Book dossier

The Book of Lost Tales [2/2]

by J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien

The stories continues from "Part I", and begins with Eriol, having spent spent many days at the 'Cottage of Lost Play', a house he arrived at while traveling. It is owned by Lindo and Vairë. There he has listened to stories by the family that had taken him in. The first story in this book that he hears is "The Tale of Tinúviel". "The Tale of Tinúviel" tells the story of Beren a human male who falls in love with Lúthien Tinúviel a female elf. He wishes to marry her but is given a seemingly impossible task to get a Silmaril jewel from the crown of a evil being. He succeeds in getting the jewel but loses his hand in the attempt, and after their marriage he dies, and she also dies from heartbreak, and they are returned to life for second chance. Eriol himself tells the next story, that of "Turambar and the Foalókë". "Turambar and the Foalókë" is the story of a warrior that is imprissioned by the evil being and set on a mountain top to watch his family suffer while he watches with the curse of special sight. The story then changes to his son, Túrin, who also fights but is betrayed by his men and cursed, after losing a battle with a dragon he changes his name. His sister and mother look for him but are captured and their memories erased by the dragon. He later meets his sister, now strangers to each other, they become married. He finally defeats the dragon, but with that her memory returns. Realizing he's her brother she jumps off a cliff, he kills himself, and the mother goes screaming into the woods. The father then is released by the evil being and he goes and kills the men that betrayed his son. Then goes looking for his wife in the woods. The story ends with the family reunited and dwelling with the spirits.