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2022-6-21 11:00:26 PM UTC
The Fall of Númenor: and Other Tales from the Second Age of Middle-earth
Edited by Brian Sibley Illustrated by Alan Lee
Press release
HarperCollins is proud to announce the publication in November 2022 of THE FALL OF NÚMENOR by J.R.R. Tolkien, edited by writer and Tolkien expert, Brian Sibley, and illustrated by acclaimed artist, Alan Lee. The book will be published globally by HarperCollinsPublishers and in other languages by numerous Tolkien publishers worldwide.
Presenting for the first time in one volume the events of the Second Age as written by J.R.R. Tolkien and originally and masterfully edited for publication by Christopher Tolkien, this new volume will include pencil drawings and colour paintings by Alan Lee, who also illustrated The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit and went on to win an Academy Award for his work on The Lord of the Rings film trilogy.
J.R.R. Tolkien famously described the Second Age of Middle-earth as a ‘dark age, and not very much of its history is (or need be) told’. And for many years readers would need to be content with the tantalizing glimpses of it found within the pages of The Lord of the Rings and its appendices.
It was not until Christopher Tolkien presented The Silmarillion for publication in 1977 that a fuller story could be told for, though much of its content concerned the First Age of Middle-earth, there were at its close two key works that revealed the tumultuous events concerning the rise and fall of the island-kingdom of Númenor, the Forging of the Rings of Power, the building of the Barad-dûr and the rise of Sauron, and the Last Alliance of Elves and Men.
Christopher Tolkien provided even greater insight into the Second Age in Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-earth in 1980, and expanded upon this in his magisterial 12-volume History of Middle-earth, in which he presented and discussed a wealth of further tales written by his father, many in draft form.
Now, using ‘The Tale of Years’ in The Lord of the Rings as a starting point, Brian Sibley has assembled from the various published texts in a way that tells for the very first time in one volume the tale of the Second Age of Middle-earth, whose events would ultimately lead to the Third Age, and the War of the Ring, as told in The Lord of the Rings.
The Hobbit was first published in 1937 and The Lord of the Rings in 1954–5. Each has since gone on to become a beloved classic of literature and an international bestseller translated into more than 70 languages, collectively selling more than 150,000,000 copies worldwide. Published in 1977, The Silmarillion sold more than one million copies in its first year of publication and has gone on to be translated into almost 40 languages.
Brian Sibley says: ‘Since the first publication of The Silmarillion forty-five years ago, I have passionately followed Christopher Tolkien’s meticulous curation and scholarship in publishing a formidable history of his father’s writings on Middle-earth. I am honoured to be adding to that authoritative library with The Fall of Númenor. I hope that, in drawing together many of the threads from the tales of the Second Age into a single work, readers will discover – or rediscover – the rich tapestry of characters and events that are a prelude to the drama of the War of the Ring as is told in The Lord of the Rings.
Alan Lee says: ‘It is a pleasure to be able to explore the Second Age in more detail, and learn more about those shadowy and ancient events, alliances and disasters that eventually led to the Third Age stories we are more familiar with. Wherever I had the opportunity when working on The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, I tried to imbue pictures and designs with an appropriate antiquity, an overlayering of history and of echoes of those older stories, and The Fall of Númenor has proved a perfect opportunity to dig a little deeper into the rich history of Middle-earth.’
The Fall of Númenor will be published by HarperCollins with a simultaneous global publication date of November 2022, and subsequently in translation around the world.
The streaming series, The Rings of Power, set during the Second Age of Middle-earth, will be released by Amazon Prime in September 2022.
UK Trade
Publisher : HarperCollins (10 November 2022) Language : English Hardcover : 352 pages ISBN-10 : 0008537836 ISBN-13 : 978-0008537838 Dimensions : 14.9 x 2.5 x 22.8 cm
UK Deluxe
Publisher : HarperCollins (10 November 2022) Language : English Hardcover : 352 pages ISBN-10 : 0008537844 ISBN-13 : 978-0008537845 Dimensions : 14.9 x 2.5 x 22.8 cm
US Trade Publisher : William Morrow (November 15, 2022) Language : English Hardcover : 320 pages ISBN-10 : 006328068X ISBN-13 : 978-0063280687 Item Weight : 1 pounds
eBooks
UK - ASIN : B0B4FF4S4V (10th November 2022)
US - ASIN : B0B1DVP4J3 (November 15, 2022)
Audiobook
HarperCollins; Unabridged edition Audio-CD (16 March 2023) isbn 978-0008537876
I love that Alan Lee cover. Also very much like the idea of collecting the second age writings in one book and i'm very curious about what will be included.
I was very wrong in my speculation about what this was ?
This was certainly not on any of our radars with guessing hehe.
I enjoyed Beren and Luthien and The Fall of Gondolin and expect this new release will follow a similar style. Excited to see what Brian does with the texts.
I'm wondering if the Lost Road material will also be included and if they will give Christopher's notes or will rewrite them completely from scratch. Curious.
The full title seems to be The Fall of Númenor : and Other Tales from the Second Age of Middle-earth, according to edelweiss. kindle & audio book will be published on the same day. There is also US hardcover 9780063280687
Now, adhering to the timeline of ‘The Tale of Years’ in the appendices to The Lord of the Rings, editor Brian Sibley has assembled into one comprehensive volume a new chronicle of the Second Age of Middle-earth, told substantially in the words of J.R.R. Tolkien from the various published texts, with new illustrations in watercolour and pencil by the doyen of Tolkien art, Alan Lee.
ILLUSTRATED BY FAMED ARTIST ALAN LEE: Will include 10 full-color paintings and more than 30 pencil drawings, all original new work by Alan Lee
As my many friends in the Tolkien Society will understand, it has been a great honour to have been entrusted with the task of bringing together J.R.R. Tolkien’s writings (under the editorship of Christopher Tolkien) relating to the dramatic history spanning the Second Age of Middle-earth. I hope that this opportunity to read, as a single narrative, an account of those years, will provide a new appreciation of how the monumental events of the Second Age were to impact on those told in The Lord of the Rings.
Also for Tolkien aficionados, there is the glorious gift of ten new colour plates by Alan Lee, featuring scenes – such as the building of Barad-dûr and Galadriel leading the Elves through Khazad-dûm – that this master illustrator hasn’t previously had the opportunity to depict.
This may mean something more along the lines of Children of Hurin rather than just a collection of texts with commentaries.
I don't see a way to do that here without a lot of invention, but perhaps this is why they chose to go with Sibley on this one, as he has experience writing adaptation.
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