The Hobbit (1937)
J.R.R. Tolkien
Fantasy
287 pages
9.5/10
Warnings: None
This book is the very first in the Lord of the Rings series. It is about Bilbo Baggins, the father of Frodo Baggins who is the main character in the Lord of the Rings series. In the book Bilbo is a young hobbit, who enjoys his life in his cozy home in the shire. He is then visited by a mysterious old wizard, named Gandolf. Who with the help of 12 dwarfs, they convince Bilbo to come with them on a quest.
As Bilbo goes through the quest he becomes great friends with all the dwarfs and Gandolf. He also has to learn how to trust those he doesn't know.
Tolkien has a very interesting style of writing, at some parts of the book he is very detailed. But at other times he can be very vague. He really makes the book fun by adding so much back ground knowledge to the story. He writes in a third person omniscient, he knows all the characters thoughts and feelings.
The hobbit is a Junior High or High School level book, it is very hard to read if you don't pay attention to the story. It takes a lot of time to read even though it isn't a very large book. I think any boy or girl would like this book if they just took the time to read it.
I read this book because I knew that they were making it into a movie, and I've always been a Lord of the Rings fan. So I would definitely recommend this book to anyone else, who likes the Lord of the Rings series. This book adds more the the series than just the main 3. The Boston Herald Traveler agrees saying "One of the best wonder tales ever written . . . if you know a great book when you see one, you will want all of these". New York Times also agrees "Filled with marvel and great terrors . . . an extraordinary,a distinguished piece of work."
