The Hobbit, or There and Back Again in Building a SciFi/Fantasy Library

Feb 18, 2008 Dale Pearl rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, books-worth-rereading, fantasy, bbc-top-100-all-time-read, 2025

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. My Review of The Hobbit as dictated by Gollum

Hiss... Precious, what do we have here? A book, a book with words, so many words! Gollum... yes, "The Hobbit" by J.R.R. Tolkien, he calls it. We've heard of it, yes, we have, precious. But what does Gollum think of this tale, eh?

First, there's this Baggins, this Bilbo Baggins. Sssneaky hobbit, very sneaky indeed! He takes our Precious from us, doesn't he? But before that, oh, before that, he goes on an adventure. A quest with dwarves, can you believe? My Review of The Hobbit as dictated by Gollum

Hiss... Precious, what do we have here? A book, a book with words, so many words! Gollum... yes, "The Hobbit" by J.R.R. Tolkien, he calls it. We've heard of it, yes, we have, precious. But what does Gollum think of this tale, eh?

First, there's this Baggins, this Bilbo Baggins. Sssneaky hobbit, very sneaky indeed! He takes our Precious from us, doesn't he? But before that, oh, before that, he goes on an adventure. A quest with dwarves, can you believe? Dwarves! They're noisy, always singing, banging on anvils, and they smell of old earth and smoke. But this Bilbo, he's different. He's clever, like Gollum, but not as clever. No, not as clever. He finds our Precious, doesn't he? Gollum, we hates him for that, but we must admit, it makes a good story, a very good story.

The wizard, Gandalf, sly one he is, with his fireworks and his tricks. He's the one who starts it all, pushing Bilbo into the dark, into the dangerous places. We don't like wizards, no, precious, they're too wise, too knowing. They see too much.

And then there's the dragon, Smaug. Gollum! A beast of gold and fire, oh yes, a creature of much treasure. We can relate to him, can't we, precious? Both of us, guarding our precious things. But Smaug is big, too big, and he sleeps on his gold like a lazy cat on a sunny day. Not like us, always alert, always watchful.

The writing, oh, the writing, it's like the riddles we love, isn't it? Tolkien, he tells a tale with many layers, like the caves we crawl through, dark and twisting. The adventure is full of surprises, like finding fish in a dark pool. And the language, so rich, so precious, it makes us think of the old days, when the world was young.

But, oh, how it pains us to see Bilbo get our Precious! It's the heart of the story, isn't it? The moment that changes everything. And then, there's the battle, so much noise, so much chaos. Goblins, eagles, all fighting over... what? Over what, precious? Over gold and power, just like in our caves, but on a grander scale, with more shouting and less sneaking.

In the end, we must say, it's a tale worth reading, worth pondering over. It speaks to us, to Gollum, in a way few stories do. It's about loss, about finding, about the longing for something more. But remember, precious, the world is full of Bilbos, full of Gandalfs, full of dangers and deceptions. Keep your Precious close, and your enemies closer.

So, if you're looking for a story with twists and turns, with heroes and villains, with a hobbit who's not just a hobbit but something more... then yes, yes, this book, "The Hobbit", it's worth a read. Just watch your step, and keep your eyes open, for in this world, as in ours, nothing is ever as simple as it seems. Gollum... ...more

Like · see review

Feb 04, 2008 Scott rated it it was amazing

What needs to be said here? This book was the reason I started reading in the first place. This book was a revelation for me as a kid. Along with Star Wars, this was my life back then.

Like · see review