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“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.��

So begins J.R.R. Tolkien’s love letter to fantasy literature.

A reader to this timeless classic will first notice that this is a first person narration, the reader hears Tolkien’s voice as he narrates the tale of Bilbo Baggins, Belladonna Took’s odd son who, though he resembles his respectable and comfortable father, has an unexpected adventure in him. J.R.R. Tolkien is telling us a story, with an occasional soliloquy and off stage remark to us the reader.

This of course is the charming and entertaining prequel to Tolkien’s monumental fantasy trilogy, The Lord of the Rings, but a fine tale in its own right and by itself. Generations of readers and dreamers have loved this story for its whimsical allure and for its role as a stage setter for its more epic later cousins.

The Films. Readers nowadays have the good fortune of being audience to Sir Peter Jackson’s magnificent films, but I and many folks of an earlier generation better recall the 1977 Bass and Rankin animated film with voice talent from John Huston, Orson Bean and Richard Boone. This cartoon was my first introduction to Tolkien’s work and would inspire me to actually read the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings later.

Thorin, the important Dwarf and company leave from the in May, accompanied by the wizard Gandalf and having employed Mr. Baggins as their lucky number (14) and as a burglar. And Bilbo’s unexpected adventure had begun.

“I am Gandalf, and Gandalf means me!�� �� The significance of Gandalf in fantasy literature cannot be overestimated. Certainly there had been wizards, magicians and sages in literature before 1937, but Gandalf in many respects is THE wizard. As fine a performance as Sir Ian McKellen did in all his films portraying Gandalf, I still, in my mind, hear John Huston’s husky yet urbane voice speaking for him. Later readers of the Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion will learn more about the Gray Wanderer, but in the Hobbit he is simply Gandalf.

Chapter 5 �� Riddles in the Dark. After some fairly pedestrian undertakings Tolkien has Bilbo getting lost in a deep cave and introduces us to one of his and literatures greastest, most complicated, and strangely likeable villains, Gollum. Later readers would learn the deeper truths of his history, but Tolkien’s guests in this chapter see him as a eccentrically troubled scoundrel.

Songs. A reader in the twenty-first century, and especially one who has enjoyed the Jackson films, may be surprised to discover that Tolkien’s original story was not as martial as the films. Certainly Jackson produced his Hobbit films to be less war-like than his epic LOTR films, but Tolkien’s prose contained a fair amount of poetry and song, casting his story in a more innocent and lyric form than would be palatable in today’s publications.

I remember trying to convince my high school English teacher that this was deserving of more literary praise and so this was also my first or one of my first indications that many literary folks place an asterisk on the science fiction / fantasy genre when it comes to acknowledging the quality of the writing. Kurt Vonnegut mentioned that as soon as the science fiction label was affixed to his name many critics would not take him seriously.

The Hobbit is a great example that sometimes critics can be myopic and time will tell the true greats. The prologue to a great trilogy, simple and charming, The Hobbit is a great book by itself.

Finally, this review is of a re-visit to The Hobbit, after a hiatus of perhaps 30 years. I rarely will re-read a book, there are just so many great books and so little time �� but The Hobbit is one of those special works that can be savored and enjoyed again and again.

*** 2020 Reread.
I need to reread this more often. Professor Tolkien’s charming storytelling is a soothing comfort for troubled times.

This time around I focused on the details that I had missed before, and Tolkien has provided many, some nuanced within his excellent story and other subtle enough to be missed, but important spice added to the recipe.

It’s also important to distinguish between the book and the excellent adaptions by Peter Jackson and the 1977 animated classic by Bass and Rankin. In my memory, I sometimes forget what is actual canon and not artistic license. I had forgotten that the Master of Laketown (left out of the 1977 film) was from Tolkien.

Tolkien’s description of the journey is also endearing, taking the time to add his nineteenth century sensibilities to the fantasy.

If you have never read this work, please do. I can highly recommend an enjoyable reread to the rest of us.