The Hobbit

Included in this box is a nicely bound hardback edition of The Hobbit and a collection of eight colour postcards featuring some of Tolkien's own artwork. Tolkien himself makes yet another guest appearance on an exclusive CD which features a recording of Tolkien reading an extract from Bilbo's first encounter with the terrifying Gollum. Lastly, there is a beautifully painted foldout map of Wilderland by John Howe with text by Brian Sibley.

Those who are fans of The Hobbit will feel justified in splashing out again for this lovely collector's item, which offers plenty of value and makes for an affordable treat or gift for a fellow Tolkien lover. --Jon Weir

Amazon.co.uk Review
Poor Bilbo Baggins! An unassuming and rather plump hobbit (as most of these small, furry-footed people tend to be ), Baggins finds himself unwittingly drawn into adventure by a wizard named Gandalf and 13 dwarves bound for the Lonely Mountain, where a dragon named Smaug hordes a stolen treasure. Before he knows what is happening, Baggins finds himself on the road to danger. Wizards, dwarves and dragons may seem the stuff of children's fairy tales, but The Hobbit is in a class of its own--light-hearted enough for younger readers, yet with a dark edge guaranteed to intrigue an older audience. In the best tradition of the archetypal hero's quest, Bilbo Baggins sets out on his fateful journey a callow, untested soul and returns--tempered by hardship, danger and loss--a better man--er, hobbit.

This book is the predecessor to Tolkien's masterpiece, The Lord of the Rings, and though that trilogy can be thoroughly enjoyed without first reading The Hobbit, much that happens in the later novels is foreshadowed here. A word of caution, however: as Bilbo discovers early on, travel and adventure are addictive things; embark on this journey to the Lonely Mountain with Tolkien's reluctant hero, and you might not be able to stop there. And the road taken to the distant mountains of Mordor in the ensuing trilogy is an even more perilous one.