BBC #25, The Hobbit

Once upon a time I read The Hobbit by JRR Tolkein. I was in Elementary School and I remember really enjoying it. In Jr High I read The Lord of the Rings (also by JRR Tolkein) and fell even more in love with Tolkein and his works. Since about that time I have been meaning to reread The Hobbit. But either because I was involved in reading other books or didn't have access to it, it just never happened. Then the first installation of The Hobbit movies came out. After watching it and discussing some of it with other people I realized that though I have a good memory, I didn't remember the correct order of certain things and certain events seemed a bit off to me. I wasn't sure what was basic movie changes that every book turned into a movie experiences, or if was something I just didn't remember. So I determined I would reread the book and yesterday I finished reading The Hobbit.

The story follows a hobbit named Bilbo Baggins and 13 dwarves in their journey to the lonely mountain where they hope to destroy the dragon Smaug and restore the mountain to the rightful owners, the dwarves. Along the way they experience dangers, perils, and adventures that will not only test their courage, but endanger their lives.

 In The Hobbit the primary focus is Bilbo Baggins. The general narration follows Bilbo Baggins and the group of dwarves almost exclusively. This is different from The Lord of the Rings where the book explores the stories of all major characters. The focused narration makes The Hobbit a bit easier to follow and a better choice for younger readers compared to LOTR. Unlike most of the novels written for youth today, Tolkien included weighty topics, difficult words, and less than simple story lines. As a child, this is one of the reasons I loved it. Books written for kids my age were boring. This book, however, was just what I was looking for.

As an adult reading the novel was just as enjoyable. Compared to Tolkien's other works, it was almost simple. I read through most of it in a day. I am a super fast reader and had too much time on my hands, but this novel should not be too difficult of a read for anyone with a Jr high or higher reading level.

One of my favorite parts of all of Tolkien's works is that he makes sure every character and/or group has a back story. Even side groups such as the Goblins have a history that is partially explained. The characters and the plot had an added depth because of Tolkien's attention to detail and extra information.  This added information pulled me deeper into the story and made me want to know even more.

Tolkien added side plots as often as he could. These helped show the growth among members of the party, especially Bilbo. At first the party is leery of Bilbo's capabilities as a burglar, but each of these side stories help develop his own confidence and the dwarves level of trust in him as well.

Out of all the books I've read, The Hobbit is one of the best. The story line is phenominal, the attention to detail is fantastic, and the depth of story, characters, and side plots is beyond compare. The only books I've read that compare are also by Tolkien. Nonetheless, JRR Tolkien is one of my favorite authors of all time and is one of my personal heroes. I highly recommend this novel.