The Hobbit - John Ronald Reuel Tolkien

A great modern classic and the prelude to The Lord of the Rings.
Smaug certainly looked fast asleep, almost dead and dark, with scarcely a snore more than a whiff of unseen steam, when Bilbo peeped once more from the entrance. He was just about to step out on to the floor when he caught a sudden thin and piercing ray of red from under the drooping lid of Smaug’s left eye. He was only pretending to sleep! He was watching the tunnel entrance!
Whisked away from his comfortable, unambitious life in his hobbit-hole in Bag End by Gandalf the wizard and a band of dwarves, Bilbo Baggins finds himself caught up in a plot to raid the treasure hoard of Smaug the Magnificent, a large and very dangerous dragon. Although quite reluctant to take part in this quest, Bilbo surprises even himself by his resourcefulness and his skill as a burglar!
The text of this edition has been fully corrected and revised in collaboration with Christopher Tolkien and is accompanied by a wealth of beautiful watercolour paintings and delicate pencil drawings from Alan Lee.
Review

‘One of the best loved characters in English fiction… a marvellous fantasy adventure’Daily Mail
‘Finely written saga of dwarves and elves, fearsome goblins and trolls… an exciting epic of travel, magical adventure, working up to a devastating climax’The Observer
‘A flawless masterpiece’The Times

About the Author

J.R.R.Tolkien (1892-1973) was a distinguished academic, though he is best known for writing The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion, plus other stories and essays. His books have been translated into over 60 languages and have sold many millions of copies worldwide.

Alan Lee was invited to illustrate the centenary edition of The Lord of the Rings, which led to further Tolkien editions, including The Hobbit and the three ‘Great Tales’: The Children of Húrin, Beren and Lúthien and The Fall of Gondolin. He worked as Conceptual Designer and Set Decorator on both The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film trilogies, receiving the Academy Award for Best Art Direction for his work on The Return of the King.