The Hobbit

Middle Earth, #00

by J.R.R. Tolkien, Alan Lee

60th Anniversary Edition, 289 pages

English language

Published July 9, 1997 by Harpercollins Pub Ltd.

ISBN:: 978-0-261-10330-6

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(26 reviews)

This 1997 edition, illustrated by Alan Lee commemorates the 60th anniversary of "The Hobbit."

Bilbo Baggins is a reasonably typical hobbit: fond of sleeping, eating, drinking, parties and presents. However, it is his destiny to travel to the dwarflands in the east, to help slay the dragon Smaug. His quest takes him through enchanted forests, spiders' lairs, and under the Misty Mountains, where he comes across the vile Gollum, and tricks him out of his 'Precious' - a ring that makes its bearer invisible, and wields a terrible power of its own.

J.R.R. Tolkien's own description for the original edition:

This 1997 edition, illustrated by Alan Lee commemorates the 60th anniversary of "The Hobbit."

J.R.R. Tolkien's own description for the original edition:

"If you care for journeys there and back, out of the comfortable Western world, over the edge of the Wild, and home again, and can take an interest in a humble hero (blessed with a little wisdom and a little courage and considerable good luck), here is a record of such a journey and such a traveler. The period is the ancient time between the age of Faerie and the dominion of men, when the famous forest of Mirkwood was still standing, and the mountains were full of danger. In following the path of this humble adventurer, you will learn by the way (as he did) - if you do not already know all about these things - much about trolls, goblins, dwarves, and elves, and get some glimpses into the history and politics of a neglected but important period."

"For Mr. Bilbo Baggins visited various notable persons; conversed with the dragon, Smaug the Magnificent; and was present, rather unwillingly, at the Battle of the Five Armies. This is all the more remarkable, since he was a hobbit. Hobbits have hitherto been passed over in history and legend, perhaps because they as a rule preferred comfort to excitement. But this account, based on his personal memoirs, of the one exciting year in the otherwise quiet life of Mr. Baggins will give you a fair idea of the estimable people now (it is said) becoming rather rare. They do not like noise."

158 editions

Parenthesis_Enjoyer reviewed The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

Review of 'The Hobbit' on 'Goodreads'

No rating

I was a child

zeerooth@ramblingreaders.org reviewed The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

The timeless classic of the fantasy genre

5 stars

The Hobbit is the first of Tolkien's stories set in the Middle Earth... Actually this book needs no introduction as majority of people are probably aware of its existance and know how Tolkien pioneered the modern fantasy genre. However, it still holds strongly to this day. This epic story of a hobbit embarking on an unexpected journey with a team of dwarves and a wizard just really hooks you in and the world around is built with passion and full of surprises. I love it and now I understand why it's so praised by many.

Eph (they, them) reviewed The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien (Don’t know)

Loved it years ago

5 stars

I read it years ago (70's) and I spent many of hours reading the trilogy in high school when I should have been doing other things. I do not regret it though.

Soh Kam Yung reviewed The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

A wonderful tale about a Hobbit.

5 stars

(Note: this review is about one of my many numerous re-reads of the book.)

"In a hole in the ground there lived ...", well, you probably know who.

A story that started out scribbled on the back of a piece of paper being marked by J.R.R. Tolkien has grown in the telling and now supports a whole mythology set out in the books "The Silmarillion" and "The Lord of the Rings" as well as a multi-billion dollar entertainment industry.

The story of Bilbo Baggins and how he got involved in a quest involving dwarves, a Wizard, elves, men, goblins, wargs (wolves) and, of course, a dragon, is set out in this tale that has been read multiple times by me.

The most important event in the book, almost trivial in its treatment (which it was, at the time) was the discovery of a seemingly innocuous magic ring by Bilbo deep …

(Note: this review is about one of my many numerous re-reads of the book.)

"In a hole in the ground there lived ...", well, you probably know who.

The most important event in the book, almost trivial in its treatment (which it was, at the time) was the discovery of a seemingly innocuous magic ring by Bilbo deep in the mountains which was to have an impact well after the telling of this tale.

Light-hearted in tone, the story skips gaily from Bilbo's home at Bag End to Rivendell, from the Misty Mountains to Mirkwood, from the Elven King's halls to its final destination; the Lonely Mountain far to the east. It is there that things turn grim as Bilbo finally performs the tasks he was hired to do; to be a burglar.

A good tale and best considered as a stand-alone tale, rather than a 'prequel' to Tolkien's major work, "The Lord of the Rings".

If you want to know more, also consider reading "The Annotated Hobbit" by Douglas A. Anderson and the two volume "The History of The Hobbit" by John D. Rateliff.