There I go again, reviewing one of those “legendary books” which basically means it is already loved all over the world and you are either with the fans or you aren’t.

            But I pride myself as always having method to my madness, and it is no different here. For those of you out there who have avoided reading the Lord of the Rings for whatever reason; I recommend this book to you.

            I know how it goes, you want to read the Lord of the Rings but you just can’t get around to it, and you figure; I saw the movies, I got the gist of it. This was my basic view on the whole matter, or at least it was my reason for never picking up Tolkien’s work. However as I dove deeper into the fantasy genre, I realized that I could never call myself a true fan of fantasy, or a fantasy writer, until I had read Tolkien. Granted, it can be done without reading any of his books, but his books are famous for a reason, and as a fantasy fan/writer, I owed it to myself to find out why.

            However like I said, I was reluctant to pick up the trilogy because I had seen the movies, and figured I couldn’t get much more from the books. So I made a compromise; I bought The Hobbit.

            The Hobbit is not the Lord of the Rings; it is a separate story following one of the characters from the Lord of the Rings. Now for those of you who know the story well, feel free to skip the description or to just abandon this review altogether. Like I always say; my reviews are for those who are undecided, or perhaps never knew about the book to begin with.

            Anyway this book follows our little friend named Bilbo Baggins; a hobbit who has lived a rather uneventful life until the day when he comes in contact with a wizard known as Gandalf. Whether or not you have read the book, you probably have heard these names, and you probably know what a hobbit is (tiny people with big furry feet who eat a lot, for those of you who don’t know.)

            So of course when little Bilbo is offered the chance for an adventure, not being fond of adventures, he declines. Although a wizard of Gandalf’s stature won’t take no for an answer and places a magical sign, of sorts, on Bilbo’s door. The next day Bilbo is confused to find dwarf after dwarf arriving on his doorstep expecting hospitality.

            Bilbo quickly finds out that Gandalf hasn’t given up on trying to convince him to embark on this quest, which he finds out the purpose of is to retrieve a dwarf’s treasure from the clutches of a dragon. Bilbo is of course needed because hobbits are experts at not being seen or heard, and of course, deep down in his heart, he urns for the adventure, much like all of us.

            It is pretty safe to say that Bilbo invariably agrees to go along (If he didn’t there would be no book) and we see their travels through the land of the elves, over treacherous mountains, taken captive and eventually into the lair of Smog, the dragon whose belly is encrusted with jewels from having lain on them so long.

            When I read this book, I had read nothing out of the Lord of the Rings, just seen the movies. So I was able to understand the significance of the magical ring Bilbo took from Gollum. However aside from that little reference, I was largely unfamiliar with everything this story had to offer. When I set out to buy it, I knew the book existed, but I really had no idea what lay between the pages.

            I must say I enjoyed the book far more than I had expected. It is a completely original adventure that feels like an epic fantasy squished into a compressed format, and nearly every event Bilbo goes through is memorable.

            This is definitely the book to read if you are interested in Tolkien, but have somewhat spoiled the experience by seeing the movies. But I advise you to be quick, since a hobbit movie doesn’t seem that far off.

            There are a few quarrels I have with Tolkien’s writing though. He tends to suffer, like a lot of writers, from over description. I mean the entire nature of hobbits could be condensed into half a page, and yet he keeps going on and on. I enjoyed every moment of action and magic in this book, but when ever he over described something I found my attention drifting.

            I also noticed this in the Fellowship of the Ring (I eventually started reading them) but I will hold anything I have to say about that book until I finish it.

            I recommend this book to fans of the movie who have been unable to pick up the books, but who would like to. It is shorter than the rings trilogy, and introduces you to the world through text and provides something that the movies never could; your imagination.