The Annotated Hobbit » (Annotated)

It seems an unlikely formula for success: an Oxford professor of Anglo-Saxon, and a book that begins with a little man who lives in a hole in the ground. But The Hobbit, followed by The Lord of the Rings, created the modern genre of heroic fantasy and made J.R.R. Tolkien one of the most widely-read authors in the world.

For readers throughout the world, The Hobbit serves as an introduction to the enchanting world of Middle-earth, home of elves, wizards, dwarves, goblins, dragons, orcs and a host of other creatures depicted in The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion -- tales that sprang from the mind of the most beloved author of all time, J.R.R. Tolkien.
Newly expanded and completely redesigned, Douglas A. Anderson's The Annotated Hobbit is the definitive explication of the sources, characters, places, and things of J.R.R. Tolkien's timeless classic. Integrated with Anderson's notes and placed alongside the fully restored and corrected text of the original story are more than 150 illustrations showing visual interpretations of The Hobbit specific to many of the cultures that have come to know and love Tolkien's Middle-earth. Tolkien's original line drawings, maps and color paintings are also included, making this the most lavishly informative edition of The Hobbit available.
The Annotated Hobbit shows how Tolkien worked as a writer, what his influences and interests were, and how these relate to the invented world of Middle-earth. It gives a valuable overview of Tolkien's life and the publishing history of The Hobbit, and explains how every feature of The Hobbit fits within the rest of Tolkien's invented world. Here we learn how Gollum's character was revised to accommodate the true nature of the One Ring, and we can read the full text of The Quest of Erebor, Gandalf's explanation of how he came to send Bilbo Baggins on his journey with the dwarves. Anderson also makes meaningful and often surprising connections to our own world and literary history -- from Beowulf to The Marvellous Land of Snergs, from the Brothers Grimm to C. S. Lewis.

Publishers Weekly

In time for the release of the second installment in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy comes Tolkien scholar Douglas A. Anderson's The Annotated Hobbit: Revised and Expanded Edition. Anderson has incorporated much new information unearthed since the book first appeared in 1988. National author tour.

Preface to the Second Edition  xi introduction  1 1. an unexpected party  29 2. roast mutton  60 3. a short rest  87 4. over hill and under hill  100 5. riddles in the dark  115 6. out of the frying-pan into the fire  137 7. queer lodgings  161 8. flies and spiders  191 9. barrels out of bond  222 10. a warm welcome  241 11. on the doorstep  255 12. inside information  267 13. not at home  289 14. fire and water  302 15. the gathering of the clouds  314 16. a thief in the night  326 17. the clouds burst  333 18. the return journey  346 19. the last stage  355 Appendix A. The Quest of Erebor  367 Appendix B. The Runes  378 Bibliography  380 Map of Wilderland  399