Review - The Children of Hurin

by Daniel Mayhew
(Phoenix, AZ)

I am a fan of J.R.R. Tolkien from my teen years, when I first read The Hobbit & The Lord of the Rings, so when I saw The Children of Hurin sitting in a bookstore window, I had to purchase it.

At first, especially during the book's introduction, the writing seemed very dense and complicated. I am not a Tolkien afficianado and have not read all of the various "background" histories and such that have been published since the author's death.

But I also remembered how slowly The Lord of the Rings began, and of having to fight my way through the first 100+ pages, so I persevered.

Boy am I glad I did! After wading through the initial onslaught of names and lineages, the story really takes off.

I know that The Children of Hurin is pieced together from various unfinished drafts, and certainly there are some lulls in the book, where the story seems a little bit underdeveloped. But the story in itself is haunting. Very dark, much darker than The Lord of the Rings. But beautiful too.

I would highly suggest this book not only to the die-hard Tolkienites, but to the casual fans of the books or movies. Just fight your way past the complicated first ten to fifteen pages, and the story really opens up.