Title: The Hobbit Author: J. R. R. Tolkien. First published in: 1937
Understate: or There and Back Again. Main characters: Bible Baggins: Bilbo is a hobbit that lived in a house called ‘The Hill’ which belonged to his father before him. Bilbo was just like his father who was neat and clean and had everything in his life planned. His mother lived for adventures, so a part of Bilbo did to. Gandalf persuaded him to go on an adventure to bring back the forgotten gold of the dwarfs. He went with Thorin and co. as a burglar. Gandalf the wizard: Gandalf was an old friend from the father of Bilbo’s mother. In the beginning of the story he chose Bilbo to be the burglar of the adventure. He is very mysterious and in the beginning he always saves the day with some magic. He is an old and wise man. Thorin Oakenshield: He is the king of the dwarves. When the father of his father once ruled the lands of the Lonely Mountain it had been very prosperous until the dragon called Smaug came along and destroyed Dale. Smaug took all the gold of the dwarves and they fled. Thorin wants to defeat Smaug and rebuilt the kingdom that once belonged to his family. Ori, Nori, Dori, Oin, Gloin, Kili, Fili, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Balin and Dwalin: They are all members of Thorin
and co. Together with Thorin Oakenshield they want to rebuilt the kingdom with all its prosperity.
An outline of the book: It all starts at the home of Bilbo. He is having his breakfast as usual and everything is normal, until Gandalf comes along. At first Bilbo doesn’t recognise him, because it has been a long time since Gandalf came along. Gandalf asks Bilbo if he wants to come on an adventure and of course Bilbo says no. Bilbo was just like his father and doesn’t like any unplanned things. But Gandalf has already decided that Bilbo has to be the burglar and leaves a strange mark on the front door. The next day thirteen dwarves came along. Bilbo is so surprised that he can’t do anything but to let them in. They all talk and sing about a treasure that has been stolen by Smaug the Dragon. Finally Gandalf comes along and he starts planning an adventure together with all the dwarves. Bilbo doesn’t know what they are all talking about and the dwarves aren’t really happy with him as a burglar, but Gandalf insists that Bilbo comes with them. When they are all done they start singing again. Bilbo suggests to go to bed, because they have an early start in the morning. The next day Bilbo hopes all the things were just a bad dream, but the moment he steps thru the door all that hope is gone, because he sees Gandalf waiting for him. They go to the village where all the dwarves are waiting with horses and stuff. There’s a little horse for Bilbo. In the beginning everything goes very smooth until the whether changes and a horse with a lot of food falls in the river. Later on they see some fires burning up ahead behind the trees. Bilbo has to check if there is any danger, because he has been chosen to be the burglar. Bilbo sees that the things that are sitting at the fire are trolls. Everything goes well until Bilbo try’s to steel the wallet of one of the trolls. They discover him and try to catch them. Because Bilbo has been gone for a while the dwarves come and check on him and the trolls capture them too. Only Gandalf is there now to save them all. Because trolls can’t stand sunlight, Gandalf makes sure that they quarrel about the best way to prepare Bilbo and the dwarves for dinner until sunrise and they turn into stone. They all search for the cave of the trolls and find some food and swords. They take that and go further on over the edge of the wild, where danger is everything. They reach the Last Homely House where Elrond lives with some elves. They stay there for two weeks to recover and Elrond studies the map of the Lonely Mountain that Thorin has from his father. Elrond discovers moon letters, which say how they can find the door to the secret passage on the west side of the mountain. On Midsummer Day they leave and head for the Misty Mountains where the Goblins live. When the company is approaching the pass over the mountain it starts thundering and the groups of fifteen has to shelter in a cave. Over the night the back of the cave splits in two and Goblins take the company into their maze of halls and holes to their king. They want to eat them, but the company puts up a fight. The can fled, but Bilbo gets lost and meets Gollum. In one of the passages Bilbo had found a ring that made them invisible. When he meets the creature that calls himself Gollum, it’s planning to eat Bilbo, but Bilbo starts a game. They start saying riddles and if Bilbo is the first one who doesn’t know the answer he gets eaten, but if Gollum is the one he has to show Bilbo the way out of the maze. Gollum is the first who doesn’t know the answer, but isn’t planning to show Bilbo the way out. He goes back to his house to get the ring, but he has lost it. He guessed that Bilbo has stolen it, but Bilbo already put the ring on, so that Gollum can’t see him. Gollum thinks that Bilbo has gone to the exit of the maze and shows Bilbo the way by going there too. Eventually Bilbo finds the way out and is rejoined with the company. They go on with the Goblins on their tale. The go into a forest to spend the night there, but run into Warges who are the companions of the Goblins. The all climb in a tree and Gandalf attacks the Wargs with some magic, but then the Goblins arrive, but at the last moment the eagles come and save the day by rescuing the company from the Goblins and the Warges. The next day the eagles drop the company with some food of at the Carrock and the go to Beorn who is some sort of giant that is a bear at night. Beorn doesn’t like company, but loves tails and they are welcome there. Beorn shows them a save path thru the Mirkwood forest and after a couple of days the leave with plenty of food and some new horses which they have to send back at the edge of Mirkwood. The wood is very dark, because there isn’t any sunlight. Everything goes well until they reach the river. Beorn told them that they mustn’t get wet, because the water is some sort of potion, but Bombur falls in the river and goes fast asleep. They lose some food in the river too. Later on they see some fires burning and they go of the path to find the fires, but every time they get to the fires they disappear. They can’t find the path again and the get separated. The next morning, at least Bilbo thinks it is the next morning, he is awaken by a huge spider that is trying to trap him. Luckily Bilbo escapes and finds the others hanging in a web. With the ring he manages to free the others, but they are captured by the Wood-elves. Now there isn’t a Gandalf to get them out of trouble, because he left them at the edge of Mirkwood. Luckily Bilbo isn’t caught, because he still has the ring. The wanders thru the palace of the wood elves and manages to free the others once again and the drift of in barrels on a river to Esgarot. A huge trade-city built in a huge lake. They get a warm welcome and the get time to recover. From there it is only three days of travelling to the Lonely Mountain. They get some food and horses and the go on. When they are at the Lonely Mountain it takes some days to find the secret passage and some more time to open it. Bilbo has to explore the passage and when he gets to the end he finds Smaug sleeping on a bed of gold. He found the long forgotten gold of Thorin! He steals one cup to bring it back to the dwarves. The dwarves admire him for his braveness. When it’s night Smaug discovers that the cup is missing and is very angry. He searches the mountain and he discovers the passage and blocks it, so the only way out for the dwarves is past Smaug. Bilbo goes down to Smaug once again. Smaug is pretending to sleep, but Bilbo sees that. Smaug talks to him and in the meantime Bilbo is searching for a weak spot, but the belly of Smaug is covered with gold, but there is one spot that isn’t covered. That spot is very vulnerable. In the meantime Smaug discovers that the people of Esgaroth helped the company. He sets of to destroy Esgaroth and leaves his gold behind. The dwarves and Bilbo go and take what they can. Bilbo finds the Arkenstone Thorin told him about. His takes it without telling the others and wants that as his share of the treasure, but doubts that Thorin would agree to that. Meanwhile Esgarot is almost destroyed, but Bard, one of the few survivors from Dale that was destroyed by Smaug, discovers the weak spot too and shoots Smaug. Smaug is defeated and sinks to the bottom of the lake. Now that esgarot is destroyed they want to have a share of the treasure too. Also bard wants a share, because apart of the treasure is from the people of Dale. Bard wants to rebuild Dale. They set of to Thorin, but he builds a great wall in the doorway, so they can’t get in. He asks a bird to take a message to a dwarf who is leader of a big city of dwarfs. They come to battle, but in the meantime Bilbo sneaks away to the camp of the people of Esgaroth, Bard and the Wood-elves, who too want a share of the treasure and discovers that Gandalf is back. He gives the Arkenstone and tries too persuade them not to fire. They agree, but when Thorin finds out he doesn’t want Bilbo in the company anymore. In the end The Goblins come to battle, because they want revenge, because Thorin killed their king in the Misty Mountains and they bring the Warges with them too. A great battle takes place and the eagles save the day again. In the end Thorin and Bilbo are friends again, just before Thorin dies. Fili and Kili die when they try to defend Thorin. The people of Esgaroth and the Wood-elves get a small part of treasure, Dale is rebuild by Bard, who gets a part of the treasure and the kingdom of the dwarfs is rebuild too. Bilbo goes home and later on Gandalf and Balin come for tea and Balin tells that gold is running in the river again and that Bard has rebuild Dale. A scene from the book struck me most: In the end when the battle has taken place Balin and Thorin settle their differences and Thorin dies just after that struck me most. Somehow I was very disappointed, because I thought that nobody of the company would die. And Thorin was so enthusiastic in the whole story. Then I read the Fili and Kili, the youngest of the company, died when they tried to defend Thorin I was really sad. You expect a happy ending and then you get this. Later on I found it a very beautiful ending, just because you don’t expect it and I like that in a book. The period of time the book takes place: The author writes that the book takes place about 7000 years ago, but I don’t think that really matters, because it’s a whole other world and it feels strange if you have a date, because you know it isn’t true. My opinion: I find the book really good. When I was reading it I couldn’t stop, because there always happened something. I find the ending especially good, because you don’t expect it. In the whole book you get an idea that the company can survive anything and then three of them die in the end….