Audiobook Review: The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Hobbit, or There and Back Again
by J.R.R. Tolkien
Narrator: Rob Inglis
Pages: 366
Published by Houghton Mifflin
Publication Date August 15, 2002
Goodreads

In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.Written for J.R.R. Tolkien’s own children, The Hobbit met with instant critical acclaim when it was first published in 1937. Now recognized as a timeless classic, this introduction to the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, the wizard Gandalf, Gollum, and the spectacular world of Middle-earth recounts of the adventures of a reluctant hero, a powerful and dangerous ring, and the cruel dragon Smaug the Magnificent. The text in this 372-page paperback edition is based on that first published in Great Britain by Collins Modern Classics (1998), and includes a note on the text by Douglas A. Anderson (2001).

I really, really wanted to like The Hobbit. I had tried reading it in high school and failed like a physics pop quiz. I had hoped that age would change my opinion as I love Lord of the Rings. Unfortunately, that was not the case. There were too many songs — Bilbo is a long-winded character. Keeping track of the dwarves in the party ie Dwalin, Balin, Kili, Gloin was more difficult than remembering the names of Snow White’s seven dwarves.

In my opinion, the only reason to read The Hobbit is to read “Riddles in the Dark” the chapter featuring Gollum. This chapter could be viewed as a short story, its own entity. It sufficed my need for Bilbo’s back story. I will say, that like in Lord of the Rings, Tolkien is a master at world-building. No one can deny him that. However, I think I will stick to the trilogy and let this prequel take a very long holiday.