Ulmo wrote:
The 90s editions are very nice — the ones with wraparound art, glossy finish, and raised lettering (before the “black bars” editions of 2002).

Thanks for sharing that, Ulmo. I like that a lot more of the illustration is visible. I’ll definitely consider these editions

Unfortunately IIRC the ISBNs are the same as the later editions, so it’s very difficult to buy them.

On another note, I was a bit surprised to learn that the US hardcovers of Sauron Defeated and Peoples of Middle-earth appear to still be in-print.

@Eorl wrote:
Okay... so I’m still smarting from the fact that the latest 3-book HoME deluxe edition sticks out like a sore thumb alongside the rest of the deluxe editions in the series.

Especially after seeing the Fall of Gondolin deluxe edition (colour issues aside!) which is designed very well overall, I’m still wondering how the heck Harper Collins could have got the HoME deluxe set so wrong.

That got me thinking about the feasibility of them releasing individual deluxe editions of the 12 books that match the design/style of the existing deluxe editions.

I realize the main criticism might be that these would just be re-releases with no new content, but then again HC has been releasing numerous editions of LOTR and TH over the years in pretty much the same vein.

The individual HoME deluxe editions could match the rest, for example:

1. Matching spine design/layout.
2. Foil stamped motifs that are based on Tolkien’s heraldic devices (I doubt it would be feasible to have Alan Lee design these if the books aren’t also illustrated).
3. Acid-free paper instead of bible paper.

The individual deluxe books would also be much more convenient to hold and read.

Finally, they could also consider making these “print on demand” like the hardcover editions of the 12 HoME books.

Thoughts?

OMG just came across this thread, in my opinion it would be awesome! As any of you had a chance to contact HarperCollins to suggest it? I'd buy those as soon as they come out.

Cheers Max! Nice to have an ally in the room, so to speak ?