Unfinished Tales was published posthumously in 1980 from material edited by Christopher Tolkien.
The book is a collection of narratives and background texts from Tolkien’s legendarium. Christopher Tolkien selected, arranged, and edited writings left by his father, adding explanatory commentary where different drafts or incomplete passages required context.
Unlike The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, Unfinished Tales is not a single continuous novel. Its sections cover different periods and places, including Númenor, the First Age, and the Third Age. Several chapters expand stories that are only briefly mentioned elsewhere, such as the history of Cirion and Eorl and the journey of the Istari.
The title is important: many entries remain incomplete, variant, or editorially assembled. It is therefore a companion source for Tolkien’s mythology rather than a polished narrative with one consistent final form.