A "New" Tolkien, and Pooh: The Sequel

Word came from England earlier this week of two books due to be released later this year which each have a connection to the work of very popular 20th century authors.

First came the announcement of the release of yet more early writings from J. R. R. Tolkien, author of The Lord of the Rings. In this case it's The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun, a retelling of Norse legends in narrative verse that Tolkien worked on in the 1920s and 30s. (As it happens, I'm working on a play about Gudrun, so I have a personal interest in this.)

Separately, it was announced that the estate of A. A. Milne has for the first time authorized a sequel to The House at Pooh Corner. It is called, Return to the Hundred Acre Wood, and the author is David Benedictus, who in the past has worked with the Milne estate on audio adaptations of the original Pooh books.

There is no word yet as to when these books will be published in the United States, but it is presumably only a matter of time before they are available in this country and, of course, at Accent on Books.