The Hobbit (Middle Earth Universe) by J.R.R. Tolkien - Restarting October 20th 2022

[Katherine]

Oh, I want to do this one - I'll love to re-read this! :D

[Eesh]

Just started and I'm pretty excited. Already loving the narrative.

[Katherine]

I've just read the preface of the book and I loved the pictures and the map as well as the information given to with them.

[Jamie]

Yes I love the map too!

Ch 2 (view spoiler)[I want to know where Gandalf went as well. (hide spoiler)]

[Katherine]

Loved the songs in the beginning - I had to sing them rather than read them, I couldn't help myself.
There's something Tookish within our hobbit. See what I did there! :D

[Jamie]

Haha I have to sing the songs too!

[Katherine]

Chapter 2
(view spoiler)[
Gandalf is so freaking cool! I love that he can throw his voice and sound like other people, and how he strong arms/convinced Bilbo to go on the journey.

' "Dawn take you all, and be stone to you!" said the wizard. '

“Where did you go to, if I may ask?' said Thorin to Gandalf as they rode along.
To look ahead,' said he.
And what brought you back in the nick of time?'
Looking behind,' said he.”

And the swords! THE SWORDS!! Bilbo take your (short-arm) weapon - its your destiny! *a little dramatic but oh well*

And we are off to Rivendell - ahhh I love Elrond!!
(hide spoiler)]

[Jamie]

Ch 5 (view spoiler)[The visual image I had as Bilbo scurried and dodge all the Goblins...lol. (hide spoiler)]

[Katherine]

33%
(view spoiler)[
I loved this chapter with Bilbo riddling in the dark with Gollum! I love the riddles, I love this one the most:

“It cannot be seen, cannot be felt,
Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt,
It lies behind stars and under hills,
And empty holes it fills,
It comes first and follows after,
Ends life, kills laughter.”

Our little hobbit is sneaky, he is. And I love it!
(hide spoiler)]

[Jamie]

Ch 8 (view spoiler)[I am not sure I like how Gandalf keeps coming/going. And right before Mirkwood?! (hide spoiler)]

[Eesh]

Can't remember the last time I has this much trouble getting into a book. Especially one I actually liked.

Chapter 7
(view spoiler)[While I'm sad seeing Gandalf go, it'll be nice to see the dwarves and Bilbo handle themselves for once. Without a wizard. Because they've all been pretty useless so far. (hide spoiler)]

[Katherine]

68%
(view spoiler)[
I felt for Bilbo when he was invisible in the elves cave/prison room. He must have been so bored. And the barrel ride - love it!

Oh my!! Smaug the magnificent is here and is in charge. Ooh love the cunning mind he has as well as his intelligence level to realize that Bilbo is flattering him, but enjoying it anyway. Got to love him!
' "Do you now?" said the dragon somewhat flattered, even though he did not believe a word of it. '
(hide spoiler)]

[Jamie]

Done Struggled a bit toward the middle end myself to get into it. I love the story but just wasnt feeling it the session. (view spoiler)[Thorin mad me so mad with how possessive he was! Greedy dwarves! (hide spoiler)]

[Katherine]

Finished!!!!
(view spoiler)[
I loved Beorn the "skin-changer", he was so cool and I loved how he came to help fight the war of the Battle of Five Armies. And he was beast, man!
I do love Thorin for his friendship with Bilbo and I'm glad in the end he forgave and thank Bilbo for being the best hobbit burglar friend ever! I cried when he died, as well as Kili and Fili.

And we found out where Gandalf went off to, and that council though!! They went of to destroy the Necromancer... well banish him for along while, and I know who he is!!
Dain, second cousin to Thorin, came to the aid of Thorin's Company at the Battle of Five Armies with a company of several hundred dwarves. And when Thorin died, Dain became the next King Under the Mountain.

The Elvenking, (Thranduil), king of the Mirkwood Elves was cool in the end, and he respected and honored Bilbo the Magnificent.

Bilbo's poor silver spoons!!
(hide spoiler)]

[Eesh]

Chapter 9
(view spoiler)[I can finally stop complaining about Bilbo not doing much. He's been brilliant in the last couple of chapters. (hide spoiler)]

[Eesh]

Jamie wrote: "Ch 8 [spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[Gandalf is a busy guy. And if he stayed with them, they wouldn't do a think on their own. (hide spoiler)]

[Eesh]

Beety ~seeing rainbows through those eyes~ wrote: "Finishing thoughts
[spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[I gave four stars for the same reason. Though yeah, the book really was great. (hide spoiler)]

[Abi]

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Reading from the 5th of May 2017

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[Nivedita]

I really enjoyed the narrative:)(view spoiler)[Both Baggins and Gandalf are awesome already.13 dwarves at once.Ha! (hide spoiler)]

[Nivedita]

17%(view spoiler)[Gandalf is so freakin' awesome.That was a save. (hide spoiler)]

[Nivedita]

32%(view spoiler)[I really enjoyed the encounter with Gollum. The riddles .Ha! (hide spoiler)]

[Nivedita]

47%,(view spoiler)[Gosh..Gandalf just went:(I think from this point forth we will be able to understand more abut the dwarves and Bilbo.So excited for that (hide spoiler)]

[Nivedita]

63%(view spoiler)[I enjoyedthe whole encounter with the elves.The barrel roll must have been fun. (hide spoiler)]

[Nivedita]

72%(view spoiler)[Woww that is some serious character development:D Throrin is getting on my nerve (hide spoiler)]

[Nivedita]

86%(view spoiler)[Smaug is dead?!!bummer (hide spoiler)]

[Nivedita]

Finished(view spoiler)[Yippee I finished this.Ok,the ending was the old-school happily-ever-after.It tore my heart to know that Fili and Kili died:( (hide spoiler)]

[Sarah Elizabeth]

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Date Changed. Restarting November 4th 2017. Happy Reading ☺

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[Alaina]

Chapters 1-4: (view spoiler)[Okay, SO I have seen the movie before I have read this book so I guess I should definitely point out that I'm visualizing those characters as these characters. Pretty much my favorite scene in the beginning of this book (and the movie) was when Bilbo opens the door and dwarves just continue to go into his house and eat his food. I'm so excited for their adventure and I can't wait for the whole dragon thing to play out. I wonder what Bilbo can and will do for the dwarves and Gandalf.

Then the adventure begins to a pretty rough start because Bilbo sort of ran into trolls who wanted to eat him but then the dwarves came to see what was happening. So, then the trolls wanted to eat the dwarves instead of Bilbo. I was laughing throughout the whole thing because the trolls just continued to argue with each other and they didn't even get to eat the dwarves nor Bilbo because they died. 10,000 points goes to Gandalf for that one. (hide spoiler)]

Chapters 5-8: (view spoiler)[I'm freaking out because of Gollum but then I can't remember seeing him in the movie but I definitely remember him in Lord of the Rings.. and now I feel like I should re-watch the Hobbit. But then there's the faithful ring that turns him (Bilbo..and soon Frodo) invisible - which reminds me of Harry Potter's invisibility cloak (don't ask me why) - and he escapes the goblins. Then of course they meet an unlikely allie and he tells them to take a different path towards the lonely mountain - but warns them that they shouldn't stray from the path because it is highly dangerous. So, of course they stray the path and end up in danger. Typical move guys. I wonder what's going to happen next?!! Will they escape the spiders?!? (hide spoiler)]

Chapters 9-12: (view spoiler)[They escaped. But then were captured by the elves. I'm laughing so hard at this book, which I know is not a comedy but I mean come on they get out of on situation and end up right in another. Will these guys ever find good luck on this adventure? Bilbo ends up being super helpful since he got the rings. He's what saved them like 2-3 times now?!? Although the whole dwarves in empty barrels was pretty genius of him.

When they finally reach their destination, the lonely mountain, I kind of remember the scene where Bilbo was with Smaug but I like the books version better. I don't know why but I still did compare the two scenes. I think they were pretty close to each other but they were both entertaining and super interesting. I kind of like Smaug's character. (hide spoiler)]

Chapters 13-16: (view spoiler)[WOW! a lot has happened. So the dwarves technically got their mountain and gold back but they didn't really kill Smaug, Bard the human did. So, did they really deserve the gold?!? I get that it was the dwarves gold and all but they should've given the humans and the elves some of the gold. Not all of it - but at least gold to cover the town's damages and to pay them for their help would have been nice. I don't agree with Thorin's decision at all. That is why I was completely proud of Bilbo going behind their back to give Bard and the elves a bargaining tool: the Arkenstone. Because they really do deserve some gold for their help. ALSO GANDALF IS BACK?!?! Where the hell was he the whole time?! I need more information! PS. Will Bilbo actually get lucky and be able to sneak back into the mountain unnoticed?! Or will he be caught?! (hide spoiler)]

Chapters 17-19, aka...
Finished: (view spoiler)[Okay, yes he did sneak in without notice but when Bard came to talk to Thorin once again, he showed him the Arkenstone which of course they know that Bilbo gave it to them. THEN THERE'S THE BIGGEST BATTLE SCENE EVER (in this book) and Bilbo gets knocked out by a rock, again. When he wakes up he is basically told how the war happened and how it ended. Thorin and two other dwarves end up dying from the battle. There's a new dwarf king and everyone is happy. Bilbo can go back home now.

I don't know how I feel about the ending but I guess I will have to accept it. I will definitely re-watch the movie though and see if I will compare it to the book. (hide spoiler)]

[✨Skye✨]

Page 47 (view spoiler)[ Just as good as I remember so far! It's a faster pace than I remember though, like I thought the trolls were farther in and Rivendell was a much longer section but I may be getting confused with the movie. (hide spoiler)]

[✨Skye✨]

Page 109 (view spoiler)[ Beorn is such an interesting character, his skinchanging abilities are so cool. I'd forgotten about the conversation with the Eagles in the book, I remember more from the movie where the eagles were made out to be sent by Galadriel and weren't sentient. One of the best scenes of the book though is the one with Gollum-this one scene sparks so much! I am finding myself disliking the dwarves somewhat this time around, they treat Bilbo quite badly. (hide spoiler)]

[✨Skye✨]

Page 154 (view spoiler)[ Bilbo has really come into his own now! He's now saved the dwarves several times, with the spiders and the Elves. It's great to see how resourceful he's becoming. The Laketown part is very short, while it's very fleshed out in the film. Bard hasn't even been introduced yet! The barrel scene is always funny, this book does have almost comical elements. (hide spoiler)]

[✨Skye✨]

Page 197 (view spoiler)[ Smaug dies quite quickly and not that much is made of Bard. I do like the idea of Smaug's body remaining in the lake forever, still seen when the lake is clear. Bilbo puts a lot in motion just by picking up the Arkenstone. He also seemed to be the only one with any courage in the Lonely Mountain! (hide spoiler)]

[Alaina]

I love your comments!!

[✨Skye✨]

Finished! Review to come but I do have to say, some elements I prefer in the book, some I prefer in the film.

[Alaina]

Skye wrote: "Finished! Review to come but I do have to say, some elements I prefer in the book, some I prefer in the film."

That's how I felt too!! But I feel like that a lot of the time when I read a book after I watched the movie..

[✨Skye✨]

It's rare I prefer a film altogether, but with The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings trilogies, I think they're so well done that they actually compare with the books and the books are some of my all time favourites.

[Alaina]

Skye wrote: "It's rare I prefer a film altogether, but with The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings trilogies, I think they're so well done that they actually compare with the books and the books are some of my all ti..."

OMG that is completely true. Because a lot of books that become movies there's always something people hate about it. Like if the ending changed or something drastic happened in book but didn't happen in the movie (or vice versa).

[Anna 'Bookbuyer']

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Date changed. Restarting May 5th 2020. Happy Reading ☺

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[Elena]

I've started reading a couple of days ago, but managed to read only 1 chapter. I enjoy the writing style.
(view spoiler)[
And the part with dwarves coming to Bilbo is amazing! All those cakes made me bake something too :D
(hide spoiler)]

[Elena]

Finished
The writing style is extremely good! I was so glad to go back to LoTR world. I've been rewatching the original trilogy recently while reading The Hobbit. So nice to dive into this amazing world one more time.
(view spoiler)[
May sound strange, but my favourite scene is the beginning of the book, when Gandalf meets Bilbo and then dwarfs come to his house, having this crazy party with delicious foods and drinks.
I could vividly imagine all the colours of hobbit's house, the nature, all that greenery is just amazing!
(hide spoiler)]

[Saar The Book owl]

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Date changed. Restarting 1st September 2021. Happy Reading ☺

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[Aaron]

Might join you for this one if that’s ok. I’ll be honest, I’ve never read a book by this author and I haven’t seen the movies so I know very little about what I’m getting myself into here.

[Dannii]

Aaron wrote: "Might join you for this one if that’s ok. I’ll be honest, I’ve never read a book by this author and I haven’t seen the movies so I know very little about what I’m getting myself into here."

Please do, Aaron :) You are in for a treat!

[Dannii]

This is my third reread and I'm already loving it so much! I listened to the first part via audio as I was working but will carry on with the rest, physically.

First quarter - (view spoiler)[I love Bilbo and Gandalf's first interaction. The word games, around the meaning of good morning and in Bilbo asking for Gandalf's pardon, were so funny.

The hilarity continues when the dwarves arrive and empty Bilbo's pantry. He is too polite to turn them away or to ask them to leave, when that is what he really wants to do. He reminds me as a very typically British individual, obsessed with social pleasantries and politeness lol.

The adventure begins and they immediately run into danger. This is such a fun and fast-paced read. I'm glad we have just met Gollum too. (hide spoiler)]

[Dannii]

Second quarter - (view spoiler)[The adventurers have gone out of the firepan and into the fire, as they escaped the dwarves to be chased by goblins and wolves. Luckily the eagles were there to save them. I really wish this scene had been kept in the movie adaptation as I think it would have looked stunning!

Gandalf's story in Beorn's Hall was so hilarious. Moments like this, full of humour and sly cunning, are what makes this book so enjoyable. (hide spoiler)]

[Dannii]

Third quarter - (view spoiler)[I love how Bilbo is showing the rest of the group, again and again, his worth. He is the one to climb the trees, free them from the cells, and speak with Smaug. (hide spoiler)]

Fourth quarter - (view spoiler)[The group went from facing off with goblins, wolves, spiders, and a dragon to facing off with humans.

Selfless Bilbo attempted to save the day and I felt so sad to read Thorin cast him aside and neglect to call him his friend when he found out. At least they bonded again just before Thorin's death. (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

Dannii wrote: "This is my third reread and I'm already loving it so much! I listened to the first part via audio as I was working but will carry on with the rest, physically.

First quarter - I love Bilbo and Gan..."

(view spoiler)[ Gandalf isn’t what I was expecting based on the movie posters. I was picturing someone who made themselves seem more important. I like that he acts like an equal to everyone else and jokes around.
I already really like Gollum and Bilbo is a fun character to follow. So much has happened in such a short space of time. I’m looking forward to reading more tomorrow. (hide spoiler)]

[Dannii]

Aaron wrote: "Dannii wrote: "This is my third reread and I'm already loving it so much! I listened to the first part via audio as I was working but will carry on with the rest, physically.

First quarter - I lov..."

Yeah, I think this book has really good pacing. (view spoiler)[Gandalf has his moments but he mostly feels like a kindly grandfather-type character to me. (hide spoiler)]

[Aaron]

Dannii wrote: "Second quarter - The adventurers have gone out of the firepan and into the fire, as they escaped the dwarves to be chased by goblins and wolves. Luckily the eagles were there to save them. I really..."

(view spoiler)[ I do like the humour. I’ll have to watch the movie to see how they adapted it. It almost feels like there is too much happening to fit in a movie. I like seeing Bilbo’s character growth throughout the story. It’s like he’s discovered a new part of himself and he seems to be enjoying having an adventure. (hide spoiler)]

[[deleted user]]

I'll be joining this one. I'm at the part with the gollum.