The Hobbit

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Summary: Unabridged Audio CD Narrated by Rob Inglis - Fantastic!
Review: I listen to a lot of audio books.

Prior to The Hobbit, I heard Tim Curry read Dune: House Corrino (the last in the Dune Prequel Trilogy)...Edward Hardwicke read Sherlock Holmes...and Jim Dale read the Harry Potter books.

All of the above voices are British, so I'm used to that. In fact, I prefer it. A Brit could read a telephone book and it would sound interesting to me.

However, despite my penchant for the British dialect, it took a while for me to get used to narrator Rob Inglis' deep, mellifluous voice. I'm not sure why. Maybe because he seemed to read more slowly than the other narrators. Maybe it's because some of his vocalizations sounded similar. Or maybe it's because I've read the story before and I kept waiting for the next exciting thing to happen.

Or maybe it was the songs J.R.R. Tolkien's characters burst into from time to time throughout the book. Inglis actually sings the songs! His singing voice is very good, but the songs seemed to last forever. (I fast forwarded through a few of them.)

All of this is starting to sound as though I didn't like Inglis' reading of The Hobbit. Pish-posh. As it said, it took a while to get used to, but I quickly did so -- and hated to see the story end.

A classically-trained Shakespearean actor, Inglis is a natural to read Tolkien. He has an incredibly expressive voice. Because of its baritone nature, his renderings of dwarves, dragons and goblins was dead-on.

As I mentioned, I've read The Hobbit many times. I bought my first copy of it in the early '70s, in fact. But this is the first time I've ever heard it read to me.

It was positively delightful! Perhaps Tolkien intended for his story to be read aloud. I don't know. But I loved listening to the adventures of Bilbo, Gandalf, Thorin & Company and all the creatures they encounter in their journey to Smaug's lair. Especially by a reader with such a marvelous voice.

The quality of this 10-CD set is impeccable. The voice is clear and crisp. The sound level in all CDs is perfect. I have nothing but praise for this unabridged audio book.

Which is why I bought Inglis' reading of Tolkien's other (perhaps more famous) works: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and Return of the King. Collectively known as The Lord of the Rings.

I have my listening cut out for me!

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Summary: enter the world of tolkien
Review: A big world of magic, fayries, dragons, dwarves, elves and other creatures has been described in this book of travels.
The way in wich Tolkien describes these characters is of an unbelievable and honoust way of writing, so pure ,so precise in detail and character,as if true, as if alive,as if these travels of Bilbo could have once be described in your primary school historybooks. Looking at the maps,seeing all the sequals of this book, all the information available, it as a truly magical book that will keep you intrigued all the way through,it certainly has got me hooked on Tolkien for life!!

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Summary: All Hail to The Hobbit
Review: Dating back to 1937, THE HOBBIT is truly a timeless classic. This wonderfully vivid fantasy stands perfectly well on its own, but also sets the stage for Tolkein's grand work, "The Lord of the Rings."

Hobbits are (or were) little people, smaller than bearded dwarves, but without beards or magic. They dress brightly and are somewhat fat in the stomach. They don't need shoes and have good-natured faces. Bilbo Baggins is a very well-to-do hobbit.

When Gandalf the Wizard comes calling on Bilbo, offering a great adventure, Bilbo graciously declines. However, Bilbo is cleverly tricked into joining, or rather leading, 13 dwarves on a long and dangerous quest for a long lost golden treasure.

The Hobbit captures the hearts of young adults and adults alike; a classic to be read over and over again.

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Summary: Adventuring we will go
Review: Bilbo Baggins was perfectly content with his life. The last thing he wanted was to be involved in an adventure. But when the wizard Gandalf invites a group of dwarves over, he find himself drawn into their quest to reclaim their mountain and fortune that a dragon stole from them years ago. Now Bilbo will have to adjust to new situations daily as they encounter wolves, goblins, giant eagles and spiders, and other creatures just to get to the mountain. Once they get there, they have to face the fierce dragon. Can they survive?

This is a fun adventure. It's very easy to feel for Bilbo as they face one obstacle after another. "He thought of his home, not for the last time." I smiled every time I saw that line. My biggest complaint about the book is that it is a bit episodic in nature. Their many adventures don't seem that interrelated for most of the book. This is a minor issue, however, and it's very hard not to like the characters and root them on in their quest to reclaim their rightful place.

I've read this book twice, and hope to get to the Lord of the Rings soon. The fun story and likeable characters make it easy to see why there are so many fans of these books

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Summary: The Hobbit is an excellent book
Review: The Hobbit is J.R.R. Toliken's book about a young hobbit whose name is Bilbo, goes on an exciting adventure that raises his love for exploration and adventure. Bilbo is someone who hates adventure and trips. He never has liked any excitement in his life other than peace and tranquility. He is also a perfectionist and never likes a mess. But deep down inside of him, he has an uncovered facet that is awakened when he goes on an exciting adventure that will completely change his life.
Bilbo unexpectedly ecounters twelve dwarves that are embarking on a journey to reclaim their lost treasure from the evil dragon Smog, who lives in the Desolation of Smog on the other side of the land. On his journey Bilbo encounters dangerous goblins, elves, giants, and demons. He also encouners friendly bears and eagles that help him and his dwarf friends along the way. Use your imagination to solve riddles and find out what will happen next in the suspenseful story like Bilbo and his friends did. To find out more about this book, I suggest you read it.

There are many mysterious characters in this wonderful story. Such characters are Gollum who is a scary fish monster who lives in a secluded cave in the mountain of the evil goblins. Gollum is always hungry and wants to eat Bilbo at first sight. But to save his skin, Bilbo pleads for his life and must answer five challenging riddles. With much luck and brain power, Bilbo solves them and makes a great escape from Gollum and from the dangerous goblins.
I also would like to recommend this book to anyone who likes to read. It is full of suspense and adventure. It is fun and interesting and full magic. You won't want to put the book down until you read your quota of the day.

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Summary: Tolkien's Hobbit: A Page-Turning Classic
Review: In J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, Tolkien captivates the human imagination with the fantastical tale of a Hobbit, who wanted nothing more than to stay in his hole sipping tea, when a wizard and thirteen dwarves recruit them for their journey and steal back their stolen treasure. Bilbo, the hobbit, represents what the majority of western population is like, fat, lazy, and unwilling for adventures, yet somehow the wizard, Gandalf, stirs his longings for adventures that are buried deep inside of Bilbo, the side which he calls "the Tookish part of him." Tolkien is much like Gandalf, he finds us sitting in our homes, eating cake, drinking beer, and smoking our pipes, and even though we might not think we want to go on a journey, Tolkien rouses us up to come on a journey, go places you've never been, and meet people you never knew. Bilbo's journey is a page turning classic that is the prelude to the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy.
Tolkien uses incredible characterization in his vast list of characters. The dwarves each have there own unique characteristics and hilarious names such as Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Dori, Nori, and Ori. The dwarves mainly have one thing on their mind, and that is to steal back the treasure that was taken from them long ago. In fact they don't even like Bilbo, but only bring him along, so as to not have an unlucky number in the party. Gandalf is a favorite character in the story, he is wise beyond years, and yet so much of him is a mystery.
On Bilbo's journey he runs into trolls, a host of goblins, warves(wolves), and slinks away from them all, with the help of Gandalf and the dwarves, and a certain ring that makes the wearer invisible, which he just happened to win, by pure luck, in a riddle-competition, with a strange creature. The Hobbit is a page-turning classic that takes us in to the world of Middle-Earth and onto an unforgettable journey.

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Summary: The Best Book
Review: This book is a good one.Bilbo don't want to get to adventure but Gandalf let him join.He went on the journey to the misty mountains and met many difficulties.Grab one book now and read about this fantastic book!!!

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Summary: An unexpected surprise
Review: As I was planning to read "The Lord of the Rings", I found it essential to read "The Hobbit". Kind of like a background preparation. I was instantly captivated and brought right along with Bilbo Baggins, Gandalf and the dwarves as they made their journey to the treasure. I could not put this book down until I was through with it. (That is actually true). As the first fantasy book I read I recommend it to anyone considering joining the world of dragons, trolls, dwarves, elves, etc as this was a wonderful start to MY fantasy reading.

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Summary: It's so sad
Review: To see children writing bad reviews for this book because it was too difficult to read and because it wasn't interesting is truly depressing; no, abominable! These children's parents should be ashamed to have raised such illiterate children who (apparently) are bankrupt of imagination. My father read this book to me when I was a little boy; it is one of my most dear memories. I can say that I am a better person for having read this book (and The Lord of the Rings), and that any young person can reach a deeper level of understanding of the potential of their mind and of the possibilities that exist in their life by reading, or by having read to them, The Hobbit.

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Summary: Now here's a great book
Review: The Hobbit written by J.R.R. Tolkein
A Review

Well, after reading the whole Lord of the Rings series in the summer of 2001 for the first time, I soon afterwards purchased the Hobbit and read it. Let me start by saying the anything by Tolkein is OVERRATED! Sure, he practically kickstarted the fantasy genre into creation (although not all of his concepts are original; most are based on historical mythology), and therefore is responsible for an unimaginable amount of literature and content in the world today. Without Tolkein's the Hobbit or the Lord of the Rings, there would be no Dungeons and Dragons, and therefore no true joy in my life, hehe.
Anyway, the LOTR series was, admittedly (in which I admit in a somewhat resigned, even grudging, fashion) an excellent work. Tolkien has been heralded by many as quite possibly the best author of all time, but I beg to differ!

Okay, just because the Hobbit gave birth to fantasy means NOTHING to me!!! Listen to the following, and you will discover why I did give this book a five out of five rating but why I do not feel it does not entirely deserve such a high rating. Without a doubt it is a classic, respected and adored by many worldwide. Is that reason enough to call it one of the best books of the century? Well, I most certainly do not think so! Why not? Look at it this way: if one could rate one of the very first computers, those Apple/Macs that were so big and expensive that they took up a whole room, would one give such a computer a 5/5 just because, at the time, it was the best in the industry? OF COURSE NOT. One does not term such a computer a "classic" because if it weren't for that exact computer many technological advances in computer technology would have not even existed today? A bit confusing, perhaps, but the TRUTH. The fact is, that the Hobbit really isn't altogether anything remarkable, at least in comparison to the other fantasy books out today.

It's still good, though, I'll admit. Why do I feel this way, though, compared to all the other reviews? Most likely because I'm a heavy fantasy reader, and am used to reading much more complex, intricate, and contemporary fantasy than Tolkein. Furthermore, the fiction I read is so much more fast-paced and with hundreds of gallons of adrenaline that the Hobbit seems like something of a ROAD-BLOCK in my mind.

Nonetheless, I cannot deny that I DID enjoy the book and Tolkein is an exceptional writer, his imagination so great that he created an entire genre never before considered. I also recognize this book as one of the best books of the 20th century. How could it not be, after all, considering that it created a whole new genre?! I guess these comments and remarks are a bit contrary to my earlier rants in the review, but really I like Tolkien's books. My only problem with them is that I feel they are OVERRATED. Not too overrated, but overrated nonetheless.

So, to sum up my review and to give the read of this review an undeniable verdict, I advise them, regardless of their circumstances, to somehow get ahold of this book and read it. It is written in a very archaic fashion, which is another something I have difficulty enjoying, but it is, without a doubt, the most original, imaginative book ever written.