Ivana Books Are Magic's Reviews > The Children of Húrin

The Children of Hurin is a brilliant if a deeply tragic novel. It tells the story of the cursed Hurin's children. As the title indicates, Hurin's children are the protagonists of this novel, and the plot itself mostly follows his son Turin, who is the force setting most events in motion. At the start of the novel, Hurin is imprisoned by Morgoth, and thus his wife and children are forced to fend for themselves. Hurin's family members do find help with friends, but it is not an easy life for them. To make matters worse, Morgoth has placed a heavy course upon them, and if you have read The Silmarillion, you know that his curses are no figures of speech. Moreover, the readers of The Silmarillion will also know about the plot. From all of Tolkien's works set in this world, The Children of Hurin (not surprisingly) resembles the Simarillion the most, being in fact, a part of it. It is quite darker in tone than the LOTR thrilogy and the Hobbit. The Children of Hurin is more reminiscent of the tragic Scandinavian lore Tolkien was inspired by. In fact, this story quite resembles one of stories found in the Finnish epic poem Kalevala. Some parallels can also be drawn with Sigmund and the Volsunga saga. Fans of Tolkien probably know that he was partly inspired by European mythology, and being a scholar, we can assume that Tolkien's had an intimate knowledge of history.

I've loved Tolkien's writing since I was a little girl, and I don't think that will ever change. However, my initial expectations for this book weren't sky high. Having read Silmarillion a couple of times, I thought that The Children of Hurin will not be that interesting because I already knew the plot. I was quite wrong. Despite the fact that I was already familiar with the story and the plot, I enjoyed it as much as any book by Tolkien, that is - immensely. Everything I've always admired about Tolkien's writing is there: the beautiful prose, the mind-blowing attention to details, the intense emotions, the epic quests. The protagonist of this book is Turin and he makes for quite a tragic hero: “He was dark-haired as his mother, and promised to be like her in mood also; for he was not merry, and spoke little, though he learned to speak early and ever seemed older than his years. Túrin was slow to forget injustice or mockery; but the fire of his father was also in him, and he could be sudden and fierce. Yet he was quick to pity, and the hurts or sadness of living things might move him to tears.”

Among the other stories in Silmarillion, this one seems to me to be the saddest and the darkest one, with a heavy curse flying over its pages, filling every part of it with a sense of impending doom. Reading the longer version only highlighted that impression. In comparison with the shorter version, this book seems more personal, probably because there was more space to explore and portray the characters. Highly recommended, especially if you happen to be a fan of Tolkien.