Unfinished Tales - J.R.R. Tolkien

Advantages: Adds to The Lord of the Rings & The Hobbit, beautifully written
Disadvantages: Not all tales are completely finished, fairly weighty read.

**Summary Review of Unfinished Tales** Unfinished Tales at a Glance (A.K.A. Why Should You Read U.T.): 1. U.T. fills in details and background for The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. 2. U.T. Is a fantasic example of classical fantasy literature and mythology. 3. It is very moving and well written. The language is brilliant! 4. U.T. stories are very compelling and intense. 5. It’s Tolkien. Unfinished Tales on the Shelf (A.K.A. Why You ...
...**Full Review of Unfinished Tales** Unfinished Tales is an excellent addition to the family of published Tolkien books, and that Christopher Tolkien did quite a good job in the editing of this particular volume. C. Tolkien basically left all the “stories” in Unfinished Tales as J.R.R. Tolkien had written them. As the name Unfinished Tales suggests, these were not completely finished at the time Tolkien passed away. That means that some of them don’t ... Read review

Advantages: Another glimmering facet of the master!
Disadvantages: won't appeal to non Tolkien fans

...Earth. This is where Unfinished Tales comes in. Split into four parts, with the first and second age given more detail and the third age as well, this also covers many area's that were undeveloped in his previous works, elements on the Palantir and the Istari. This for me is so absorbing and would come in useful for anyone who is interested in the huge mythologies of Middle Earth. The first age is a very undeveloped section if you haven't read the ...
...the light of day. Unfinished tales being one of them, it has notes following every section of the book explaining things in even more detail. So why should you read unfinished tales ? If the wonderful story's and the involving history are not reason enough then I guess this is not your type of read. As ever the descriptive prose of Tolkien is sensational in keeping the reader merrily skipping along with the tumults of the protagonists. Often wondrous ... Read review

Advantages: Interesting insight
Disadvantages: As it suggests, it's unfinished

This book, along with the Silmarillion, is one of the books you should read if you have read The Hobbit and Lord Of the Rings and want to know more about Middle-Earth. JRR Tolkien worked virtually right up to his death and a lot of his last works are present in this book, which covers the first three ages of Middle-Earth. Included is how Gandalf came to send Bilbo and the dwarves to the lonely mountain and what became of the five wizards (Two of ... Read review

Advantages: Intriguing Tales to accompany The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.
Disadvantages: Unfinished - as the title suggests.

...understood. With the help of Unfinished Tales we can understand more about Middle-Earth. It is a must read for all Tolkien fans. It includes enticing tales of Gandalf and Gollum amongst many others. You can really sink your teeth into this, amazing tales of different length beautifully edited into one book - Unfinished Tales. The stories are amazingly written and alongside The Silmarillion, we can start to understand where he got his ideas for The ... Read review