The Hobbit

Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1938 Illustrated by the author, with four color and nine black-and-white illustrations, and map endpapers printed in red and white. First American edition, first printing, first state, with "1938" and bowing flautist to title page, incorrect map placement on list of illustrations, and Chapter VII mistakenly identified as "Chapter VI" on page 118. Publisher's tan cloth, with front board and spine lettered in blue, and bowing hobbit in red to front board; lacking the scarce original dust jacket. Near fine, with light toning to spine, a touch of soiling to boards, vibrant lettering and decoration to cloth, and a hint of rubbing to spine ends and bottom corners. Overall, an exceptional copy of this classic work, with very clean pages. Housed in a custom black slipcase stamped in gilt. The Hobbit is a fantasy children's novel that precedes Tolkien's 1954-1955 epic trilogy The Lord of the Rings. It tells the story of Bilbo Baggins, a well-do-to hobbit with just enough sense of adventure, as he joins the wizard Gandalf and a troupe of thirteen dwarves in a quest to retake the Lonely Mountain, the dwarves' rightful kingdom, from its captor Smaug, a fearsome dragon. Bilbo, hired as the "burglar" of the group despite having none of the necessary qualifications, is initially more a burden than aid, but transforms into an important team member after finding a magic ring that makes him invisible. The plot, which takes place around 150 years before The Fellowship of the Ring, concludes with the Battle of Five Kingdoms, a struggle between good and evil that pits the kingdoms of dwarves, men, and elves against the more sinister goblins and wargs. The Hobbit received immediate critical and commercial success, and Tolkien's publishers requested a sequel - a proposition that developed into The Lord of the Rings. In the trilogy, Tolkien expands upon Bilbo's finding of the magic ring, which proves to be the lost property of the Dark Lord Sauron and inadvertently begins a chain of events that ultimately lead up to the War of the Ring in The Return of the King. After completing The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien made a few substantial edits to The Hobbit to ensure its congruence with the trilogy. Interestingly, Tolkien cites William Morris as a major inspiration for his novels, specifically the interest in Nordic mythology, the hand-drawn illustrations, and emphasis on craftsmanship. . First American Edition. Hard Cover. Near Fine. Illus. by Tolkein, J. R. R. (John Ronald Reuel).