History of Middle-earth boxed sets
26 Sep
(edited)
2023/9/26 7:54:19 (GMT) Greenwich Mean Time, London, Dublin, Lisbon, Casablanca, Monrovia
2023/9/26 7:54:19 (GMT) Greenwich Mean Time, London, Dublin, Lisbon, Casablanca, Monrovia
Christopher and J.R.R. Tolkien (1945) © The Tolkien Estate
2024 marks the Centenary of Christopher Tolkien's birth and as part of the commemoration, HarperCollins are releasing The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales, The History of Middle-earth and the Index as single volume hardbacks in 4 boxed sets.
The books have reversible jackets, with artwork by John Howe on one side and the original jacket design on the other side. You can pick which jacket you want on your shelves, or buy two sets if you want to display both.
The books will not be available as individual volumes, only in the boxed sets. The Print on Demand volumes are no longer available, and I am not sure if there are any plans to make them available again in the future.
It is also a welcome return for the purple Unfinished Tales, first used in 1992 and a new cover for The Silmarillion to match the original HoMe editions.
- The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales are offset from early editions, so the page numbers correspond to all Christopher’s page references in the History volumes, his Great Tales, and in other books like The Fall of Númenor. We’ve had a lot of people asking for this, as they can’t find the references in the modern editions.
The boxed set #1 is being released in the UK by HarperCollins on the 7th December 2023 and also via William Morrow, but these sets may take a bit longer to appear on sale, probably will be available early 2024. The RRP is £100.
This also marks the first time that the Index has been released as a hardback, as I don't count print on demand books.
I think the remaining box-sets will have staggered releases throughout 2024, hopefully both the UK and US editions will be available at the same time.
The breakdown of the sets will be
Boxed set #1
Left John Howe covers, Right Classic HoMe covers
First in a series of hardback boxed sets celebrating the literary achievement of Christopher Tolkien, featuring double-sided dustjackets. Set 1 contains special editions of THE SILMARILLION and UNFINISHED TALES reproducing the first edition text, together with the two volumes of THE BOOK OF LOST TALES.
The Silmarillion is an account of the Elder Days, of the First Age of Tolkien’s World. It is the ancient drama to which the characters in The Lord of the Rings look back, and in whose events some of them, such as Elrond and Galadriel, took part. The tales of The Silmarillion are set in an age when Morgoth, the first Dark Lord, dwelt in Middle-Earth, and the High Elves made war upon him for the recovery of the Silmarils, the jewels containing the pure light of Valinor.
Unfinished Tales is a collection of narratives ranging in time from the Elder Days of Middle-earth and the rise of Númenor in the Second Age to the end of the War of the Ring, and provides those who have read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings with a whole collection of background and new stories from the twentieth century’s most acclaimed popular author.
The Book of Lost Tales stands at the beginning of the entire conception of Middle-earth and Valinor for the Tales were the first form of the myths and legends that came to be called The Silmarillion. Embedded in English legend and English association, they are set in the narrative frame of a great westward voyage over the Ocean by a mariner named Eriol to the lonely Isle where the Elves dwelt; from them he learned their true history, the Lost Tales of Elfinesse.
In the two volumes of the Tales are found the earliest accounts of Gods and Elves, Dwarves, Balrogs and Orcs; of the Silmarils and the Two Trees of Valinor; of the geography and cosmology of Tolkien’s invented world.
Published together for the first time, these four books collect the beginning of Christopher Tolkien’s forty-year career devoted to presenting his father J.R.R. Tolkien’s writings on Middle-earth, a unique accomplishment that celebrates the greatest invented world in all of fantasy literature.
Release Date UK : 7th December 2023 (HarperCollins)
ISBN 978-0008663162
Release Date US : February 6, 2024(William Morrow)
ISBN 978-0063379848
Contents
- The Silmarillion
- Unfinished Tales
- The Book of Lost Tales Part One
- The Book of Lost Tales Part Two
Boxed set #2
Release Date UK : 28th March 2024 (provisional) (HarperCollins)
ISBN TBC
Release Date US : March 19th, 2024 (William Morrow)
ISBN: 978-0063390836
Contents
- The Lays of Beleriand
- The Shaping of Middle-earth
- The Lost Road and Other Writings
Boxed set #3
Release Date UK : 1st August 2024 (provisional) (HarperCollins)
ISBN TBC
Release Date US : September 10th, 2024 (William Morrow)
ISBN: 978-0063390843
Contents
- The Return of the Shadow
- The Treason of Isengard
- The War of the Ring
- Sauron Defeated
Boxed set #4
Release Date UK : 21st November 2024 (provisional) (HarperCollins)
ISBN TBC
Release Date US : November 5th, 2024 (William Morrow)
ISBN: 978-0063390850
Contents
- Morgoth's Ring
- The War of the Jewels
- The Peoples of Middle-earth
- Index
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