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The Return of the Shadow: The History of The Lord of the Rings Part One (The History of Middle-Earth VI)

The Return of the Shadow: The History of The Lord of the Rings Part One (The History of Middle-Earth VI)

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The Return of the Shadow: The History of The Lord of the Rings Part One (The History of Middle-Earth VI)

by Tolkien, J.R.R. (ed by Christopher Tolkien)

  • Used
  • Fine
  • Hardcover
  • first
Condition
Fine/Fine
ISBN 10
0044401620
ISBN 13
9780044401629
Seller
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 3 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Kellerberrin, Western Australia, Australia
Item Price
£80.76
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About This Item

London: London: Unwin Hyman 1989 First Edition, Third Printing 8vo 497pp ISBN 0-04-440162-0, 1989 Fine original black cloth, in Fine Brodart-protected unclipped DW. In The Return of the Shadow, Christopher Tolkien describes, with full citation of the earliest notes, outline plans, and narrative drafts, the intricate evolution of The Fellowship of the Ring. The enlargement of Bilbo's 'magic ring' into the supremely potent and dangerous Ruling Ring of the Dark Lord is traced; the character of a Hobbit called Trotter is developed while his identity remains an insoluble puzzle; the Hobbits, Frodo's companions, undergo intricate permutations of name and personality, and other major figures appear in strange modes: a sinister Treebeard, in league with the Enemy, a ferocious and malevolent Farmer Maggot. The story in this book ends at the point where J.R.R. Tolkien halted in the story for a long time, as the Company of the Ring, still lacking Legolas and Gimli, stood before the tomb of Balin in the Mines of Moria. The book is illustrated with reproductions of the first maps and notable pages from the earliest manuscripts. A very attractive copy.

Synopsis

In this sixth volume of The History of Middle-earth the story reaches The Lord of the Rings. In The Return of the Shadow (an abandoned title for the first volume) Christopher Tolkien describes, with full citation of the earliest notes, outline plans, and narrative drafts, the intricate evolution of The Fellowship of the Ring and the gradual emergence of the conceptions that transformed what J.R.R. Tolkien for long believed would be a far shorter book, 'a sequel to The Hobbit'. The enlargement of Bilbo's 'magic ring' into the supremely potent and dangerous Ruling Ring of the Dark Lord is traced and the precise moment is seen when, in an astonishing and unforeseen leap in the earliest narrative, a Black Rider first rode into the Shire, his significance still unknown. The character of the hobbit called Trotter (afterwards Strider or Aragorn) is developed while his indentity remains an absolute puzzle, and the suspicion only very slowly becomes certainty that he must after all be a Man. The hobbits, Frodo's companions, undergo intricate permutations of name and personality, and other major figures appear in strange modes: a sinister Treebeard, in league with the Enemy, a ferocious and malevolent Farmer Maggot. The story in this book ends at the point where J.R.R. Tolkien halted in the story for a long time, as the Company of the Ring, still lacking Legolas and Gimli, stood before the tomb of Balin in the Mines of Moria. The Return of the Shadow is illustrated with reproductions of the first maps and notable pages from the earliest manuscripts.

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Details

Bookseller
N & A Smiles AU (AU)
Bookseller's Inventory #
9548
Title
The Return of the Shadow: The History of The Lord of the Rings Part One (The History of Middle-Earth VI)
Author
Tolkien, J.R.R. (ed by Christopher Tolkien)
Format/Binding
Hardcover
Book Condition
Used - Fine
Jacket Condition
Fine
Quantity Available
1
Edition
1st Edition
ISBN 10
0044401620
ISBN 13
9780044401629
Publisher
London: Unwin Hyman 1989 First Edition, Third Printing 8vo 497pp ISBN 0-04-440162-0
Place of Publication
London
Date Published
1989

Terms of Sale

N & A Smiles

Internet booksellers since 1994. All prices in US dollars. Grading is conservative. Dust Jackets are protected in Brodart sleeves. Payment required with order. Payment for International orders accepted by PayPal, after ascertaining correct postage. Foreign cheques are not accepted. Australian Postal Money Orders & Cheques are accepted and must be made payable to \"Nick Smiles\". Please note all books are priced in US dollars. For orders taken within Australia, we adjust prices to Australian currency for billing purposes. Shipping by airmail unless requested otherwise. Returns accepted by prior arrangement. A 10% re-stocking fee applies if book was as described or ordered in error.

About the Seller

N & A Smiles

Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 3 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Biblio member since 2005
Kellerberrin, Western Australia

About N & A Smiles

We are located on the Great Eastern Highway in the Central Wheatbelt town of Kellerberrin in Western Australia, 2-1/2 hours drive from Perth. We are directly opposite East Crossing Road, nestled in between the Tyre Service and the TAFE College. Public Transport is available via the Prospector & Avon Link passenger train services, or via the Goldfields Express bus service. We specialise in Collectible Paperbacks with an emphasis on Science Fiction and Crime Novels, but we also carry an extensive range of Mythology, Icelandic Sagas, Middle English Texts, Australian Exploration, Aboriginal Studies, Tolkien, Gor Books, Proto Science Fiction, Early SF Pulp Magazines and much more. Drop in for a browse and cup of coffee.

Glossary

Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:

Fine
A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
First Edition
In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
Cloth
"Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...

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