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Summary: The Hobbit is the best.
Review: Maybe it's just me, but the Lord of the Rings was a long, difficult read. I'm glad I read it, but it has no value in terms of rereading it. Too much background and plot, not enough action. The whole Good-Evil battle and the loss of magic and elves, etc. seems to me to weigh the work down. The Hobbit, on the other hand, is the classic adventure fantasy novel, and is still fresh this day. I enjoy the action without having to worry about the fate of Middle Earth.
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Summary: Still my favorite fantasy book after 20 years
Review: I still remember when I first read this book. It was summer, my best friend and I were staying with her parents in their holiday home, and it was about three a.m. The first version I read of The Lord of the Rings was the green German boxed set edition and by five a.m. I had just about finished the introduction about Hobbits. This book was like nothing I had ever read before, and it had everything I love: Magic, mythical beings like elves, wizards, dwarves and the like, an endless number of characters, a limitless map for traveling from one end of it to the other - from the Shire to Mordor.If this book were not as long as it is I think I would read it every week as I still love it as much as I did the very first time. The suspense of it when the Hobbits first meet Strider at the Prancing Pony - is he on their side or will he give them away? Listening into the night with Frodo and Sam on Weathertop when the Nine are approaching - it almost comes as a relief when the firelight discloses what they are facing! This book is truly the father of all fantasy novels, and every new one being written today must of necessity contain elements of the Lord of the Rings as this one invented them all - a must read for fans of the genre and those who want a good start into it!
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Summary: Good books, not so good maps
Review: The maps were redone for this edition, and not by Tolkien. Other than that the books are nice quality and have attractive covers. I don't think I need to review the books themselves, since who doesn't know what these are like? :)
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Summary: A good fantasy book, but for kids
Review: This book was good, with some vivid descriptions and good fantasy. However, I felt the plot was sometimes too contrived. I'm sure I would have enjoyed this book as a kid, but I read it close on the heels of Harry Potter, which I loved, and my mind started making annoying comparisons between the two series, and I found Harry Potter to be much better. It is not my intention to compare the two, but I felt that if you read it as a kid, you would have liked it and liked re-reading it as well. If you are an adult, then go for it only if you are a fantasy buff.
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Summary: The Grand Adventure
Review: Set in a mystical countryside filled with goblins, elves, dragons, and wargs, J.R.R. Tolkien's novel 'The Hobbit' is a story about a hobbit that is trying to overcome his weaknesses while going on a journey with his friends. The main character, Mr. Bilbo Baggins, Likes to live a peaceful life at his hobbit hole in the shire. He is very neat, as every hobbit is; he likes everything perfect and has no need for anything in his life to change. Throught the book Bilbo and the dwarves run into many dangers. Not far into the book Bilbo and the dwarves run into a cave, which leads them to a mysterious item that will help Bilbo throughout his journey. Throughout his voyage Bilbo overcomes his hobbit instincts and weaknesses. At one point in the story all of the dwarves and Bilbo are captured by giant spiders. Bilbo fights off the spider who captured him, and soon finds himself fighting off hundreds of spiders to free the dwarves. While fighting he overcomes his fear of danger. Bilbo and the dwarves manage to get to thier destination in one piece, with the help of the wizard Gandalf, but there are still more dangers to come. In our opinion, the book 'The Hobbit' was an interesting and fun read. It is one of those books good for anyone to read. Any age from the fourth grade to adult can enjoy something about the book. We would definitely recomend this book to anyone if they have a good imagination and like to read fantasy books.
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Summary: Greatest Books of all Time
Review: This is simply the BEST series of books of all time. No doubt. I agree with the other reviews about this edition being the worst one, but it is still the greatest story ever told. It starts with The Hobbit where Gandalf (pronounced Gandalv I believe, according to Appendix E in the Return of the King) convinces poor Bilbo that he is a burglar and wants him to go on an adventure with him and some dwarves (not seven, more like fourteen). The book is the greatest book ever... until you read the next two in The Fellowship of the Ring and you'll think those are the best books until you read the next two and so on. One problem is the plauge of characters in the book, with some appearing on only one page. In the Index it list the characters and covers nine pages! It also has a huge hoard of places. And when you read the names of the characters, even after reading all seven books, you will say, "Who the heck is Targon?" and stuff like that because he only appears on one page! Other than the bad edition, it is still the greatest work of writing of all time. I read this when I was eleven and although it was a hard book for me to read, I understood it enough to know that Gondor is a country and the Helm's Deep was a city and Ents are tree people and Aragorn has like eight names.
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Summary: IS IT GOOD OR WHAT!?!
Review: Hey people! Looking for a good book? Well you've come to the right place! This is a great book. And I'm sure everybody will agree. Do you like fantasy? If so....go buy this book!! Damn is it good.
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Summary: I keep coming back!!!!!
Review: I read LOTR for the first time in 1977. It's 2001 and I keep reading it. There is something magical about LOTR. Tolkein captures your imagination and takes you into mystical places. This perfect to read to children when they are young and to read for yourself when you are old. You never tire of LOTR. The Hobbit is a simpler, easier read than LOTR. It is however, a charming adventure and the beginning of the tale of the "One Ring". Once you have fallen in love with this collection (and you will), I suggest you read The Silmarillion. This book tells the tale of Middle Earth and the background for the Races you get to know and love in LOTR. This collection is one of the most loved series of books of all time. Get LOTR and welcome to a new family.
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Summary: Buy it...read and reread it you will not be disappointed
Review: Even more so than the original book "Dune", these books create an interwoven and wonderful world that should not be missed by anyone.
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Summary: Lots of Typos
Review: I bought the Ballantine boxed set of Lord of the Rings about Dec 1999 for an avid Tolkien fan who has unfortunately found many typos and errata in this edition of each book (roughly 6 to 12 per book). These word substitutions and omissions seriously damage the language and the meaning of the passages they occur in. This edition was in the dark blue box with red, green, blue and black book covers, but has the same ISBN number (0345340426) for the boxed set above* (and for the individual books). I hope that Ballantine has fixed all the errors in later printings of this edition. If not, I would recommend finding a copy of the older edition ca 1978 (white covers, picture of Tolkien on back of each book) which does not have the same problem.
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