The Hobbitt (Kyle Grumoli)

Info: The Hobbit, J.R.R Tolkien, Ballantine Books, 304 pages
Where: I found this book in the library at Holyoke High School
Summary: Bilbo Baggins lives a peaceful life at his home in Bag End. Bilbo never does anything exciting or adventurous, until one day Gandalf the wizard tells Bilbo to go on an adventure with thirteen dwarves trying to get back their treasure from the evil dragon, Smaug. Once they set out, the group is captured by trolls. They trick the trolls into letting them go, and then the group steals weapons from the trolls for their journey. While camping in the Misty Mountains, Bilbo is left behind and wanders the caves looking for a way out. He comes across a golden ring that belongs to a creature named Gollum. The ring makes the wearer invisible, and when Bilbo finds this out, he is able to escape Gollum and get back to the group. The leader of the dwarves, Thorin, takes the group to Lake Town, which is inhabited by humans. Bilbo bravely enters Smaug’s lair invisible because of his magical ring, and is able to discover a hole in Smaug’s armor right near Smaug’s heart. Smaug is angered when he finds out that Bilbo is there, and attacks Lake Town. However, Bard, an archer in the town, finds out Bilbo has found a weak spot in Smaug’s armor, and kills Smaug. Goblins attack the mountain to reclaim the treasure, but the human, elves, and Bilbo band together to defeat them and win back their treasure.
Audience: The audience is any person who likes action and adventure. This book is filled with action scenes and has an adventurous plot, making the book perfect for this type of audience.
Style: The style was very descriptive. It described a lot of scenes and characters in detail. Many of the characters named rhymed as well.
“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or eat: it was a hobbit hole, and that meant comfort. (Chapter 1, pg.1)
Passages:
1. “His head was in a whirl of hope and wonder. It seemed that the ring he had was a magic ring: it made you invisible! He had heard of such things, of course, in the old tales; but it was hard to believe he had actually found one, by accident.” (Chapter 5, pg.85)
This passage is very important because Bilbo realizes the ring he has found is magical and can make him invisible. He can escape Gollum and the trolls and finally return the elves and to Gandalf. It struck me that Bilbo would find something so important completely by accident.
2. Even Bilbo was given a seat at the high table, and no explanation of where he came in, no songs had alluded to him even in the obscurest way, was asked for in the general battle. (Chapter 10, pg.197)
This passage shows that Bilbo has gained a lot of respect from the group for saving them from the spiders. Even though he was not as important as others, he was given a seat without having to battle for it. The group is now proud of having brought Bilbo along.
3. And so they crossed the bridge and passed the mill by the river and came right back to Bilbo’s own door. He had made it home, and was changed for the better.
(Chapter 19, pg. 301).
This is near the ending of the book when Bilbo is going home. It shows the culmination of Bilbo’s great adventure and shows how dramatically he has changed throughout his ordeal. He is no longer boring, old Bilbo, but a new man with an adventurous side.

Interaction: Although this book was quite lengthy, it was a good read with a great meaning. It shows the reader that you need to change, and cannot just be the same person for your entire life. It shows bravery and heroism in people who you would least expect it from, and shows the power of a person’s will to succeed in accomplishing something. This book made me realize that I need to work hard in order to get where I want in life, and even though it may be hard, I need to work as hard as I can everyday. When Bilbo earns respect from his comrades, it shows me that friendship is also very important in life.