The Children of Húrin

Review

The family cursed by Morgoth, Túrin strugles to find his place in the world. 

Construction lines and clunky glue hold together Tolkiens epic tale of terribleness. With the horrible ends of nearly all the cast and the self inflicted horror the prose is the saving grace. A guide to all ways pride and trusting in a Great Man can go wrong.

Notes

29

• A thankfully brief if confusing history leading up to the book and a pronunciation guide.

52

• What a lonely childhood it must have been.

65

• The elves go all in, to their doom while the men commit suicide by evil lord.
  Húrin is captured and reminds Morgoth of the limits of his power, leading to Morgoth reminding Húrin of the extent of his power.

76

• Morwen ignores the fates.

86

• Túrin grows up, but is not yet a man.

91

• Youthful arrogance meets immortal stubbornness with devastating results for everyone.

97

• All is forgiven but the forgiven has already fled.

120

• Túrin in his pride and stubbornness becomes an outlaw.

150

• The death of the company and the short‑lived dominion of Túrin over the area.

158

• The death of Beleg was senseless and seemed only to fill a checkbox.
• Also: “then, then, then” does not an interesting story make.

170

• Is the doom of Túrin with his name or with himself?

181

• Once again Túrin is fleeing alone in the wilderness — once again mostly due to his own bad advice.

188

• “Rash are your deeds, son of Húrin, as if you were still but the child that I knew?”

197

• Another group of men out there trust in Túrin’s strength — will they fare any better?

203

• “…She waived, but she could not overcome her pride…” — Morwen
• “Truly, it is by lack of counsel not of courage that Húrin's kin bring woe to others!” — Mablung

212

• Once again wise counsel is ignored to the doom of many.

220

• Happiness at last, but in the wrong places.

259

• In the end the family of Húrin lies broken by pride and at their own hands.
  It is somehow fitting that Húrin, who believed he was sacrificing his own life so that others could flee, would outlast them all.

260

• And in the end here lies Húrin’s family, torn apart by its own pride and killed by their own hands.
  A fitting end that Húrin — believing he was sacrificing his own life to save his family and others — would outlast them in the end.

292

• Christopher lost in the weeds of his dad’s writing again.