I brought up this book in the Amazon series thread where some of us talked about it briefly, but I figured now that I've finished reading it, I should start a new thread instead of continuing to derail that thread.
I knew very little of the story going in and a quick read through of The Simarillion where the tale is briefly told suggests I never read that particular section (but it was years ago when I partially read The Silmarillion the one time).
That aside, I really enjoyed the tale overall in its various forms. The book is divided into several sections based on the different versions Tolkien developed the story with many notations from his son Christopher, who painstakingly edited his father's many handwritten drafts. The two longest and most striking parts are "The Original Tale," written in 1916 after Tolkien survived the Battle of Somme, and "The Last Version," written in 1951.
"The Original Tale" tells the full (as in having a beginning, middle and end) story of Tuor, Voronwë, their journey to Gondolin, warning Turgon of the Melko (as he's known here) threat, Turgon's subsequent dismissal, Melko's eventual invasion, and the fleeing of the survivors. The tale is often weak and vague in prose, particularly regarding Tuor's journey prior to reaching Gondolin, but it does eventually liven up when Melko finally attacks. Lots of battling with Orcs, dragons, drakes, and of course, Balrogs (also some other monsters that are vague in description), followed by noble sacrifices and dire consequences. Tolkien particularly went into details of the seven battalions that guarded Gondolin and who led them, as well as detailing Idril's plans for a secret delving (i.e. drilling an escape route) after it became clear her father wasn't taking Tuor's warnings seriously. The concludes with Tuor leading the survivors through the mountains, Glorfindel's battle with the Balrog, and Tuor rescuing Eärendil from pursuing Orcs after the survivors reach relative safety.
"The Last Version" is far more elegant and detailed than "The Original Tale," contrasting with it much in the same way The Lord of the Rings contrasts with The Hobbit. Most notably, this version fleshes out Tuor's history, the nature of his journey, his encounter with Ulmo, meeting Voronwë, and traveling to Gondolin. Sadly, Tolkien abandoned the tale just after Tuor and Voronwë cleared through the intricately designed Seven Gates of Orfalch Echor Cirith (Tolkien really had a thing for the number seven) and entered into the city of Gondolin. The descriptions of the gates are a particularly fun read with the various elements used to construct each of them (wood, stone, bronze, etc.), the number of towers, and the increasing number of defenders in all of their dressed elegance (they are Noldor, after all).
While I'm sure Tolkien and especially Christopher would rebuff at such a notion, I think one could take the two halves of the tale (the second half of "The Original Tale" and all of "The Last Version") and thoroughly enjoy the beauty of the overall tale as one.
One odd thing to note: In "The Original Tale," a certain night-sighted elf by the name of Legalos Greenleaf (named in full) makes an appearance as the refugees travel the mountains after escaping the fall of Gondolin. Clearly, Tolkien would later decide to use the name for The Lord of the Rings and this is not intended to be the same character, but it is odd that Christopher makes no note of this addition (unless I missed it, I didn't quite read everything because he often got rather droll in his notes), nor is Legalos mentioned in the List of Names at the end of the book.
In addition to a near completion of this tale, the biggest highlight of this book is the inclusion of eight full-colored plates created by Alan Lee as well as 15 chapter-header sketches. Plus, there are two family trees which Christopher noted are slightly different from the ones included in Beren and Lúthien, and a First Age map.
I knew very little of the story going in and a quick read through of The Simarillion where the tale is briefly told suggests I never read that particular section (but it was years ago when I partially read The Silmarillion the one time).
That aside, I really enjoyed the tale overall in its various forms. The book is divided into several sections based on the different versions Tolkien developed the story with many notations from his son Christopher, who painstakingly edited his father's many handwritten drafts. The two longest and most striking parts are "The Original Tale," written in 1916 after Tolkien survived the Battle of Somme, and "The Last Version," written in 1951.
"The Original Tale" tells the full (as in having a beginning, middle and end) story of Tuor, Voronwë, their journey to Gondolin, warning Turgon of the Melko (as he's known here) threat, Turgon's subsequent dismissal, Melko's eventual invasion, and the fleeing of the survivors. The tale is often weak and vague in prose, particularly regarding Tuor's journey prior to reaching Gondolin, but it does eventually liven up when Melko finally attacks. Lots of battling with Orcs, dragons, drakes, and of course, Balrogs (also some other monsters that are vague in description), followed by noble sacrifices and dire consequences. Tolkien particularly went into details of the seven battalions that guarded Gondolin and who led them, as well as detailing Idril's plans for a secret delving (i.e. drilling an escape route) after it became clear her father wasn't taking Tuor's warnings seriously. The concludes with Tuor leading the survivors through the mountains, Glorfindel's battle with the Balrog, and Tuor rescuing Eärendil from pursuing Orcs after the survivors reach relative safety.
"The Last Version" is far more elegant and detailed than "The Original Tale," contrasting with it much in the same way The Lord of the Rings contrasts with The Hobbit. Most notably, this version fleshes out Tuor's history, the nature of his journey, his encounter with Ulmo, meeting Voronwë, and traveling to Gondolin. Sadly, Tolkien abandoned the tale just after Tuor and Voronwë cleared through the intricately designed Seven Gates of Orfalch Echor Cirith (Tolkien really had a thing for the number seven) and entered into the city of Gondolin. The descriptions of the gates are a particularly fun read with the various elements used to construct each of them (wood, stone, bronze, etc.), the number of towers, and the increasing number of defenders in all of their dressed elegance (they are Noldor, after all).
While I'm sure Tolkien and especially Christopher would rebuff at such a notion, I think one could take the two halves of the tale (the second half of "The Original Tale" and all of "The Last Version") and thoroughly enjoy the beauty of the overall tale as one.
One odd thing to note: In "The Original Tale," a certain night-sighted elf by the name of Legalos Greenleaf (named in full) makes an appearance as the refugees travel the mountains after escaping the fall of Gondolin. Clearly, Tolkien would later decide to use the name for The Lord of the Rings and this is not intended to be the same character, but it is odd that Christopher makes no note of this addition (unless I missed it, I didn't quite read everything because he often got rather droll in his notes), nor is Legalos mentioned in the List of Names at the end of the book.
In addition to a near completion of this tale, the biggest highlight of this book is the inclusion of eight full-colored plates created by Alan Lee as well as 15 chapter-header sketches. Plus, there are two family trees which Christopher noted are slightly different from the ones included in Beren and Lúthien, and a First Age map.
