Favourite Edition? - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Estelyn Telcontar · 10-03-2005, 07:00 AM

I've mentioned my one and only (and therefore, favorite

) LotR edition on other threads. [Esty has only one copy, Esty needs only one copy. One Book to rule them all!] It's the one that was given to me in 1973, Ballantine's red-boxed paperback edition. I love the fact that it uses Tolkien's own artwork for the covers! It has held up very well, though it's been used a lot these past years on the Downs and is underlined (in pencil - I never underline books in ink!) extensively. I've looked at some of the interesting new, illustrated editions, but have seen no immediate need for purchasing any of them yet. I have lots of Tolkien and related books, but only one each.

Hilde Bracegirdle · 10-03-2005, 10:26 AM

Oh Lalwendë, bless your heart for those links! I see my old copies, as well as my new set in the second link. I have been reading from the gold boxed edition with heraldary, the books are the last 4 in the 3rd row from the top in your 2nd link. They are now falling apart from traveling to work with me, and I have plans to retire them with honor at the end of CbC.

Also my old copy of The Silmarillion is there!!! The cover shows the mountains and is 4th after Mr. Bliss. Sadly, I have reluctantly declared it MIA as I can not seem to find it anywhere.

Some of the books in the last link seem to have come from M-E itself. How wonderful they are!

***Mister Underhill*** · 10-03-2005, 11:39 AM

Wow, great link, Lal.

I started out with the so-called "Hippie Edition" which was given to me by my uncle. I still have TT and RotK from that set, but Fellowship seems to have gone missing. They are yellowed with age and close to falling out of their bindings from many readings. I don't read them anymore.

I also had the "Silver Jubilee" editions back in the day, of which only The Hobbit, RotK, and the Silm have survived through the intervening years.

I'm currently making due with a Fellowship with Michael Herring cover art -- which I think is some of the worst cover art ev-er. Mine has the art on a black, not green, background, though.

I also have the "red leatherette" ("leatherette"?) boxed edition, but it doesn't travel anywhere with me, only sits on my nightstand for those few evenings when I have the luxury of reading time. I really like the maps in this one.

My UT is a trade paperback edition but looks exactly like the middle book in the top row. Or at least it did at one time. Now it looks like the Book of Mazarbul, yellowed with age, warped and stained from having once been soaked, falling out of its binding. I keep a rubberband looped around it to hold it together when I'm not reading it.

I recently saw the paperbacks with the John Jude Palencar art on them at the local bookstore and was quite taken with them. I've been thinking of picking them up and retiring all my other old mismatched paperbacks.

Mithalwen · 10-03-2005, 11:52 AM

My first set were Allen & Unwins with the eye surrounded by the verse of the ring in Elvish. A present from "Father Christmas" in 1980 they disintegrated leaf by leaf in 2001 when I lent them to my god-daughter. They were replaced by the film paperbacks (on offer...) . ROTK has now lost its back cover so my ideal edition would be an indestructable soft covered, three volume edition (one volume is too big ) . I would like a nice hardback set but I would still need a portable set...

Lalwendë · 10-03-2005, 01:58 PM

I love finding out what editions other Downers use - I like to imagine which version people are reading from! Well, I have several copies of some of the books as I find some of the editions hard to resist. It's a good excuse anyway...

The editions I use most often are the top two sets on this page. The set with the Pauline Baynes covers is battered but is my very favourite and has lots of sentimental value, so much so that I actually sought out and bought a relatively unscathed copy of the boxed version. The Roger Garland set is also boxed.

I've also got hold of this set with John Howe covers. And I have the Alan Lee mega-edition which I only ever use to look at the pictures.

And as a warning to all would-be collectors, beware if buying the second set on this page. I have a set with these covers (they might have been intended for book-club sales) which I bought very cheaply, impressed by the art, but they are not very useable as they are full of typos!

Hilde Bracegirdle · 10-03-2005, 05:17 PM

Mister Underhill those covers by John Jude Palencar certainly are striking, clean lines and colors. I wonder if it the original artwork could be watercolor? I saw an another work that I assume is related on the Houghton Mifflin website's Tolkien page.

Lalwendë, I agree it is fun to see all the different editions that our fellow Downers read. My new set (dare I say it was a ‘birthday present’?) is so beautiful I am afraid to use it. Too precious.

The set is the second edition Houghton Mifflin hardbacks (in the lotrscrapbook link they appear as last book in the 5th row and first and second in the 6th row.) I have also gotten the hardback copy of The Hobbit with Tolkien’s artwork on the dust cover. I had not before seen an edition with the red sun that is on this link, though I do remember reading somewhere that Tolkien made note about the possibly.

And how about those covers that seem to be done in charcoal? I certainally can't see them reflecting the colorful tale held within! Frighteningly misleading, I'd say!

wilwarin538 · 10-03-2005, 05:40 PM

This is mine. They have the same cover art, but the titles and everything looks like the bottom one.

My Sil looks like this, its the third one, and my UT looks the same.

I like my copies a lot.

10-03-2005, 07:00 AM	#1
Estelyn Telcontar Princess of Skwerlz Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: where the Sea is eastwards (WtR: 6060 miles) Posts: 7,500	Yesss, preciousss, but we has only one! I've mentioned my one and only (and therefore, favorite ) LotR edition on other threads. [Esty has only one copy, Esty needs only one copy. One Book to rule them all!] It's the one that was given to me in 1973, Ballantine's red-boxed paperback edition. I love the fact that it uses Tolkien's own artwork for the covers! It has held up very well, though it's been used a lot these past years on the Downs and is underlined (in pencil - I never underline books in ink!) extensively. I've looked at some of the interesting new, illustrated editions, but have seen no immediate need for purchasing any of them yet. I have lots of Tolkien and related books, but only one each. __________________ 'Mercy!' cried Gandalf. 'If the giving of information is to be the cure of your inquisitiveness, I shall spend all the rest of my days in answering you. What more do you want to know?' 'The whole history of Middle-earth...' Last edited by Estelyn Telcontar; 10-03-2005 at 11:47 AM. Reason: including link to illustrate

10-03-2005, 11:52 AM	#4
Mithalwen Pilgrim Soul Join Date: May 2004 Location: watching the wonga-wonga birds circle... Posts: 9,460	My first set were Allen & Unwins with the eye surrounded by the verse of the ring in Elvish. A present from "Father Christmas" in 1980 they disintegrated leaf by leaf in 2001 when I lent them to my god-daughter. They were replaced by the film paperbacks (on offer...) . ROTK has now lost its back cover so my ideal edition would be an indestructable soft covered, three volume edition (one volume is too big ) . I would like a nice hardback set but I would still need a portable set... __________________ “But Finrod walks with Finarfin his father beneath the trees in Eldamar.” Christopher Tolkien, Requiescat in pace

10-03-2005, 01:58 PM	#5
Lalwendë A Mere Boggart Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: under the bed Posts: 4,737	I love finding out what editions other Downers use - I like to imagine which version people are reading from! Well, I have several copies of some of the books as I find some of the editions hard to resist. It's a good excuse anyway... The editions I use most often are the top two sets on this page. The set with the Pauline Baynes covers is battered but is my very favourite and has lots of sentimental value, so much so that I actually sought out and bought a relatively unscathed copy of the boxed version. The Roger Garland set is also boxed. I've also got hold of this set with John Howe covers. And I have the Alan Lee mega-edition which I only ever use to look at the pictures. And as a warning to all would-be collectors, beware if buying the second set on this page. I have a set with these covers (they might have been intended for book-club sales) which I bought very cheaply, impressed by the art, but they are not very useable as they are full of typos! __________________ Gordon's alive!

10-03-2005, 05:17 PM	#6
Hilde Bracegirdle Relic of Wandering Days Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: You'll See Perpetual Change. Posts: 1,480	Mister Underhill those covers by John Jude Palencar certainly are striking, clean lines and colors. I wonder if it the original artwork could be watercolor? I saw an another work that I assume is related on the Houghton Mifflin website's Tolkien page. Lalwendë, I agree it is fun to see all the different editions that our fellow Downers read. My new set (dare I say it was a ‘birthday present’?) is so beautiful I am afraid to use it. Too precious. The set is the second edition Houghton Mifflin hardbacks (in the lotrscrapbook link they appear as last book in the 5th row and first and second in the 6th row.) I have also gotten the hardback copy of The Hobbit with Tolkien’s artwork on the dust cover. I had not before seen an edition with the red sun that is on this link, though I do remember reading somewhere that Tolkien made note about the possibly. And how about those covers that seem to be done in charcoal? I certainally can't see them reflecting the colorful tale held within! Frighteningly misleading, I'd say! Last edited by Hilde Bracegirdle; 10-05-2005 at 03:39 AM.

10-03-2005, 05:40 PM	#7
wilwarin538 Fluttering Enchantment Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Canada Posts: 2,508	This is mine. They have the same cover art, but the titles and everything looks like the bottom one. My Sil looks like this, its the third one, and my UT looks the same. I like my copies a lot. __________________ Comme une étoile amarante Comme un papillon de nuit C'est la lumière qui m'attire La flamme qui m'éblouit Fenris Muffin

10-03-2005, 10:26 AM	#2
Hilde Bracegirdle Relic of Wandering Days Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: You'll See Perpetual Change. Posts: 1,480	Oh Lalwendë, bless your heart for those links! I see my old copies, as well as my new set in the second link. I have been reading from the gold boxed edition with heraldary, the books are the last 4 in the 3rd row from the top in your 2nd link. They are now falling apart from traveling to work with me, and I have plans to retire them with honor at the end of CbC. Also my old copy of The Silmarillion is there!!! The cover shows the mountains and is 4th after Mr. Bliss. Sadly, I have reluctantly declared it MIA as I can not seem to find it anywhere. Some of the books in the last link seem to have come from M-E itself. How wonderful they are!

10-03-2005, 11:39 AM	#3
*Mister Underhill* Dread Horseman Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: Behind you! Posts: 2,744	Wow, great link, Lal. I started out with the so-called "Hippie Edition" which was given to me by my uncle. I still have TT and RotK from that set, but Fellowship seems to have gone missing. They are yellowed with age and close to falling out of their bindings from many readings. I don't read them anymore. I also had the "Silver Jubilee" editions back in the day, of which only The Hobbit, RotK, and the Silm have survived through the intervening years. I'm currently making due with a Fellowship with Michael Herring cover art -- which I think is some of the worst cover art ev-er. Mine has the art on a black, not green, background, though. I also have the "red leatherette" ("leatherette"?) boxed edition, but it doesn't travel anywhere with me, only sits on my nightstand for those few evenings when I have the luxury of reading time. I really like the maps in this one. My UT is a trade paperback edition but looks exactly like the middle book in the top row. Or at least it did at one time. Now it looks like the Book of Mazarbul, yellowed with age, warped and stained from having once been soaked, falling out of its binding. I keep a rubberband looped around it to hold it together when I'm not reading it. I recently saw the paperbacks with the John Jude Palencar art on them at the local bookstore and was quite taken with them. I've been thinking of picking them up and retiring all my other old mismatched paperbacks.

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