he Silmarillion, A number-one
New York Times bestseller when it was originally published, is the core
of J.R.R. Tolkien's imaginative writing, a work whose origins stretch
back to a time long before The Hobbit.
Tolkien considered The Silmarillion his most important work, and, though
it was published last and posthumously, this great collection of tales
and legends clearly sets the stage for all his other writing. The story
of the creation of the world and of the First Age, this is the ancient
drama to which the characters in The Lord of the
Rings look back and in whose events some of them, such as Elrond
and Galadriel, took part. The three Silmarils were jewels created by
Feanor, most gifted of the Elves. Within them was imprisoned the Light
of the Two Trees of Valinor before the Trees themselves were destroyed
by Morgoth, the first Dark Lord. Thereafter, the unsullied Light of
Valinor lived on only in the Silmarils, but they were seized by Morgoth
and set in his crown, which was guarded in the impenetrable fortress
of Angband in the north of Middle-earth. The Silmarillion is the history
of the rebellion of Feanor and his kindred against the gods, their exile
from Valinor and return to Middle-earth, and their war, hopeless despite
all their heroism, against the great Enemy.
This second edition features a letter written by J.R.R. Tolkien describing
his intentions for the book, which serves as a brilliant exposition
of his conception of the carlier Ages of Middle-earth.
