Unfinished Tales!

Unfinished Tales gives us the last of the raw texts J.R.R Tolkien produced about his Middle-Earth mythologies. These are fragmented and as advertised unfinished stories. They are unfinished in two ways, both lacking an end and unrevised. Tolkien's son Christopher gathers these together and arranges them chronologically. This cache of tales, legends and lists is more like an expanded appendix in many respects and a short story collection in others. 

Part One: The First Age 

"The Fall of Gondolin" is the first of two stories of this earliest era and is perhaps more accurately titled "Of Tuor and his Coming to Gondolin" since we never actually get to the falling part. Tuor is a great hero who seeks the land of the Elves hidden away. He is on a mission from the water god Ulmo and has the assistance of an elf and after much travail finds the exceedingly well-hidden kingdom. This is supposedly Tolkien's earliest story in Middle-Earth. 

"Narn i Hin Hurin" or "The Tale of the Children of Hurin" is a lengthy and dark piece and tells of a young hero named Turin Turambar who after his father Hurin is captured by the forces of Morgath is sent to the Elves and finds sanctuary there until he is able to grow to manhood. Hurin leaves the Elves, becoming a man of great strength and great temper. He possessed a black blade named Gaurthang and he himself came to be called  Mormegil which translates to "Black Blade". Turin's mother Morwen and sister Nienor left the Elves and Nienor encountered the dragon Glaurong who robbed her of her memory. Turin gives himself another name, calling himself Turambar and so when they met after many years, they did not know one another and so after a time married and Nienor became pregnant. But the tragic truth was revealed when Glaurong was slain and ultimately both Nienor and Turin took their own lives. The tragic nature of this story and the presence of a black blade did evoke memories of Moorcock's Elric of Melnibone. 

Part Two: The Second Age

"A Description of the Island of Numenor" is exactly what is says it is. We get a tour of the island Westernesse (another name for it), visiting its cities and other important sites. 

"Aldarion and Erendis: The Mariner's Wife" tells the tale of a the king Aldarion who loves ships and sailing more than his responsibilities at home as the heir apparent to the throne. The beautiful but somewhat tragic Erendis weds him with warning that his attentions will always be split. We get the story of how they made a go of it for some time and even had a daughter who went on to become Numenor's first Queen. But we learn that there is more to Aldarion's sailing, a reason with dark portents for all the world. 

"The Line of Elros: Kings of Numenor" is once again as advertised. We get a rundown of the kings and their deeds as they slowly but surely fall into tyranny. 

"The History of Galadriel and Celeborn" tells the many varied versions of Tolkien's alluring elf and her mate. Galadriel is clearly a character near to Tolkien's heart and her story is one which is infused through most of the sagas of Middle-Earth and beyond. This is a patchwork of different stories which detail how she came to Middle-Earth and chose to stay there with Celeborn facing the threats from Sauron which manifested time after time. There is also quite a heavy dose of info on the nature of names and such. 

Part Three: The Third Age

"The Disaster of the Gladden Fields" tells the tragic story of King Islidur and how he came to his end and lost the One Ring which had been ripped from Sauron but not destroyed but rather lost setting in motion those events which we know as the tale of The Lord of the Rings. He was headed home with his three eldest sons, and the company was attacked by Orcs. There were only a few survivors to tell the tale. 

"Cirion and Eorl and the Friendship of Gondor and Rohan" gives insight into how the kingdom of Gondor and the kingdom of Rohan developed a lasting relationship which served both well in the time of the war of the ring. This is a very fragmented telling. 

"The Quest of Erebor" is told from Gandalf's perspective and gives details about how he came to know of Thorin Oakenshield's quest and how he came to be in possession of the map that allowed the party to find the secret door in Erebor. We also learn more about Gandalf's attitudes toward a certain Bilbo Baggins, a Hobbit of unusual habits.

"The Hunt for the Ring" is really interesting and gives us to some extent Sauron's perspective in the search for the One Ring. It really gives insight into how the Nazgul, the Black Riders operate and what they were really up to as they shambled across the land looking for their prize. We get a few versions of some aspects of these tales. 

"The Battles of the Fords of Isen" reveals how the sone of Theoden died defending against the forces of Sauron. We learn that Sauron was in particular trying to kill Theodred at the cost of greater strategic victories. We are introduced as well to the leaders of the Eorlinga who defended after Theodred's fall. 

Part Four: Assorted Tales

"The Druedain" introduces the bewildering wild men of the woods who appear and help in the war at a critical time. These are a diminished people who hide from men for fear of what will become of them. While the Hobbits exist largely unknown in the Shire and by and large lived charmed lives before the war, these Duredain seem to be little people who have suffered, though they are by no means victims. They hunted Orcs with particular efficiency, such that that Orcs were wary. 

"The Istari" are the wizards who came to Middle-Earth. There were five of them. Saruman the White (Curumo), the two Blue Wizards (whose names might be Alatar and Pallando), Radagast the Brown (Awendil), and Gandalf the Grey (Olorin). Saruman and the Blue Wizards head South and only Saruman returns. What became of the Blue Wizards is speculative at best. Radagast dedicates himself to protecting the natural world. Gandalf becomes a traveler and consorts with the Elves. He is trusted so much by them that he is given the Red Ring one of the three Elven rings. This possibly triggers Saruman's jealousy and later of course we know that he becomes totally corrupt. 

"The Palantiri" are the orbs that allow users to see great distances, but with specific limitations. They were used for many long years successfully but then became dark secrets when some of the orbs went missing and trust was less common in Middle-Earth among men and others. It was suspected that Sauron might have a palantiri but it was not certain. Saruman had command of one in Orthanc and Denethor another in Minas Tirith. But this was not generally known. 

And that's the lot. Unfinished Tales is more like reading a reference text in many places, like The Silmarillion is like reading history. The stories are less compressed in some sections. If one accepts that like myths, the stories might not have ready finishes, then reading these segments can be rewarding. But if you're looking for a narrative which will snap you up and sweep you along you will be mostly disappointed.  

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