Books about Chuckles from Amazon.com

The third novel of Hamilton's Anita Blake series has the petite necromancer fighting a giant cobra and a rogue vampire, Alejandro, who wants her for his human servant Anita is still resisting the advances of Jean-Claude, St. Louis's master vampire, but she does need him on her side, if not in her bed. Anita's reluctant involvement in the odd goings-on at the supernatural Circus of the Damned introduces her to Richard, the werewolf of her dreams, and Larry, her powerful but nervous partner in zombie-raising.

Mystery fans will love the tightly plotted, Paretsky-esque action, and horror fans will love just about everything in this unusual series..
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The zombie-raising business gets slow in December, so Anita Blake is starting to see some oddball cases. She's got a neatly typed list of eight missing lycanthropes given to her by Marcus, the leader of the local werewolf pack, who wants her to find them. The trouble is, Anita's occasionally furry boyfriend Richard is locked in a power struggle with Marcus. Jean-Claude, master vampire of the city and Anita's other love interest, is getting jealous as well. To top it off, Anita has to solve some horrific murders and keep her bounty-hunting friend Edward from killing Richard and Jean-Claude. Hamilton alternates between funny and fearsome in this larky series about a monster hunter with a few dark secrets..
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The first complete book by J.R.R. Tolkien in three decades--since the publication of The Silmarillion in 1977--The Children of Húrin reunites fans of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings with Elves and Men, dragons and Dwarves, Eagles and Orcs. Presented for the first time as a complete, standalone story, this stirring narrative will appeal to casual fans and expert readers alike, returning them to the rich landscape and characters unique to Tolkien.

Adam Tolkien on The Children of Húrin

How did a lifetime of stories become The Children of Húrin? In an essay on the making of the book, Adam Tolkien, grandson of J.R.R. Tolkien (and French translator of his History of Middle-earth), explains that the Húrin legends made up the third "Great Tale" of his grandfather's Middle-earth writing, and he describes how his father, Christopher Tolkien, painstakingly collected the pieces of the legend into a complete story told only in the words of J.R.R. Tolkien. "For anyone who has read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings," he writes, The Children of Húrin "allows them to take a step back into a larger world, an ancient land of heroes and vagabonds, honour and jeopardy, hope and tragedy."

A Look Inside the Book

This first edition of The Children of Húrin is illustrated by Alan Lee, who was already well-known for his Tolkien illustrations in previous editions (see our Tolkien Store for more) as well as his classic collaboration with Brian Froud, Faeries, and his Kate Greenaway Medal-winning Black Ships Before Troy, before his Oscar-winning work as conceptual designer for Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings film trilogy brought him even greater acclaim. Here's a quick glimpse of two of Lee's interior illustrations for The Children of Húrin. (Click on each to see larger images.)

Questions for Alan Lee

We had the chance to ask Alan Lee a few questions about his illustrative collaboration with the world imagined by J.R.R. Tolkien:

Amazon.com: How much of a treat was it to get first crack at depicting entirely new characters rather than ones who had been interpreted many times before? Was there one who particularly captured your imagination?

Lee: Although it was a great honor to illustrate The Children of Húrin, the characters and the main elements of the story line are familiar to those who have read The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales, and these narratives have inspired quite a few illustrators. Ted Nasmith has illustrated The Silmarillion and touched on some of the same characters and landscapes. This was the first time that I ventured into the First Age; while working on The Lord of the Rings books and films--and The Hobbit--I've had to refer back to events in Middle-earth history but not really depict them.

I'm drawn to characters who bear similarities to the protagonists in myths and legends; these correspondences add layers and shades of meaning, and most of the characters in this story have those archetypal qualities. However, I prefer not to get too close to the characters because the author is delineating them much more carefully than I can, and I'm wary of interfering with the pictures that the text is creating in the reader's mind.

Amazon.com: The Húrin story has been described as darker than some of Tolkien's other work. What mood did you try to set with your illustrations?

Lee: It is a tragic story, but the darkness is offset by the light and beauty of Tolkien's elegiac writing. In the illustrations I tried to show some of the fragile beauty of the landscapes and create an atmosphere that would enhance the sense of foreboding and impending loss. I try to get the setting to tell its part in the story, as evidence of what happened there in the past and as a hint at what is going to occur. My usual scarred and broken trees came in handy.

Amazon.com: You were a conceptual designer (and won an Oscar) for Peter Jackson's film trilogy of The Lord of the Rings, which I think we can safely say had a bit of success. How does designing for the screen compare to designing for the page?

Lee: They both have their share of joys and frustrations. It was great to be part of a huge film collaboration and play a small part in something quite magical and monumental; I will always treasure that experience. Film is attractive because I enjoy sketching and coming up with ideas more than producing highly finished artwork, and it's great having several hundred other people lending a hand! But books--as long as they don't get moldy from being left in an empty studio for six years--have their own special quality. I hope that I can continue doing both.

Amazon.com: Of all fiction genres, fantasy seems to have the strongest tradition of illustration. Why do you think that is? Who are some of your favorite illustrators?

Lee: A lot of excellent illustrators are working at the moment--especially in fantasy and children's books. It is exciting also to see graphic artists such as Dave McKean, in his film Mirrormask, moving between different media. I also greatly admire the more traditional work of Gennady Spirin and Roberto Innocenti. Kinuko Craft, John Jude Palencar, John Howe, Charles Vess, Brian Froud ... I'll stop there, as the list would get too long. But--in a fit of pride and justified nepotism--I'll add my daughter, Virginia Lee, to the list. Her first illustrated children's book, The Frog Bride [coming out in the U.K. in September], will be lovely.

More Tolkien Favorites

Visit our J.R.R. Tolkien Store for a complete selection of Tolkien classics, including deluxe editions, young readers' editions, and more.

The Lord of the Rings 50th Anniversary Edition

The Hobbit Collector's Edition

The Atlas of Middle Earth

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Lost on the labyrinth of a Paleolithic cavern complex, Indy Jones encounters references to a mythological beast that may have existed twenty-thousand years ago--and five years later Dr. Jones confronts the legend again, and the woman who is hoping to find the fabled unicorn's horn.  But so is someone else from Indy's past, a man who will stop at nothing to obtain the ancient relic.  Some say the unicorn's horn came from an animal made extinct by the Great Flood.  Others say the horn is an effective antidote to poison and a mystical relic.  Indy discovers that the horn's power is less than benevolent, and the same could be said about the intentions of a certain beautiful art historian..
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Now updated with new material that brings the killer's picture into clearer focus.
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A new store has opened in the town of Castle Rock, Maine. It has whatever your heart desires ..if you're willing to pay the price. In this chilling novel by one of the most potent imaginations of our time, evil is on a shopping spree and out to scare you witless..
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Popular radio host Michael Savage returns to print with another attack on the forces of liberalism that he believes are tearing America apart. Using the same brash, abrasive style in his writing that has become a trademark of his radio show, he writes that "the Left operates specifically to undermine God, country, family, and the military" and that liberalism is "either treason or insanity" or "a mental disorder." He also takes on illegal immigration, the state of health care in the U.S., the "Hollywood Idiots," and the decline of schools and morality in general, all of which he blames on Liberals. Savage also drops bombshells such as: "Federal courts and judges in America today are to be more feared than al-Qaida," and Ruth Bader Ginsberg's appointment to the Supreme Court is "akin to appointing the general counsel of the Ku Klux Klan to the bench."

Statements as bombastic as these deserve to be backed up with substance and well-thought out arguments, yet Savage offers little more than an anecdote or two before moving on to the next rant. This is not to say he doesn't make some good points or highlight blatant abuses by government, questionable suits brought by the ACLU, or morally bankrupt product coming out of Hollywood, but one can't help noticing that several shades of gray have been left out of his black-and-white arguments. Due to this lack of hard facts and background, Savage's book is not particularly convincing. Still, Savage does consistently challenge readers with controversial opinions and conclusions, so it would be a shame for potential readers to dismiss his book simply on ideological grounds alone. And if he really sets your blood boiling, you can always call him up on his show and take him to task. --Shawn Carkonen.
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Space. It is the object of dreams and daring of countless men and women who have made it the last, great frontier of human endeavor James Michener has brought the human touch to that exciting exploration by bringing to life six men and women. Their dedication to the space experience defines its complexities and fascination as no other writer can..
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Long ago, before the dawn of civilization, they were banished to the realm of nightmares. Now the terrors are real . . .

A generation ago, another Starship Enterprise^TM fought off a ship of exiled aliens intent on conquering all of the Alpha Quadrant. Starfleet thought the foe had been repelled forever -- until now. The Furies have returned in might warships even more powerful than before. But their weapons are more than merely physical, for these aliens are the origins of all the demons and monsters of ancient myth, and they have found a way to project fear directly into the minds of their enemies. To defeat the Furies, and save the Federation, Picard and the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise^TM must first conquer the darkest terrors of their unconscious minds.

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