The Hobbit, J. R. R. Tolkien

Publishers: Harper Collins

Pages: 361

Main Characters:

Bilbo, Thorin, Gandalf, Smaug

It’s finally here! (Well it should be if I’ve got my timing right!) Today is the 13th December 2012 and The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey has been released in British cinemas! I’ve been looking forward to this film since the day I heard Peter Jackson was making it! To celebrate the release of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, I decided that I would review the book (I actually read the book a few months ago but I thought I’d save my review until today!). I think this is the only book I’ve ever read more than once. I remember being in primary school and my teacher reading The Hobbit to the whole class and ever since then it has been one of my all-time favourites! So here we go, here’s my review. I won’t say too much about the plot because most of you will already know what happens! (And I don’t want to spoil the film!)

Bilbo Baggins is a shy Hobbit who enjoys peace and quiet in his own company. However, when the mischievous wizard Gandalf the Grey turns up at Bilbo’s door, his peaceful and quite life will be changed forever! Gandalf asks Bilbo to accompany him and thirteen Dwarves on a quest to reclaim the Dwarf’s old home of Erebor and recover their lost treasure that is hidden there. However, what Bilbo isn’t told is that a huge and vicious Dragon called Smaug lives in The Lonely Mountain which Erebor is built in to. To make things worse for Bilbo, it will be his job as the thief to sneak past Smaug and steal the treasure he is sleeping on. However, Bilbo is aided in his task with a small ring which he manages to find in the dark, damp lair of Gollum; deep under the Misty Mountains. Bilbo tricks Gollum with the riddle; ‘what have I got in my pocket’ and manages to escape the Mountains with his life and The Ring. The Ring has the power to make Bilbo invisible, but will this be enough to get him past the cunning Smaug? Will Bilbo become the hero and capture the treasure; will the Dwarves regain their homeland? You’ll just have to read the book (or watch the films) to find out!

                                                                            

Like I said, this is one of my favourite books and it opened me up to the wonderful world J. R. R. Tolkien creates in his epic fantasy series. After reading some early reviews of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, it seems like Jackson has drawn out the film somewhat by adding parts from some of Tolkien’s other books based in Middle-Earth. For me, I think this is great because it adds parts from books that will probably never be made into a movie, because they are either not finished or not well known enough to be made into a film. However, I can see why some people might be annoyed by this because the film is meant to be based on The Hobbit and not other books like Unfinished Tales. Nevertheless, I still think the movies are going to be great, even if they are three hours long (each!).

So there you go, that’s my quick review of The Hobbit and my thoughts on the film. I’m actually going to see the movie tomorrow so I may post a review of the film as well as the book. Please tell me what you thought of the book and the film. Which parts you like/didn’t like and why in the comments below.

I would suggest this book to anyone who is a Tolkien or Lord of the Rings fan. Also if you enjoy reading fantasy books then you should definitely read The Hobbit, it’s like the Godfather of them all!

For author’s official website click here.

P.S. I’m giving away a copy of The Hobbit in my Happy Booking Christmas FREE giveaway. For info on how to enter click here.