So Chris bought me this book, Exploring J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit” for the holidays thinking it would give insight into the Hobbit back story (e.g., the Necromancer as Sauran and what really happened when Gandalf left the dwarves and Bilbo) but I guess he really didn’t read the book description and reviews. You see this book isn’t about the story so much as it is about how to interpret the book and it’s meaning if you were taking a course on Tolkien. You see the author used to have a podcast called “The Tolkien Professor” and this book is really literary criticism.
And while the book did give me a better appreciation for the songs, I felt it dragged and was repetitive (yes, I get the two different natures of Bilbo and the reconciliation that takes place throughout the story). Yet, I did keep reading it over the course of seven months, if only as a remembrance of the story as the next movie installment approaches and to help me fall to sleep at night.
So while this would be a good book if you’re taking a class on the subject, it’s not something I would actually recommend for light, enjoyable reading. Sorry.
