The Children of Hurin, by J.R.R. Tolkien

Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings trilogy is one of my favorite books of all time, so I had to read this one, even though it didn't get the best reviews.

Tolkien had started writing this book but passed away before he was able to finish it. His son, Christopher, completed it the best way he could and with minimal retouching.

I have to say that I did like the end result, even if it didn't have the scope and breadth of The Lord of the Rings, which it didn't aspire to, given that this was only a self-contained tale, even if it does have some references to the trilogy's wider opus.

I would recommend the book to any Tolkien fan or anyone who likes fantasy tales, but beware the chapter titles, if you can manage it, since they give away what happens in the chapters themselves -- like, this guy goes here, that guy dies, and so on.

That's actually the only gripe I have with the book, since I can't think of a worst type of decision an author could possibly make. Why would you want to give away what is about to happen? It's like telling the punchline before you tell the joke.

And if you read this in audio format, Christopher Lee does an awesome job. You can feel his admiration for Tolkien's work in every word.

Grade: 8