Synopses & Reviews
Review
'Hobbit fans will treasure it.'
Review
Not only fascinating, but useful. It makes of The Hobbit a kind of Tolkien handbook.
The Washington Post
Hobbit fans will treasure it.
The Denver Post
Synopsis
For readers throughout the world, The Hobbit serves as an introduction to the enchanting world of Middle-earth, home of elves, wizards, dwarves, goblins, dragons, orcs and a host of other creatures depicted in The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion -- tales that sprang from the mind of the most beloved author of all time, J.R.R. Tolkien.
Newly expanded and completely redesigned, Douglas A. Anderson's The Annotated Hobbit is the definitive explication of the sources, characters, places, and things of J.R.R. Tolkien's timeless classic. Integrated with Anderson's notes and placed alongside the fully restored and corrected text of the original story are more than 150 illustrations showing visual interpretations of The Hobbit specific to many of the cultures that have come to know and love Tolkien's Middle-earth. Tolkien's original line drawings, maps and color paintings are also included, making this the most lavishly informative edition of The Hobbit available.
The Annotated Hobbit shows how Tolkien worked as a writer, what his influences and interests were, and how these relate to the invented world of Middle-earth. It gives a valuable overview of Tolkien's life and the publishing history of The Hobbit, and explains how every feature of The Hobbit fits within the rest of Tolkien's invented world. Here we learn how Gollum's character was revised to accommodate the true nature of the One Ring, and we can read the full text of The Quest of Erebor, Gandalf's explanation of how he came to send Bilbo Baggins on his journey with the dwarves. Anderson also makes meaningful and often surprising connections to our own world and literary history -- from Beowulf to The Marvellous Land of Snergs, from the Brothers Grimm to C. S. Lewis.
About the Author
Douglas A. Anderson, a leading American Tolkien scholar, is acknowledged as the worldwide expert on the textual history of The Hobbit. He has contributed the text notes for all Houghton Mifflin Tolkien editions for more than a decade. He is also a bookseller, formerly in Ithaca, New York, now in northern Indiana.J.R.R. TOLKIENandnbsp;(1892andndash;1973) is the creator of Middle-earth and author of such classic and extraordinary works of fiction as The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion. His books have been translated into more than fifty languages and have sold many millions of copies worldwide.
Table of Contents
Preface to the Second Editionand#160;and#160;xi introductionand#160;and#160;1 1. an unexpected partyand#160;and#160;29 2. roast muttonand#160;and#160;60 3. a short restand#160;and#160;87 4. over hill and under hilland#160;and#160;100 5. riddles in the darkand#160;and#160;115 6. out of the frying-pan into the fireand#160;and#160;137 7. queer lodgingsand#160;and#160;161 8. flies and spidersand#160;and#160;191 9. barrels out of bondand#160;and#160;222 10. a warm welcomeand#160;and#160;241 11. on the doorstepand#160;and#160;255 12. inside informationand#160;and#160;267 13. not at homeand#160;and#160;289 14. fire and waterand#160;and#160;302 15. the gathering of the cloudsand#160;and#160;314 16. a thief in the nightand#160;and#160;326 17. the clouds burstand#160;and#160;333 18. the return journeyand#160;and#160;346 19. the last stageand#160;and#160;355 Appendix A. The Quest of Ereborand#160;and#160;367 Appendix B. The Runesand#160;and#160;378 Bibliographyand#160;and#160;380 Map of Wilderlandand#160;and#160;399