Print-run doubled on Tolkien book
The world still has a taste for tales about Middle-earth.
Two weeks after the publication of JRR Tolkien’s The Children of Hurin, an unfinished novel edited by the late author’s son, Christopher, more than 900,000 copies are in print worldwide, nearly double the original total, according to the US publisher, Houghton Mifflin.
The new book, a prequel to Tolkien’s mega-selling epic The Lord Of The Rings, was started by Tolkien in 1918, but eventually abandoned.
The author died in 1973, and his son spent the next 30 years working on the manuscript.
Excerpts from The Children Of Hurin, which includes the elves and dwarves of Tolkien’s other works, had been published over the years, but there was never a single narrative until this spring.
The Children Of Hurin, which came out on April 17, has topped numerous best-seller lists and Houghton Mifflin has increased its printing from 250,000 to 550,000.
Reviews have been favourable. Elizabeth Hand wrote in The Washington Post that “Hurin” was grand, epic storytelling and a reminder, if one was needed, of Tolkien’s genius in creating an imaginary world that both reflects and deepens a sense of our own mythic past.“
The Associated Press’s Bruce DeSilva praised the book as “a coherent, vivid and readable narrative”.
Film rights for the novel have yet to be optioned, with the Tolkien estate reportedly waiting to see the public’s response to the book.
“The Lord of the Rings” was adapted into an Academy Award-winning trio of blockbusters, directed by Peter Jackson.
