The Book of Lost Tales Part 2: Amazon.ca: J. R. R. Tolkien: Books

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Book Description

This second part of THE BOOK OF LOST TALES includes the tale of Beneren and Luthien, Turin and the Dragon, Necklace of the Dwarves, and the Fall of Gondolin. Each tale is followed by a commentary in the form of a short essay, together with the texts of associated poems, as well as information on names and vocabulary in the earliest Elvish languages.

Ingram

The second part of the book that was Tolkien's first conception of the Middle Kingdom features the tales of Beren and Luthien, Turin and the Dragon, the Necklace of the Dwarves, and the Fall of Gondolin. Reprint. NYT.

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12 Reviews

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4.8 out of 5 stars (12 customer reviews)

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4.0 out of 5 stars The History of middle earth's second chapter., Feb 11 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: The Book of Lost Tales Part II (Hardcover)

The Book of Lost Tales 2 starts off right where the first book finished. The different tales in this book prove to be a great summary of the history of middle earth. The commentaries that the tales have are done by Christopher Tolkien. These commentaries, combined with the notes that also are in the tales, make understanding this book much easier than one would think after taking a quick glance through the tales. Overall this book was wonderful. It was difficult to read at times but it is a great book for all Tolkein fans. I would highly reccomend this for anybody who is interested in the mystical, wonderful world of Tolkein's Middle Earth.

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5.0 out of 5 stars More from the Master, Jan 3 2004

By	Lawrence G Coatney "Geno" (Pagosa Springs, Colorado USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Book of Lost Tales Part II (Hardcover)

This book picks up where the first left off, opening with the tale of Tinuviel. It then carries you through the original conceptions Turin (Turambar and the Foaloke), and then on to Tuor (the fall of Gondolin). After these stories it gets a little harder to follow as the notes that Christopher uses become much more mish-mashed.
The tale of Tinuviel is interesting because this is one that goes through many different changes.
the basic story is there but it was written at the time when the silmarills were just becoming an important part of the whole mythology. Another surprising change is that Beren, who in the Silmarillion becomes the first Man to wed an Elf is here concieved of as an elf himself. That might throw Aragorn's long lineage out of whack! Also the necomancer (a.k.a. Sauron) is here a giant cat (Tevildo lord of the cats) with his own castle.
In Turambar and the Foaloke there are relativly few changes, most of them being changes of wording and name changes. Tis is one of the most sorrowful stories that I have ever read, though it is also one of me favorite. The only thing better than reading this is picking up a copy of Unfinished Tales and reading the final version that he worked on.
The most interesting and in my view rewarding tale in here is the fall of Gonddolin. I say this because this is the only place where you can find a finished version. The version in the Silmarillion though excellent was really written to be an oral piece, therefore being much shortened. The reason it was chosen as the official published version is because it was also revised to fit in Middle-Earth's history. If you read Of Tuor and His Coming to Gondolin in the Unfinished Tales you will find the most beautiful rendering, but sadly it stands uncomplete with Tuor just reaching the gates of Gondolin. But if you read the original story you get to see where it was going, and also you read what is one of the most fantastical battle scenes that I have ever read.(Even better than Peter Jackson's amazing rendering of the Battle of Pelenor Fields in the movie version of Return of the King).
The book then moves on to The Nauglafring, a dwarven necklace which encasing the silmaril that Beren and Tinuviel took from Morgoth, that brings about the ruin of the Realm of Doriath.
We are then brought to the Tale of Earendel who was the first Elf to be alowed to enter after he reached the sacred realm of Valinor.This and the next chapter, The History of Eriol or AElfwine, mostly consist of notes of how the stories were to be written, but they were abandoned shortly after this. Incedently, Eriol was originally concieved as having written The Book of Lost Tales.
All in all this is an excellent book if your interested in learning the history behind the Silmarillion and parts of Unfinished Tales.

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5.0 out of 5 stars What You Didn't Read in The Silmarillion, Jan 4 2002

By	"mokkan" (USA) - See all my reviews

The Book of Lost Tales 2 tells the tales that you didn't exactly see in the final published version of the Silmarillion. It brings new insight to the background of how Tolkien wrote these stories while he was still conceiving the very beginnings of this magical world that would evolve into the Silmarillion and the Lord of the Rings. This is for anyone for wants to know about Middle-Earth and Valinor than was explained in Tokien's earlier published works.

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Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars This book continues. . .
. . .the work begun in "The Book of Lost Tales, Part 1" and carries the earliest versions of what would eventually become "The Silmarillion" through to their... Read more

Published on Nov 19 2001 by Drogo Moss

5.0 out of 5 stars The Beginning, Continued. . .
Do you love the fiction of JRR Tolkien? Are you interested in the very beginning of the legends? The stories that evolved into "The Silmarillion"? Read more

Published on Dec 20 2000 by David Zampino

5.0 out of 5 stars Awsome!
The book that follows up THE BOOK OF LOST TALES 1

Very good book more holding than the first and a must for all tolkien fans!

Published on Feb 24 2000 by jayjayhill

5.0 out of 5 stars A must read for all tolkien fans or any other fantasy reader
No person can Realy do tolkien justice for all the greats he has written for us. I feel this book was far superior to the first becaus it held together a little better.