would need flash cards to remember. Again, it is written in a decidedly non Tolkein style, a wooden almost 'cliff notes' style. Awful. Once we get to some actual plot, when things start to happen, the dialogue is written in the same wooden style, an embarassing imitation of Tolkein's wonderful dialects. It doesn't feel like reading Tolkien, it feels like reading some internet hack's imitation of Tolkien.
I give it two stars because the Tolkien addicts, those who just can't get enough of his beautifully complex world, will have some details revealed that were not in the Silmarillion. Some factual lacunae are filled in nicely by Christopher Tolkien's research into his father's world. If you think such knowledge is not worth combing through a tiresome plot with cumbersome narratives, don't waste your money or time.
Unfortunately, Christopher Tolkien has shown that he is simply not up to the task of putting something together that is enthralling and felicitous in expression. It is a tragedy that Tolkien never finished his ever-evolving works, but it is time to let go of the desire to artificially expand his legacy with inferior writings.
In the end this book will only serve to dilute and sully JRR Tolkien's wonderful corpus. This saddens me greatly.