There’s some movement on the Tolkien publishing front. People out there who are cover collectors (and the variety and number of covers that The Lord of the Rings has had over the years is pretty wild), will be especially interested.
Rings of Power series tie-in covers
First, Harper Collins (through its subsidiary William Morrow Paperbacks) is set to release a Rings of Power series tie-in edition. The new covers for Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King will each show images out of the promotional poster series that we first saw in February. Props to u/mleaning on r/lotr for finding these covers.
Tie-in covers for The Lord of the Rings are, of course, not new. Houghton Mifflin released movie tie-in versions featuring imagery from Peter Jackson’s films for both hardcover and softcover in September 2001. (If our ancient scrapbook is playing nice, and you want to look at some ancient history, you can check those out here.)
Aside: I don’t love those as covers, honestly. I’m not convinced that they’re good imagery for this purpose. That is, the images don’t really accord with the thematic thrust of each individual title and it’s a bit of a stretch to make an association between image and content.
However, if they are your cup tea, pre-orders are available on Amazon already (though, amusingly, they’ve taken the covers down), with a publshing date of July 5, 2022.
Folio Society 1,000 copy illustrated limited edition
Or you could shell out for this new edition published by The Folio Society. It features exclusive artwork, an introduction by Alan Lee, and is beautifully bound, typeset and illustrated.
At a thousand quid, it’s also extremely expensive.
At the time of writing though, there are only a handful of the 1,000 copies left unsold. So, if this is your thing and you have cash burning a hole in your pocket, don’t delay. It will be published in mid-May.
If you like the look of this, but can’t afford the eye-watering price Folio Society has other editions of Tolkien’s Middle-earth books. Personally, I think this printing of The Silmarillion looks really nice even if the illustrations aren’t Alan Lee classics. At 49 quid, it’s much more reasonably priced, and ultimately probably better value for readers.
Amazon’s latest book sales chart reveal that J.R.R. Tolkien books now occupy five of the top 20 spots.
The charts for the week of March 27 show the three volumes of The Lord of the Rings in spots #3, #5, and #7, while sales of The Hobbit meant it slotted in at #4. The real surprise, though, is that Tolkien’s posthumously published novel The Silmarillion sold well enough to enter the charts at #12.
Apparently this is the first time that The Silmarillion has reached the top strata of the Amazon sales charts. The result might indicate that Amazon Studios’ Rings of Power series is creating a wider interest in Tolkien’s First Age myths.
Six rounds later, with over 65,000 votes placed across all rounds, a winner has been decided. The victor was announced last night on TORn Tuesday; but if you missed that, we can reveal for you here this year’s Middle-earth March Madness Grand Champion:
And then there were two… We’re down to the Final of Middle-earth March Madness 2022, A Battle of the Ages – 64 events from the first four Ages of Arda began the tournament, but now only two remain. What will be the Grand Champion for this year? YOU decide! Voting is open until Tuesday morning (April 5th); and we’ll announce the winner on TORn Tuesday that evening. Here’s the button so you can place your vote now!
For Immediate Release: ‘The Lord of the Rings’ and ‘The Hobbit’ Rights Offered to Pioneering Fan Site, TheOneRing.net
BERKELEY, CA, USA — Pioneering fan site, TheOneRing.net, has been awarded the opportunity to officially bid to become part of Middle-earth. As announced in early 2022, The Saul Zaentz Company reported its intent to sell its Tolkien holdings, which include movie, merchandising, gaming and live event rights to “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit”. The company hired investment bankers to manage the sale, and as part of the process, The One Ring, Inc, operating as TheOneRing.net, has been offered an exclusive 4-month window to become part of the buyers group. The extension was granted to allow the volunteer members of TheOneRing.net time to launch a ground-breaking and ambitious effort to give fans control of these historic properties.
“We realize the effort will be monumental, and the stakes are high, but if Frodo can take the Ring to Mount Doom, we sure as heck can get fans a chance to be stakeholders and advocates of Tolkien’s work.”
Michael Regina, Executive Editor and Co-Founder
TheOneRing.net will be launching this fundraising effort in the coming weeks via their website, social media platforms, and their newly minted Discord channel. (discord.gg/theonering).
Multiple levels of participation will be offered, from US$5 to the max tier of $250,000,000. Perks will include original manuscripts of ‘The Lord of the Rings’ and ‘The Hobbit’ as well as celebrity experiences with the plethora of individuals who have entered the Tolkien sphere over the past 80 years.
Kirsten Cairns, Senior Editor and Director of Partnerships for TheOneRing.net, who spearheaded TheOneRing.net’s previous successful crowdfund campaign, says:
“’The Lord of the Rings’ alone has sold nearly 150 million copies. If we can persuade those passionate fans each to donate at least $10 to this effort, we’ll be halfway there.”
The rights are expected to sell for an astounding $2 Billion with main competition coming from Universal (NYSE:UVV) and Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN)
About TheOneRing.net Founded in 1999 by a group of like-minded Tolkien fans so anxious for the coming Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings films that they were gathering up every scrap of production information to be found, TheOneRing.net continues today in bringing fans the latest news on the beloved figures involved in the making of the wildly popular Lord of the Rings movies, as well as the newest information available on upcoming productions, Tolkien-centered events, new publications, and fan gatherings.
About the Saul Zaentz Company Based in Berkeley, Calif., Zaentz Co. is home to Middle-earth Enterprises, which handles its Tolkien-related licensing. Zaentz first made his name as the longtime leader of Fantasy Records, an influential jazz and rock label in the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s. He also produced such movies as “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” (1975), “Amadeus” (1984) and “The English Patient” (1996), all three of which earned Oscars for best picture.
It’s Semi Final time! Time to reveal the winners from each of the four ‘Divisional’ brackets, and launch the round to decide our finalists. Just two rounds remain in Middle-earth March Madness 2022, A Battle of the Ages – so don’t delay, get in on the action and cast your vote today! With voting numbers holding strong through each round – 12,000votes in the Elite Eight stage – it’s clear there will be some compelling feelings about which event from the history of Arda should claim the title of Grand Champion. Final Four voting is open now until the end of the day Saturday April 2nd. As ever, you’ll find the updated bracket, and the button for voting, below.
