The HISTORY series, of which THE BOOK OF LOST TALES is the first two volumes (it was Tolkien's first title for what eventually became THE SILMARILLION), is drafts of material eventually published in a 'final' form as THE SILMARILLION and THE LORD OF THE RINGS. The information in those books is non-canon because it's been supersceded by the 'final' versions of the stories.
UNFINISHED TALES is material Tolkien didn't include elsewhere, a mixture of more in-depth descriptions of stories only briefly summarised in the other Middle-earth books, or information that doesn't appear anywhere else, and in many cases was written long after THE LORD OF THE RINGS was published. In fact, I believe he was grappling with the Galadriel/Celeborn essays at the time of his death.
UNFINISHED TALES is material Tolkien didn't include elsewhere, a mixture of more in-depth descriptions of stories only briefly summarised in the other Middle-earth books, or information that doesn't appear anywhere else, and in many cases was written long after THE LORD OF THE RINGS was published. In fact, I believe he was grappling with the Galadriel/Celeborn essays at the time of his death.
Unfinished Tales by J.R.R. Tolkien
- 20/12/2011 03:26:29 PM
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Where do volumes 1 and 2 of the Lost Tales fit into this?
- 20/12/2011 04:40:13 PM
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They're much, much earlier drafts of the Silmarillion.
- 20/12/2011 06:10:06 PM
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As Tom says
- 20/12/2011 11:24:49 PM
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Should the Simarillion be read prior to Unfinished Tales?
- 20/12/2011 11:55:13 PM
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Yes. The Silmarillion provides context and grounding for much of the content from Unfinished Tales
- 21/12/2011 04:36:35 PM
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