Gina's Book #4: The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

My first experience with The Hobbit was the 1977 cartoon adaptation.  At the time I was so young I didn't really understand most of the plot, but I remember finding the film fascinating and terrifying all at the same time.  Although I found it interesting, I did not like the movie, and it always gave me a bad feeling in my stomach to watch it.The next encounter I had with The Hobbit was in my 5th grade class. My teacher Mr. Clark would read a chapter of the book to us a day.  He was a great teacher and when he read, he would use accents and get into character as best he could.  I liked the book, but still I think I was too young to appreciate it.

Now that I am older I have read The Hobbit on my own countless times, and never seem to tire or get bored of it.  Of J.R.R. Tolkiens works, it is by far my favorite.  The writing style is much different than The Lord of the Rings trilogy in that I find it a much more fun and humorous read.  The characters are all very likable and endearing in their own ways. When J.R.R. Tolkien first introduces the dwarves, I found myself highlighting their names and numbering them to help myself keep better track of who is who.  My two favorite characters are Frodo and Gandalf. 

Frodo in my opinion is hiliarious, always making witty remarks with his dry sense of humor. He is a creature of comfort that gets talked into going on this crazy adventure. Half the time he is regretting it and wanting to be back home in his hobbit hole, the other half he is coming up with daring plans to get the drwarfs out of horrible fixes and feeling quite proud of himself.

I think everyone would like to have a Gandalf in their lives. Each character looks up to him as someone who gives sound advice and knows everything. He is the voice of reason and every character feels ill at ease when he is not there.  He believes in Frodo and sees in him something no one else sees, not even Frodo, until the very end. 

This book is one of my favorites and I was happy to have a reason to read it again. For those who have not read the hobbit, I would highly recommend it. The triliogy is also worthwhile, although much more of a demanding read and not nearly as fun. Currently a new movie is in the works and you can find updates on it by visiting the following link: http://the-hobbit-movie.com/