Christopher Tolkien has spent the past 30 years working on The Children of Húrin, which his father J.R.R. Tolkien began in 1918. It is also called "The Tale of Grief", "Narn i Chîn Húrin", commonly called "The Narn", and tells of the tragic fates of the children of Húrin, his son Turin (Turambar) and his daughter Nienor. On the 17th of April 2007 we will finally be able to read this tale in full, thanks to the editing by Tolkien's son Christopher. The text as a whole can be said to be "new" as it is a composition of published texts and other pieces that weren’t published previously. This will be the first "new" Tolkien book to be released since 1977 and a wonderful way to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Silmarillion!

At irc.tolkiengateway.net there will be an online celebration where we will count down the hours towards the publication of this new Tolkien book, we will keep track with tolkien.co.uk (the Tolkien site by the publisher HarperCollins), where the countdown has begun! Because we feel the release of The Children of Húrin is something unique we hope to bring you a true hobbit party, full of chatting, games and lots of treats for the guests! Since the fans of Tolkien live all over the world, and The Children of Húrin is due for a worldwide release, we thought it a good idea to organize a release event that could be attended by all Tolkien fans across the globe.

Here you will find more info on the event, the guests, the affiliates. More info can be found here at Tolkien Gateway. Because the event is life the schedule can be changed, an updated during the event. More information, announcements of guests, prizes and affiliates will be added in the coming days.

PRIZES TO BE WON:

The full list of prizes can be found here. Here are some of the major prizes that can be won durin the Children of Húrin Release Party:*  3 Deluxe editions of Children of Húrin signed by Alan Lee and Christopher Tolkien * 2 The Lord of the Rings 3 volume slip cased sets signed by Alan Lee on each volume * The Lord of the Rings sketchbook signed by Alan Lee* The Hobbit signed by Alan Lee* 2 one year memberships to The Tolkien Society* Beowulf and the Critics signed by Michael D.C. Drout* A Tolkienian Mathomium signed by Mark T. Hooker* 2 copies of The Company They Keep: C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien As Writers in Community signed by Diana Glyer * A silver replica of either the ring of Barahir or Nenya* A print of The Fellowship signed by The Brothers Hildebrandt * A print of The Seduction of Nienor signed by Jef Murray * A mounted print of Inger Edelfeldt's The Death of Glaurung* 5 copies of The Lord of the Rings Online game* The Children of Húrin posters* The Children of Húrin bookmarks* And various other prizes.

ACTIVITIES:

* Chatting * Q&A’s with special guests * Trivia* Hangman* Scavenger Hunt* Giveaway contests* The Children of Húrin updates* Audio streams* Music streams

GUESTS:

David BrawnDavid Brawn is the Publishing Director at HarperCollins and handles J.R.R. Tolkien division. Anything relating to Tolkien, which is to be published, has to pass his eyes.

Diana Glyer Diana Glyer is professor of English at Azusa Pacific University. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Chicago and now lives in California. In 1997 she received the Clyde S. Kilby Research Grant. This endowed award is presented annually by the Steering Committee of the Marion E. Wade Center to a scholar engaged in a publishable project related to one of the seven Wade authors. The intention of the award is both to recognize scholarly contributions and also to assist the work of those who use the resources of the Wade Center. Glyer received the Research Grant for the book that was published begin 2007, The Company They Keep: C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien As Writers in Community.

James DunningJames Duning’s art is featured in A Tolkienian Mathomium by Mark T. Hooker. The Artist James Dunning has read and digested Tolkien’s various works for forty years and has constructed evolving mental landscapes of scenes in Middle-earth. He has tried to depict Tolkien themes presented here in a style consistent with J.R.R. Tolkien’s own illustrative style. He also has written articles on Tolkien, which can be found in Beyond Bree.

Jef MurrayJef Murray is employed by the Pitts Theology Library of Emory University in Atlanta but is most famous for his Tolkien art. He sketched and painted natural and mythological wildlife and landscapes since his childhood years in the north Georgia hills. His illustrations can be found in publications of Parma Nole, Amon Hen, Mallorn, Mythic Circle, the Georgia Bulletin, and the St. Austin Review and many other magazines and books.

Johan VanheckeJohan Vanhecke organized a successful Tolkien exhibition in Antwerp, Belgium in 1992 and is the author of the Dutch book In de ban van de hobbit (Under the spell of the hobbit). He joined the Tolkien Society in 1979 (and later also other societies) and published about Tolkien in Belgium, The Netherlands, Great Britain, USA and Poland. He is curator at the Flemish literary archive, and published books on Flemish/Dutch literature and folklore.

John Garth John Garth, winner of the 2004 Mythopoeic Society Scholarship Award, studied English at Oxford University and has since worked as a newspaper journalist in London. A long-standing taste for the works of Tolkien, combined with an interest in the First World War, fueled the five years of research that have gone into Tolkien and the Great War and he has drawn extensively on previously unpublished personal papers as well as Tolkien's service record and other unique military documents.

Marcel Bülles Marcel Bülles a doctoral candidate at the Univesity of Cologne collaborated with Prof. Michael Drout in research on Tolkien, assisted in the preparation of the academic yearbook Tolkien Studies and contributed a few articles for the J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia published by Prof. Drout. He did find some time to pursue research for his doctoral degree as well, with the topic ‘The emergence of a cult. J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings in the United States, 1955-1992".

Mark T. HookerMark T. Hooker is a visiting scholar at Indiana University's Russian and East European Institute (REEI). Retired, he conducts research for Publication. Next to his articles in numerous Tolkien fanzines and Tolkien Studies., he is the author of the following Tolkien related books  Tolkien Through Russian Eyes as well as A Tolkienian Mathomium.

Matt  Blessing Matt Blessing is the Head of the Department of Special Collections and University Archives at Marquette University. He is responsible for the Tolkien Collection at the university, which contains the largest and rarest Tolkien items in the world. The most famous are of course the manuscripts of The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, Mr. Bliss, …

Dr Michaël DevauxMichaël Devaux has a doctorate from the Sorbonne with a special interest in the history of philosophy and the metaphysics of Leibniz. He is the editor of the Bibliographie Cartésienne 1960-1996 (Lecce, Conte, 2001) with Jean-Robert Armogathe and Vincent Carraud, and has written numerous articles in history of seventeenth century philosophy as well as Tolkien studies. He is the president of the French Tolkien Society “La Compagnie de la Comté”, and an editor of La Feuille de la Compagnie, a cahier of Tolkien studies published by Ad Solem. He has lectured on Tolkien in France, Holland and Italy.

Michael DroutMichael Drout professes at Wheaton College and is considered an expert in the field of J.R.R. Tolkien. Books relating to Tolkien written or edited by Michael Drout include Medieval and Renaissance Texts and Studies, Beowulf and the Critics, J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment and Tolkien Studies

Michael Martinez Michael Martinez (born 1959) is one of the most well known scholars in regards to J.R.R. Tolkien's works. He first published Parma Endorion in 1996 and has published a vast array of essays over the years. Most of these can be read online via his section on MERP.com. Michael has also published Visualizing Middle-earth in 2000 and Understanding Middle-earth in 2003.

Nils Ivar AgøyProfessor modern history and co-founder of the Norwegian Tolkien Society. He translated The Hobbit, The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales into Norwegian and is the translator of the Children of Húrin, which is due for publication in May. He has written many articles on Tolkien and wrote Mytenes mann: J.R.R. Tolkien og hans forfatterskap (2003) and the edited volume Between Faith and Fiction: Tolkien and the Powers of his World (1997).

Pieter CollierPieter Collier is the webmaster and author of  Tolkienlibrary.com, an avid Tolkien book collector, the winner of  The 1st Annual Northeast Tolkien Society Imperishable Flame Award 2006 for Tolkien/Inklings Fan Appreciation and now one of the two organizers of the Children of Húrin Release Party.

Roger GarlandRoger Garland is a well-known illustrator of J.R.R. Tolkien's works.  He also runs a gallery, which features a large collection of Tolkien art.  There are over seventy paintings anddrawings commissioned by the original publishers for many of J R R Tolkien's books. The illustrations from titles include The Lord of The Rings,  The Silmarillion, The Hobbit and Book of Lost Tales - also on exhibition  are the original pen and ink drawings from; Farmer Giles of Ham,  Smith of Wootton Major and Tom Bombadil, together with the book covers.

Turbine - Jeffrey Steefel (Executive Producer) and Chris Pierson (Senior Designer)Turbine is the developer of The Lord of the Rings Online after purchasing the rights from Vivendi in March 2005.

Dr Verlyn FliegerVerlyn Flieger is Professor of English at the University of Maryland, where she teaches courses in Tolkien, Medieval Literature, and Comparative Mythology. She has published three books on Tolkien—Splintered Light, A Question of Time, and Interrupted Music, as well editing the extended edition of Tolkien's last short story, Smith of Wootton Major. She is a co-editor with Carl Hostetter of Tolkien's Legendarium: Essays on The History of Middle-earth, and with Douglas A. Anderson and Michael Drout of the yearly journal Tolkien Studies. She has also published a novel, Pig Tale, a novella, "Avilion" in the Arthurian collection The Doom of Camelot edited by James Lowder, and a short story, "Green Hill Country" in the fantasy collection Seekers of Dreams edited by Douglas A. Anderson.

QUESTIONS FOR THE GUESTS:Here you can go and see the list of questions we will be asking our guest speakers. Whether you plan on attending the event or not you can add a question you would like us to ask. We ask that you try to think of original questions, which relate to the guest and their background on Tolkien. Yes or No questions are not advised. After the event the answers will be posted on TolkienLibrary.com and TolkienGateway.net for those who couldn't attend the live event.

SCHEDULE:

The shedule will be available here at Tolkien Gateway. Keep an eye on this page to keep track of the important events. Since this is a life event the schedule might be related to changes.

WHO DONATED ALL THE WONDERFUL PRIZES:

We can only thank the following persons, shops and websites for donating such wonderful prizes, make sure to visit there websites!

Daerons.co.uk - Diana Glyer - Houghton Mifflin - James Dunning - Jef Murray - Josh Long - Mark T. Hooker - Michael Drout - Rowns.com - Tolkien.co.uk -  Tolkienguide.com - Tolkienlibrary.com - Tolkienshop.com - Tolkiensociety.org

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