The Hobbit by J.R.R.Tolkien

Titel: The Hobbit
Author: J.R.R.Tolkien
Publisher: Grafton
First published: 1937
Pages: 285
Series: Prequel to Lord of the rings
Star rating: *****
"The Hobbit is a tale of high adventure, undertaken by a company of dwarves, in search of dragon-guarded gold. A reluctant partner in this perilous quest is Bilbo Baggins, a comfort-loving, unambitious hobbit, who surprises even himself by his resourcefulness and skill as a burglar. 
Encounters with trolls, goblins, dwarves, elves and giant spiders, conversations with the dragon, Smaug the Magnificent, and a rather unwilling presence at the Battle of the Five Armies are some of the adventures that befall Bilbo. But there are lighter moments as well: good fellowship, welcome meals, laughter and song.
Bilbo Baggins has taken his place among the ranks of the immortals of children's fiction. Written for Professor Tolkien's own children, The Hobbit met with instant critical acclaim when published. It is a complete and marvellous tale in itself, but it also forms a prelude to The Lord of the Rings"

Wow, I had heard that the fantasy by Tolkien is good, but I guess it is one of those things you have to read to truly believe. The world building in this book was really amazing, I felt as if what you were told and saw through the story were only the tip of the iceberg. It could get the 5 stars only based on the world building, if you where to ask me. All of the creatures where just great, and I really liked the hobbits and the elves too.

I really liked the characters too, they were all very realistic, and Bilbo was great. He was such an awesome unwilling hero, and he just grew so so much through a single book, that some characters doesn't even do in an entire series.

Even though I really enjoyed this book I had a few issues with it as well. Sometimes Tolkien described the look of some random tree in a little to much detail for me it would have been enough just to be told that it was an oak tree, that had grown for decades or something like that. It didn't need a long passage. Even though it was great with a lot of detail when it came to the history of the people and important landmarks.

The style in which this book was written wasn't really the type I was used to, which of course is mostly because of the age of the book, and it therefore took me a little longer then a normal 300 paged novel would. Also almost every chapter was it's own little story, in one chapter they would meet the orcs and escape too, and in the next they did this and that, but it all lead up to the big adventure. This was at points just wonderful, because it made sense, but sometimes it seemed that each chapter was written alone and not in a novel.

So overall this was a really great book, and probably something every fantasy fan should read, and I look forward to starten the fellowship of the ring :D