After all these years, there's still more to learn about Middle-earth. On Thursday, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt announced they will be publishing what they describe as a "previously unseen" collection of writings by The Lord of the Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien. This new volume will be titled The Nature of Middle-earth.

HMH VP and publisher Deb Brody describes The Nature of Middle-earth as "a veritable treasure-trove offering readers a chance to peer over Professor Tolkien’s shoulder at the very moment of discovery."

“For him, Middle-earth was part of an entire world to be explored, and the writings in The Nature of Middle-earth reveal the journeys that he took as he sought to better understand his unique creation," Brody said in a statement. "From sweeping themes as profound as Elvish immortality and reincarnation, and the Powers of the Valar, to the more earth-bound subjects of the lands and beasts of Númenor, the geography of the Rivers and Beacon-hills of Gondor, and even who had beards!"

The Nature of Middle-earth is edited by Tolkien language expert Carl F. Hostetter, which makes it the first Middle-earth volume not to be primarily edited by Christopher Tolkien, who edited The Silmarillion together after his father's death and oversaw the literary estate until his own death earlier this year.

The Nature of Middle-earth is set to be published in the U.S. on June 24, 2021. Check out the cover art above.

Related content:

• How the late Christopher Tolkien preserved his father's Middle-earth writings
• The Lord of the Rings TV series confirms main cast: Meet the fellowship
• How J.R.R. Tolkien's life helped inspire The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit

Author:Christian Holub - Source: EW