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Title: The Annotated Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, Douglas A. Anderson ISBN: 0-618-13470-0 Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Co Pub. Date: 16 August, 2002 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $28.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.86 (21 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Excellent Annotations
Comment: This newly published, annotated version of THE HOBBIT is excellent for fans of the book. It may be TMI ("too much information") for the first-time reader. The text of THE HOBBIT settles in the center of the book while Doug Anderson's notations appear in the outer margins. At times it's a bit busy - but there's always fascinating reading! Tolkien fans are sure to get excited over this one.
Doug Anderson includes lots of sources in his notes. He quotes Tolkien's own letters, other fairy tales and legends that may have inspired Tolkien, as well as previous versions of the section he's noting. The Gollum section ("Riddles in the Dark") is interesting. Tolkien did some tinkering with the original Gollum story as its follow-up (LORD OF THE RINGS) was taking shape. Seems that George Lucas is not the only person who's revised previously released work! Tolkien was his predecessor.
Also interesting are the many black and white illustrations that Anderson includes, many from foreign editions of THE HOBBIT. Some of the art is hilarious, as it does not resemble Tolkien's characters at all! There is a nice color section of illustrations in the center of the book.
THE ANNOTATED HOBBIT is a handsome, interesting book to own if you're a fan of Bilbo and his adventures with the dwarves (or dwarfs? That's covered in the book as well!)
Rating: 5
Summary: Really, the best way to read The Hobbit
Comment: Okay, so I say that this is the best way to read The Hobbit. And I am dead serious.
I know that annotated books can be difficult to navigate, filled with useless, pointless, or just plain boring information, and can be grossly oversized. That is not the case here.
So - here's the scoop.
The original story is very nicely presented, with all original illustrations in color when possible, and in black and white elsewhere. The type is nice and clear, very easy to read. (Many cheaper editions are also rather hard on the eyes. Check the print before you buy, folks!)
The illustrations are printed very clearly, and with very good notes on what they are.
And then the annotations - useful, engaging, and very well done. You will WANT to read these. We discover how the book was written, and what was changed between editions. (There were many changes made so that The Hobbit would conform more easily to the Lord of the Rings trilogy.) There are fascinating tidbits about Tolkien's life and the experiences that made their way into the story.
The forward tells about the writing of the novel, and the appedices give additional details about the text.
There are also many illustrations from other editions of the book. These are varied, from thought-provoking to not-provoking.
And the book is not too big. Some editions are simply too big to be read, but this book is reasonably sized so that you can actually READ IT! In fact, I have not read any other edition of The Hobbit for years, since the original annotated version came out.
The new edition is very much worthwhile. Enjoy!
Rating: 4
Summary: great but not outstanding
Comment: I enjoyed Anderson's book, especially the background into Tolkien's sources and early writings that is invaluable. I must say I have read the Hobbit at least 100 times and yet I have never enjoyed reading it as much as when I read it with Anderson's anotations. I especially appreciated the philological background into the many proper names and archaic words that Tolkien used. What is a "carrock"or what does "confusticate and bebother" mean? Now I know!
I also enjoyed the immense number of illustrations that were included, many of them sketches and pictures made by J.R.R himself. Alas, they are not in color, most are black and white prints of original color pictures. If more had been invested in the visual quality of this book, it would have greatly added to the level of pleasure in the words of Tolkien that Anderson's comments bring out. Still worth the money, hopefully Anderson will add color in the next edition
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Title: The Atlas of Middle-Earth (Revised Edition) by Karen Wynn Fonstad ISBN: 0618126996 Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Co Pub. Date: 10 April, 2001 List Price(USD): $24.00 |
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Title: The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien by J. R. R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien, Humphrey Carpenter ISBN: 0618056998 Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Co Pub. Date: June, 2000 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
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Title: The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien, Alan Lee ISBN: 0618260587 Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Co Pub. Date: November, 2002 List Price(USD): $80.00 |
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Title: The Silmarillion by J.R.R. TOLKIEN ISBN: 0345325818 Publisher: Del Rey Pub. Date: 12 January, 1985 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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Title: The Complete Guide to Middle-Earth by Robert Foster ISBN: 0345449762 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 04 December, 2001 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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