The Lord of the Rings: 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition! Which one to get!?

Well, my brother wants The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, Children of Hurin, and The Hobbit for Christmas. As the loving brother I turn out to be, I decided to buy him these, in hardcover edition. I have a problem though, I don't know which The Lord of the Rings: 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition, the US or the UK edition.

UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lord-Rings-5...5676310&sr=1-8
US: http://www.amazon.com/Lord-Rings-50t...5676432&sr=8-3

The thing with the UK edition is that the same publisher (Harper Collins) has also published two similar editions for Children of Hurin and The Hobbit;

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hobbit-J-R-T...5676310&sr=1-8
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Children-Hur...5676565&sr=1-2

It would make one hell of a collection if I decide to give him the UK edition collection, all three books with the same slipcase/binding design.

The only real downside with the UK edition is that it's very expensive compared to the US ones, $355 for the three UK books, while the US books would cost about half I think. But the problem is that the US publisher hasn't made these three books into a collection, like Harper Collins has.

The semi-downside is that I've already ordered the US version of LOTR (didn't even know there was two entirely different versions for UK and US), and a Collector's Edition of The Hobbit, the latter published in 1974. This isn't a big issue though, those books were really cheap compared to norwegian bookprices, and I can keep them myself if I decide to get the UK editions for my brother.

Oh well, if anyone can provide any guidance, I'd be forever in gratitude.

Thanks

It would be neat to have them all the same binding and covers and I did some searching on my own to see if they also had a similar edition of The Silmarillion or Unfinished Tales because then you really would have a very complete Tolkien library. They do have an edition of The Silmarillion but not Unifinished Tales...but perhaps that would come eventually. The question is, would these books be to read or more display books? I have paperbacks of all those books and those are the ones I read, the fancy hardcover editions sit on my bookshelf and look pretty but I've hardly ever even cracked the bindings. If he's going to read these, if they'll be subject to wear, then I wouldn't spend the huge amount of money on getting matching editions but if these are more "Trophy" books, then by all means, do the matching thing because speaking as a serious Tolkien fan...that would be awesome! :thumbs_up

I agree with Idril. I have a question though: has he read any of them?

Yep, he's pretty hardcore. I think he has about 10 different softcover copies of LOTR and The Hoobit, and he has read them a dozen times. I dont think he has read Children of Hurin though, but I think he will find the UK Deluxe Edition of Hurin much easier to read than the LOTR Deluxe Edition, seeing as Hurin is only on about 3-400 pages, and (probably) won't be victim of wear due to the book itself being maybe too heavy for the binding.

I would definitely get the UK edition if he's hardcore about it.

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Originally Posted by Nico87

Yep, he's pretty hardcore.

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I'm with Dori, I would definitely do it then. I know I would be absolutely thrilled with a set like that even though I already have about 3 editions of it lying around. And like I said, with that Silmarillion out there, you have a birthday present waiting in the wings. ;)

Thanks for your replies. I decided to give him LOTR, The Hobbit, Children of Hurin, and The Silmarillion in UK Deluxe editions. Thanks alot for the heads up about the latter, Idril, I didn't know there was a deluxe edition for it.

Well, that leaves me with the US editions of LOTR and and The Hobbit for myself. So whats the best order to read 'em in? I would imagine The Hobbit first, then LOTR. But what about The Silmarillion? I will probably read the edition I'm getting for my brother or simply buy a paperback edition of it. Should I read this after the other two, or what?

I think it's best to read The Hobbit first, not because of any storyline reasons but just because of the style of writing. The Hobbit is essentially an adventure story, an adventure story designed with children in mind where as LOTR is much darker and more complex. I read it the other way around and I found it hard to stay interested in The Hobbit because I was expecting something more like LOTR. I think if I had read them in the "right" order, I may have enjoyed the former more. The Silmarillion, again, is written in a completely different style than either of them. It's not really in narrative form, it reads more like a history book, revealing snipets and stories from various times in ME's history. It can get tedious at times but I think most Tolkien fans will think it worth the effort once all is said and done. I would wait with The Silmarillion until you've read the other books. It is a prequel but you really need to have a love for those cultures and that world before you can attempt it or it will lose you.

I read The Hobbit three times before I read LOTR. I recommend reading them in this order, as Idril suggested. If you like The Silmarillion after you've finished the aforementioned books, you might want to read The Book of Lost Tales and some of the other books that dea l with the history of Middle-Earth.

Give him copies from used book stores. The content is more important than the binding.

*drools* those are beautiful! Especially the Children of Hurin.

Other things to look at: Does he like the movies at all? You can get a grand Platinum Extended Edition with 12 dvds.

Or, if he enjoys music, get him the complete recordings of the score. Big bucks (I don't have any money to get the third) but SO worth it.

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Originally Posted by PeterL

Give him copies from used book stores. The content is more important than the binding.

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Originally Posted by Nico87

I think he has about 10 different softcover copies of LOTR and The Hoobit, and he has read them a dozen times.

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It wouldn't be much of a present if he was to give his brother an eleventh softcover copy ;) .

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Originally Posted by Dori

It wouldn't be much of a present if he was to give his brother an eleventh softcover copy ;) .

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What need does he have for another copy of any kind?

PeterL

It's a Christmas present for my brother who is a huge fan of The Lord of the Rings and Tolkien. What nicer gift can a huge fan get than an incredible collection of four of Tolkien's most famous works? I'm not giving the books to him for reading, it's just a nice collection in every aspect. He also wanted hardcover editions of the books mentioned above, so I thought 'why not?'.