Maybe you’ve seen The Hobbit in theaters, or own the DVD’s. And maybe you have watched the previously released movies, The Lord of The Rings trilogy, also in the theater or on DVD (or both. Many times). The movies are gorgeous, the scenery beautiful, the costumes amazing.

J. R. R. Tolkien published The Hobbit 80 years ago, this September. It’s an enduring and endearing book that young and old can enjoy, again and again. And again. I find something new each time I re-read it.

But perhaps you haven’t yet read the books. (I heard that collective gasp of horror from Tolkien fans!) 

Before you read The Lord of The Rings (LOTL), first read The Hobbit, or There And Back Again which is the correct, full title. It’s needed to help explain the events in LOTL and the significance of the Ring. It explains how Gollum became so important in the LOTL trilogy, and how Bilbo met him.

Bilbo Baggins is introduced in The Hobbit. He will later adopt Frodo, a distant relative, and pass down the Ring to Frodo.While you might need a genealogy chart to follow relationships and various species in LOTL, I don’t think it’s needed in The Hobbit. This book is not quite as complicated, and it’s one volume, not three like LOTL. But most importantly, it explains things that you will need to know. Hobbits, Men, Elves, Dwarves; Orcs and Trolls; Wizards. Sauron.

Gandalf arrives at Bilbo’s home, a comfortable little Hobbit dwelling in the side of a hill, called Bag’s End. Hobbits are shorter than Dwarves, who are shorter than Men. Elves are tall and beautiful, graceful.  Wizards are few, and the Hobbits only think of Gandalf as the wizard who makes amazing fireworks that they enjoy.

Gandalf introduces Bilbo to a group of dwarves who want to conquer a dragon named Smaug. The dragon had stolen their kingdom and their treasure, and when not out terrorizing nearby villages, he sleeps atop the treasure, deep in the cavern of the abandoned dwarf kingdom. The dwarves want to hire Bilbo to be their “thief” and aid them on their quest to recover the lost kingdom. At first, Bilbo refuses. But after the visitors have left, he changes his mind and packs so quickly that he leaves open his front door, and he races down the path to join Gandalf and the dwarves and begin an adventure. During this time, Bilbo will meet elves, trolls, goblins, and an evil creature named Gollum, who will lead Bilbo to the Ring, and set up the magnificent Lord of The Rings trilogy. The dwarves will eventually fight Smaug, and Bilbo will return to the Shire.

There is a richness of detail in The Hobbit, a history of many races, stories layered with lore, poems, myths, legends. Tolkien is the grandfather of fantasy stories that use elves and magic, though he never set out to be that. He only wanted to explore languages, and how they change over the years, and why. 

Tolkien instead gave us a magnificent imaginary world called Middle Earth,  rich in history, cultures, adventures, and yes, languages. 

And he gave us many hours of reading pleasure. 

_ Roberta Jackson