The Children of Hurin

By: J. R. R. Tolkien

Narrated by: Christopher Lee

Length: 7 hrs and 51 mins

Publisher's summary

Painstakingly restored from Tolkien’s manuscripts and presented for the first time as a fully continuous and standalone story, the epic tale of The Children of Húrin will reunite fans of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings with Elves and Men, dragons and Dwarves, eagles and Orcs, and the rich landscape and characters unique to Tolkie

There are tales of Middle-earth from times long before The Lord of the Rings, and the story told in this book is set in the great country that lay beyond the Grey Havens in the West: lands where Treebeard once walked, but which were drowned in the great cataclysm that ended the First Age of the World.

In that remote time Morgoth, the first Dark Lord, dwelt in the vast fortress of Angband, the Hells of Iron, in the North; and the tragedy of Túrin and his sister Nienor unfolded within the shadow of the fear of Angband and the war waged by Morgoth against the lands and secret cities of the Elves.

Their brief and passionate lives were dominated by the elemental hatred that Morgoth bore them as the children of Húrin, the man who had dared to defy and to scorn him to his face. Against them he sent his most formidable servant, Glaurung, a powerful spirit in the form of a huge wingless dragon of fire. Into this story of brutal conquest and flight, of forest hiding-places and pursuit, of resistance with lessening hope, the Dark Lord and the Dragon enter in direly articulate form. Sardonic and mocking, Glaurung manipulated the fates of Túrin and Nienor by lies of diabolic cunning and guile, and the curse of Morgoth was fulfilled.

The earliest versions of this story by J.R.R. Tolkien go back to the end of the First World War and the years that followed; but long afterwards, when The Lord of the Rings was finished, he wrote it anew and greatly enlarged it in complexities of motive and character: it became the dominant story in his later work on Middle-earth. But he could not bring it to a final and finished form. In this book Christopher Tolkien has constructed, after long study of the manuscripts, a coherent narrative without any editorial invention.

©2007 J. R. R. Tolkien Copyright Trust and Christopher Reuel Tolkien (P)2007 HarperCollins Publishers Ltd, London, UK

An Epic Tragedy

I loved listening to this amazing and timeless story. It was brilliantly narrated by Christopher Lee.

Tolkein's Great Tragedy - Another Great Tale

What did you love best about The Children of Hurin?

This is a tale that spins off from the Silmarillion - from the ages before LOTR. If you like that, you'll like this. It is a tragic tale, finished off in the editing by his son and literary executor, Christopher, that contains the full measure of Tolkien's mastery of the mythical genre. If you like Tolkien this would be required reading.

What about Christopher Lee’s performance did you like?

Christopher Lee's performance is powerful and moving. His reading of Tolkein's many tough-to-pronounce names is carefully done and a pleasure to listen to. I was really pleased by the narration.

The full tale

Sir Christopher Lee was an excellent choice for this tale, his voice and accent fully emerse you in this tragic hero's tale. This story is the fuller tale of Turin that is written in the Silmeriollion and adds much to the story and characters making this work most enjoyable.

Majestic, Tragic And Dark Epic Of A Time Long Ago

Where does The Children of Hurin rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

One of the best amongst ancient history/fantasy. A very sad tale and sometimes too tragic to comprehend.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I loved the character of Beleg. He was a true friend of Turin and seemed to always hold hope of redemption for him - despite the foretelling of doom.

Which scene was your favorite?

The killing of the dragon. It showed the true character and inner strength of Turin. Unfortunately, it also led to the tragic demise of himself and his sister.

Cristopher Lee Excels

This is an excellent story and impassioned reading by C. Lee. Tolkien fans will certainly cherish this audio book purchase.

Isn’t a normal book

This is written as an old tale or campfire fable. It won’t read as a normal progressing narrative but more as Christopher Lee reading you an old Celtic tale. Christopher Lee does a fantastic job at it but otherwise this story isn’t the most interesting. Unless you’re a diehard LOTR fan I’d definitely give this a skip. You’ll need a LOTR Wikipedia page up the entire time you’re reading. Especially when the MC changes his name 3 times

Well done

Christopher Lee’s narration of this beautiful story was magnificent. Really illustrates why Tolkien’s work is called high fantasy. This tale is a tragedy on a Shakespearian scale. Listening will begin to reveal the depth of Tolkien and the history he created. The movies and television shows make it seem like a dirty Middle Ages knock-off but he had a high and noble vision to share with us. And a call to be better ourselves

Great Story

Great story! You definitely need a strong understanding of the Silmarillion before reading this. Sir Christopher Lee did an alright job narrating, but I've heard better narrators for Tolkien's work.

Tragic but good

As it states above, tragic story, appreciate all the additions lore of the Tolkien world

Terrific production of a heartbreaking tragedy

Wow. This one got me right in the feels. What a terrible and beautiful story. Christopher Lee is a fantastic reader.