These are the stories of the children of Hurin and of Beren and Luthien, in verse form. It's interesting to see how the stories evolved towards the final-ish version in The Silmarillion. This third volume was an even greater challenge due to the fact that it's all in alliterative verse, so it might not appeal to Tolkien's regular audience. But the lays are beautifully written, the language is rich and each verse is a treasure in itself.