Thanks Stu and onthetrail, decided to buy a copy anyway, so like you are awaiting delivery.

When I get my copy will compare it with Findegil's blog entry Lord of the Rings Comparison 3

https://wayneandchristina.wordpress.co ... f-the-rings-comparison-3/

As the text has probably been reset for this new size for HC, am interested to see what Addenda and Corrigenda has taken place, if any.

Found some pictures on the Interwebs, slipcase bashed to pieces as normal by shipping process

I have received the box. I was about to say Trotter that before you buy it. . . . DON'T BUY IT.

https://www.reddit.com/r/tolkienbooks/ ... h_treasury_pocket_boxset/

Added the pics to imgur and posted a link on Reddit and directly IMGUR

It is not very good IMO. Very poorly made. I have not looked at the text yet. Just the outer book. I will keep it but only because I have the previous Tolkien Treasury. The box is OK, well built and sturdy. The Hobbit is dreadful, almost an insult to the art of printing. All printed in China.

It is not very good IMO. Very poorly made. I have not looked at the text yet. Just the outer book. I will keep it but only because I have the previous Tolkien Treasury. The box is OK, well built and sturdy. The Hobbit is dreadful, almost an insult to the art of printing. All printed in China.

What a shame.

Ahh, the fatty 11th impression Hobbit with the dust jacket that doesn't fit. I had previously posted about that:

https://www.tolkienguide.com/modules/n ... t_id=17659#forumpost17659

Shame, as I was looking forward to this set (and mine just shipped -- had the notification this morning). But make no mistake, based in the pictures shared by onthetrail, I would not be touching this set with a ten foot pole.

Edit: That 11th impression Hobbit with an ill-fitting jacket is clearly different than the 11th with an ill-fitting jacket that I previously documented. So I guess we can't trust the impression numbers either (although nothing new here).

Edit 2: On the plus side, these were always going to be pocket editions, so they were always going to be a bit crap. I'd just hoped LoTR would look a bit better.

Oh, and they have used the wrong font for the text on the spines of LoTR.

Note the "f" in lower-case "of" and Lower case "h". And notice the "W" in uppercase "FELLOWSHIP". Plus the slant of the Italics is not consistent bertween capitals and lowercase (they used the same wrong font on the Facsimile Hobbit flap text, IIRC)

This extends to the text on the front of the books.

And I even provided them with high-resolution 1st impression jacket scans. To be fair it isn't a facsimile edition, but easy details to get correct, which indicates to me that they don't care. I'm really coming to the conclusion that HarperCollins are at the point of just "phoning it in". It is like their designer literally has no eyeballs. I'm annoyed that I ordered this.

Overall with the release of HoME (I didn't buy it) and this release, the Story of Kullervo, the reverting of titles to Chinese prints and the general mishandling of releases, I think that HC have decided that they have milked Tolkien for what it is worth and now releases are an example of cost efficiency over substance.

I doubt we will see many great releases now the movies are done. That audience will be thin by now.

onthetrail wrote:
Overall with the release of HoME (I didn't buy it) and this release, the Story of Kullervo, the reverting of titles to Chinese prints and the general mishandling of releases, I think that HC have decided that they have milked Tolkien for what it is worth and now releases are an example of cost efficiency over substance.

I doubt we will see many great releases now the movies are done. That audience will be thin by now.

They are milking the gift market with releases like this. It is kind of like David Day does with every single one of his books. if you sell to the person who isn't actually going to own it, it doesn't have to be very good.

They are milking the gift market with releases like this. It is kind of like David Day does with every single one of his books. if you sell to the person who isn't actually going to own it, it doesn't have to be very good.

The fact that Harper Collins and David Day can be mentioned in the same sentence other than to belittle David Day says much and I can't argue otherwise.

Okay, so my 'deluxe' HoME turned up with damage to the first fifty pages or so of two of the volumes. This was inside the sealed box, so appears to be down to HC, rather than Amazon.

I ordered a replacement, but it looks like Amazon have quietly dropped that, presumably because there are no more copies left. No doubt I could ask for a refund instead, but I did actually want a copy of this set, however disappointing it is. So to have a copy at all, it looks like I'll have to put up with a damaged one. Not impressed.

Probably worth contacting HarperCollins about this, I would email them via [email protected] and ask them how to get a replacement?