Unearthed JRR Tolkien essays on Middle-earth to be published in 2021

The Nature of Middle-earth is out next June

Louis Chilton
Thursday 19 November 2020 16:20 GMT
Comments
Iconinc 'For Frodo!' scene from Lord of the Rings

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

A previously unpublished set of essays exploring Middle-earth by JRR Tolkien are set to be released next year.

The writing goes into detail about the world in which Tolkien’s beloved Lord of the Rings trilogy is set.

Physical and biological rules of Tolkien’s universe are explained in the pages, including details on Elvish reincarnation and certain characters’ and species’ ability to grow facial hair.

Approved for publication by the Tolkien estate, the new book of essays will be called The Nature of Middle-earth.

It will be published by HarperCollins next June.

Chris Smith, deputy publishing director of HarperCollins, said: “For Tolkien, Middle-earth was part of an entire world to be explored,” said Smith, “and the writings in The Nature of Middle-earth reveal the journeys that he took as he sought to better understand his unique creation.”

Both The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings were adapted into hit blockbuster films by New Zealand filmmaker Peter Jackson. 

A Lord of the Rings TV series, set in Middle-earth long before the events of the Jackson trilogy, is currently in production at Amazon.

The as-yet-untitled series will be released directly on Amazon Prime Video. 

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in