The Hobbit Book Review

Title: The Hobbit
Author: J.R.R. Tolkien
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 1937
Pages: 322 on Kindle
Goodreads Rating: 4.28
Rating: 5/10

“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.”

In The Hobbit… do I really need to give a summary for THIS book? Well, let’s go ahead and do a brief one! In The Hobbit, we follow a group of adventurers on a long journey to reclaim their homeland from a dangerous and deadly dragon. We’ve got wizards, hobbits, dwarves, elves, goblins, trolls, and so much more! The Hobbit is one of the foundational novels of modern fantasy and high fantasy. 

Pros:

More detail than the movies
For some context, I watched the movies before I read the book. For me, hobbits and elves are my favorite races in Tolkien’s world and I love that the book provided more details about hobbits. Like it is for most book to movie adaptations, the book does provide more context and info than the movies. 

Appreciate what Tolkien did for the genre
In 1937, modern fantasy was starting to really take shape and Tolkien’s books brought fantasy, especially high fantasy, into the mainstream. The Hobbit and, to a greater extent, The Lord of the Rings, reestablished the foundations of fantasy and inspired many authors over the years. You can’t overstate the impact Tolkien had on the genre. Because of that, The Hobbit has my absolute respect and appreciation. 

Cons:

Repetitiveness
In order to make a clear point, Tolkien repeated particular things multiple times throughout the book. From adventurer complaints to hatred of particular races, the author makes sure you have a complete understanding of particular details.

Writing style
In my opinion, The Hobbit is like the first car. The Hobbit, like the motor car, got something started. But when you compare the first cars to today’s cars, there’s no comparison. That’s how it feels reading The Hobbit in 2021 when I’ve read books by Brandon Sanderson, N.K. Jemisin, and Joe Abercrombie. It’s not fair to compare it to today’s fantasy series which is why I wish I read Tolkien’s books before reading more modern fantasy series. 

Overall… 

Reading Tolkien is sort of like a rite of passage because his books are a staple of the genre. With that in mind, I do prefer the movies to the book. The parts of the plot that I didn’t like were improved in the movies. While I think the movies could have been condensed into one, I think they follow the book well enough and give it the respect it deserves.