Don't know if it's brag-worthy, but I'm two of the more difficult steps closer to having the full UK HoME series!

Got Morgoth's Ring for $59 VG+ and War of the Jewels NF for $90, but after shipping and taxes. I feel like I didn't do too bad, considering how relatively hard to come by they are in the US. All I need now is Peoples of Middle Earth, and of course the legendary purple UT!

Hello All, I have a rather strange recent acquisition. I recently acquired the HC 1998 Hardback set of LOTR with Tolkien's artwork on the dustjackets (like he originally wanted), all three books are 3rd printings.

If you look at the 3rd and 4th pictures you'll notice that from the middle of the "Grey Havens" chapter to half way through "Appendix A" in ROTK the pages are printed upside down and backwards.

Anyone know anything about this? Perhaps a mistake in the 3rd print run? Or I wonder if it is just this particular copy?

Interesting! I thought those cover designs were used for the 50th anniversary boxed set for the first time ever

Yes, it was this set that had these DJ for the first time. Also on the copyright page it states that they were printed in 1991 when this set actually didn't come out until 1998. Another mistake, but I am told that all of these editions have that mistake.

Haven't seen anything about upside down and backwards pages

Mr. Underhill wrote:

Anyone know anything about this? Perhaps a mistake in the 3rd print run? Or I wonder if it is just this particular copy?

That's a binding error. I haven't seen that in copies of that edition/printing that I have handled, nor any other reports of it, so it is likely a one-off (or very rare occurence). If you ever get a new copy, take it back and exchange! Way too late for this particular set of course (unless you want to dispute with whomever you bought it from and try to return), but these are not collectible (unlike stamp collecting).

[Edit] Just pulled out my shelf set out of curiosity, and I have 1/3/2 impressions. Strange (I wonder if someone swapped books in/out before I ended up with it).

That's interesting, I bought my set from three different sellers and ended up with all 3rd printings, so I just got lucky.

But then again I guess I didn't because I ended up with this copy of ROTK.

I acquired two recent translations of LOTR this year as gifts for Fathers Day and my birthday: Afrikaans (available from Protea Bookshop in Pretoria) and Azerbaijani (Volume 1 only available from Ali&Nino in Baku)

Thanks for sharing Taivo, and welcome!

Are either of those translations illustrated?

Taivo wrote:

I acquired two recent translations of LOTR this year as gifts for Fathers Day and my birthday: Afrikaans (available from Protea Bookshop in Pretoria) and Azerbaijani (Volume 1 only available from Ali&Nino in Baku)

That's cool! Are you collecting translations? What are some of the rarest/most notable translations in your collection?

Haven't done this in a bit and wanted to get back in the habit, so... recent acquisitions for me! It's been way too long so this isn't everything by a long shot, but these are the ones still sitting around unshelved/unfiled.

• Stripoteka - Yugoslavian Lord of the Rings comic book run (six issues, 1981)
  
• Tolkien in Translation, Thomas Honegger, ed. eBay gave me a $25 gift code so technically eBay gave me this book for free. ?
  
• Beyond Bree and Amon Hen - recommended subscriptions
  
• An Hobbit - Breton translation from Evertype, 2020
  
• A Secret Vice, paperback 2nd edition, 2020. Some small textual updates from the 1st edition, and an awesome new cover design that I couldn't pass up.