All those, young or old, who love a fine adventurous tale, beautifully told, will take The Hobbit to their hearts. Whisked away from his comfortable, unambitious life in his hobbit-hole in Bag End by Gandalf the wizard and a band of dwarves, Bilbo Baggins finds himself caught up in a plot to raid the treasure hoard of Smaug the Magnificent, a large and very dangerous dragon.

R. Tolkien, the reclusive, pipe-smoking Oxford don, was in the vanguard, and so great was his achievement that his name became virtually synonymous with the literature of fantasy. But the published art has afforded only a glimpse of Tolkien's creative process, and many additional sketches, coloured drawings and maps - although exhibited and published elsewhere - have never appeared within the pages of The Hobbit. Charmed Life arrives in an explosion of magic in this edition illustrated by Alison Bryant and introduced by Katherine Rundell.As a bonus, you can read it in just about the same amount of time that it would take you to watch all three installments of the overblown and misguided movie adaptation. Tolkien himself, with the complete text printed in two colours and with many bonus features unique to this edition.

Featuring a fascinating introduction by Val McDermid and new illustrations by Juan Esteban Rodríguez, each copy has been signed by both the introducer and the illustrator. His quest takes him through enchanted forests, spiders’ lairs, and under the Misty Mountains, where he comes across the vile Gollum, and tricks him out of his ’Precious’ - a ring that makes its bearer invisible, and wields a terrible power of its own.His books have been translated into over 80 languages and have sold many millions of copies world wide.

R. Tolkien (1892-1973) was a distinguished academic, though he is best known for writing The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion and The Children of Hurin, plus other stories and essays. R. Tolkien's great classic work, The Hobbit, celebrated its 60th year of publication (1937) with a gorgeous illustrated edition by artist Alan Lee, winner of the Kate Greenaway medal for illustration, and creator of the fabulously successful Centenary edition of The Lord of the Rings.This is a handsome book, green cloth over board with a color-and-gilt illustration of Bilbo resting against a vine-covered tree on the cover. I had previously brought the illustrated editions of The Silmarillion and of The Lord Of The Rings, so I was delighted when I heard there would be similar treatment to The Hobbit. They have a plot to raid the treasure hoard of Smaug the Magnificent, a large and very dangerous dragonThe prelude to The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit has sold many millions of copies since its publication in 1937, establishing itself as one of the most beloved and influential books of the twentieth century. His contentment is disturbed one day when the wizard, Gandalf, and the dwarves arrive to take him away on an adventure.