Book Review – J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit”
Last night I finished reading J.R.R. Tolkien’s adventure story, The Hobbit.
First published back in 1937, The Hobbit tells the tale of Bilbo Baggins and how he inadvertently went on the greatest adventure of his life. The Hobbit is the predecessor to the epic The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
The Hobbit begins with the introduction of Bilbo Baggins, a hobbit who lives in The Hill and is very fond of his home. One day Bilbo is visited by a wizard named Gandalf. Although Bilbo doesn’t recognize Galdalf, the wizard claims to know all about Bilbo. Gandalf tricks Bilbo into hosting a party for a group of people and carves a secret mark into his front door.
That night the party guests arrive, much to Bilbo’s disliking. The guests turn out to be a band of dwarfs led by Thorin Oakenshield, descendent of the King under the Mountain. After eating nearly all of Bilbo’s food the dwarfs reveal that Gandalf selected Bilbo to be the last member of their special group. The dwarfs are setting out on a quest to rid the Lonely Mountain from Smaug the dragon and reclaim the vast amount of treasure. Bilbo was recruited for his stealth and burglar skills, something that will prove very useful on their quest to the Lonely Mountain.
The group begins their quest and a few days later they encounter three trolls in the woods. The trolls eventually capture Bilbo and all the dwarfs and plan on eating them. Bilbo successfully stalls the trolls until Gandalf arrives at sunrise. The rays of the rising sun strike the trolls, turning all three of them into stone.
After the encounter with the trolls the group arrives at Rivendell and meets with Elrond, leader of the elves. Elrond examines Thorin’s map and is able to translate the ancient language. They learn that there’s a secret entrance on the side of the Lonely Mountain only visible under certain conditions. This side entrance is what the dwarfs want to use to sneak into the Lonely Mountain and defeat Smaug.
After Rivendell the group enters the Misty Mountains. They take shelter in a cave only to be captured by goblins. Bilbo is separated from the group and he gets lost deep within the mountain. Bilbo eventually discovers a magical ring that can make him invisible. That ring’s former owner, a creature known as Gollum, tries to attack Bilbo, but Bilbo fends him off. Bilbo challenges Gollum to a riddle contest where if Bilbo wins, then Gollum will have to lead him out of the mountain. Bilbo eventually wins the contest but Gollum tries to attack him anyway. Bilbo uses the ring to make himself invisible and then follows Gollum through the tunnels and out of the mountain.
While Bilbo was dealing with Gollum, the rest of the dwarfs were taken before the goblin king. The king mocks the group but Gandalf suddenly appears and a big fight ensues. Thorin kills the goblin king and Gandalf and the gang of dwarfs fight more goblins and escape from the mountain. Outside they’re reunited with Bilbo Baggins before they’re pursued by even more goblins.
The goblins trap the dwarfs in a small cluster of trees on the edge of a cliff. Gandalf launches flaming pine cones at their attackers, but the flames are used against the dwarfs as their shelters begin to catch fire. As the end draws near, a group of giant eagles swoops down and rescues the gang of dwarfs, carrying them away to safety.
After bidding farewell to the giant eagles, the gang resumes their journey to the Lonely Mountain. They visit with a shape-shifter named Beorn and tell him their tale. Beorn allows the group to rest at his home and then he allows them to borrow some fresh horses (a.k.a. ponies) for the next leg of their journey. Beorn warns the group to stay on the path and not venture into the forest of Mirkwood.
Before entering Mirkwood, Gandalf leaves the group, telling them that he has to accomplish a separate task. He reminds the group to stay on the path and follow Beorn’s instructions. The group does so at first, but after several days of traveling their food supplies are slowly diminished. The dwarfs are starving and begin to see mysterious lights in the woods at night. They finally enter the woods and see that the lights belong to elves. The elves are having a feast with plenty of food. The dwarfs try to approach the elves and ask them for food, but each time they get close the lights go out and the elves vanish. This occurs several times until the elves vanish completely.
Lost in the forest of Mirkwood, the dwarfs are quickly captured by giant spiders. Bilbo uses his invisibility ring to evade the spiders and free his friends. Thorin gets separated from the group and is captured by the Wood-elves and taken prisoner. The rest of the dwarfs are also captured, but once again Bilbo uses his invisibility ring to save himself. Bilbo quietly follows the Wood-elves to their secret fortress deep within the forest.
Bilbo sneaks around the fortress and learns where Thorin and the rest of the dwarfs are being held prisoner. The leader of the Wood-elves demands to know why the dwarfs are in the forest, but Thorin and his companions don’t dare tell him their real reason involving the treasure in the Lonely Mountain. Since the dwarfs won’t state their true reason for being in the forest, the Wood-elves keep them as prisoners.
The main entrance to the fortress is sealed with a magical barrier, but Bilbo discovers a secret trapdoor that leads to an underground stream. This stream runs right out of the fortress. The only problem was finding a way to free his companions and escaping down the river.
Bilbo learns the Wood-elves’ patterns and discovers that they really enjoy wine. The empty wine barrels are gathered together and dumped into the river where they float downstream to the town of Lake-town, where the barrels are refilled with wine and traded back to the elves. One night when some of the guards are drunk, Bilbo steals the keys and frees his companions. They’re all stuffed into the empty barrels where other elves dump them into the river. Bilbo jumps into the river and joins them as they float to Lake-town.
The hobbit is able to free his companions from the barrels, and then they meet with the Men at Lake-town. Thorin explains his ancestry and why him and the dwarfs are returning to the Lonely Mountain, and the people of Lake-town celebrate. It’s believed that Thorin and the dwarfs are there to finally fulfil the prophecy around Smaug and the Lonely Mountain.
The dwarfs leave Lake-town and carefully make their way up the sides of the Lonely Mountain. There isn’t any sign of the dragon, but death and decay surround the mountain. They search the area and eventually find a hidden cave and the secret door that leads into the Lonely Mountain.
Bilbo uses his invisibility ring and quietly descends into the Lonely Mountain. Sure enough, Smaug is still living inside the fortress and guarding the massive stockpile of treasure. Bilbo steals a cup and examines the sleeping dragon, spotting a weakness in Smaug’s armor. Bilbo returns to the dwarfs and shows them the cup as proof of the treasure. A small bird overhears Bilbo talking about the weakness in the dragon’s armor.
Smaug awakens and becomes enraged when he discovers that part of the treasure is missing. He pretends to be asleep when Bilbo returns to the treasure room. Smaug talks to Bilbo and tries to trick the hobbit, but Bilbo is too smart for the dragon. The dragon flies around the mountain and destroys the cave and secret door, trapping the dwarfs inside of the Lonely Mountain.
Once the dwarfs are trapped, Smaug flies to Lake-town and begins destroying the town, believing that the Men there aided the intruders. The people flee and many of the town’s defenders are killed while trying to fight the dragon. The small bird that overheard Bilbo talking about the dragon arrives and tells the secret to Bard, one of Lake-town’s defenders. Bard shoots an arrow at just the right spot and kills Smaug.
Meanwhile, the dwarfs carefully examine the fortress inside the Lonely Mountain and wait for Smaug’s return. Another bird eventually arrives and tells them that the dragon is dead. The dwarfs celebrate until the bird also warns them that armies of Men and Wood-elves are on the march to the Lonely Mountain. Word about the dragon’s death has spread and people want to claim the treasure.
The dwarfs fortify the fortress and prepare to defend it as the Men of Lake-town and the Wood-elves arrive. Bard approaches the dwarfs and speaks with Thorin. He tells the dwarfs that they only want their share of the treasure that the dragon stole from the neighboring town of Dale. The Wood-elves also request their proper compensation. Thorin refuses to give their of them any of the treasure at this time, so the Men and Wood-elves blockade the Lonely Mountain.
Thorin uses a bird to send for help from his fellow dwarfs, and an army of dwarfs is soon on the march to the Lonely Mountain. When the dwarf army are only a day or two away from the Lonely Mountain, Thorin and the dwarfs learn that an army of goblins and Wargs.
Meanwhile, Bilbo had found the treasured Arkenstone, the sole item that Thorin craves the most, and he sneaks it out of the Lonely Mountain. Bilbo meets with Bard and presents him with the Arkenstone as a bargaining chip against Thorin. Gandalf is there and congratulates Bilbo at such a risky move. The next day Thorin takes the Arkenstone and shows it to Thorin. Thorin is shocked that Bard has the Arkenstone, and he’s furious when Bilbo tells him that he found it and gave it to Bard. Thorin kicks Bilbo out of the fortress and refuses to negotiate for the Arkenstone.
The dwarf army arrives just prior to the goblins and Wargs. The Men, Wood-elves and dwarfs cast aside their differences to fight the goblins and Wargs, their common, and most hated, enemies. The goblins and Wargs arrive at the Lonely Mountain and the Battle of Five Armies begins. It’s a terrible battle with many casualties on both sides. Just as the goblins appear to have the upper hand, the giant eagles return and turn the tide of battle to the Men, Wood-elves and dwarfs. The remaining goblins flee back to the depths of the Misty Mountains.
Thorin is mortally wounded during the fighting. He meets with Bilbo after the battle and seeks his forgiveness before dying. Thorin is later buried in the Lonely Mountain along with the Arkenstone.
Once things are settled, Bilbo and Gandalf use horses and begin their long journey back to The Hill. They pass by familiar sights and stop to see old friends along the way. Back at The Hill, Bilbo learns that he was deemed as being deceased, and his home and possessions were being sold to the fellow hobbits. It takes a while for him to sort out the matter with the hobbits and regain his sold possessions.
As a whole, The Hobbit is a fantastic adventure story filled with plenty of action and suspense.
I first read the book a few years ago and for some reason I didn’t care for the story. After seeing The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey in the movie theater a few weeks ago, I decided to re-read the book. This second time the story seemed to flow much better and I had a fun time reading the adventure. Sometimes with these fantasy books you need the visual aids to help understand the story.
The Hobbit is a must-read for those who love adventure and fantasy stories. The characters are great, the settings are fun, and there’s enough action and even a little bit of magic to keep most people entertained.
The Hobbit was made into an animated movie back in 1977. More recently, a three-part live-action version of The Hobbit is still in the process of being produced and released to the general public. The first part, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, was released in December of 2012. Part two, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, will be released in late 2013. The third and final film, The Hobbit: There and Back Again, will be released in late 2014.
In the meantime, there’s plenty of time for people to read The Hobbit and be prepared for the last two films.
