J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Children of Húrin received its first book publication in 2007.
Christopher Tolkien edited the posthumous volume from his father’s manuscripts, presenting a complete version of the tragic First Age tale centered on Túrin Turambar and his sister Nienor. HarperCollins published the book in April 2007, with illustrations by Alan Lee.
The story was not newly invented in 2007. Tolkien had developed versions of it across decades, and parts or related forms had appeared earlier in works such as The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales, and The History of Middle-earth. The 2007 edition gathered and shaped the material into a standalone narrative.
That publishing history creates a common confusion with The Silmarillion, which appeared in 1977, four years after Tolkien’s death. The Children of Húrin was a later editorial reconstruction and publication, not a book Tolkien completed for publication during his lifetime.