The Hobbit
J.R.R. Tolkien, 1934
★ 4.30 from 4.7m ratings on Goodreads
A quiet Hobbit's routine world is shattered when an unexpected visitor introduces him to a quest of impossible stakes. A cosy start gives way to riddles, mountains and a dragon, told in a wry, unhurried voice that keeps wonder close to home.
Feels like wonder, awe and joy. About adventure, home and love.
Who it’s for
You may enjoy it if you like gentle adventure, wordplay and a narrator who talks to you. Be warned that some readers find the songs and stretches of walking tedious, and the prose drier than modern fantasy.
Why read it
It offers a complete small quest with a warm sense of home behind it, and plenty of riddles and songs to linger over.
A page from the book
A creature speaks in magnificent, terrible grandeur, asserting a dominion that defies all reason.
“The King under the Mountain is dead, and where are his kin that dare seek revenge? Girion Lord of Dale is dead, and I have eaten his people like a wolf among sheep, and where are his sons’ sons that dare approach me? I kill where I wish, and none dare resist. I laid low the warriors of old and their like is not in the world today. Then I was but young and tender. Now I am old and strong, strong, strong, Thief in the Shadows!” he gloated. “My armour is like tenfold shields, my teeth are swords, my claws spears, the shock of my tail a thunderbolt, my wings a hurricane, and my breath death!” What readers say
Readers often describe delight, enchantment, and nostalgia, especially through childhood rereads and a sense of adventure. Others find the prose dry, the songs and pacing tedious, or the story less tense, producing real mixed reactions.
J.R.R. Tolkien.Tolkien was a professional academic at Oxford before writing The Hobbit; his deep knowledge of philology and ancient languages heavily informs the world's naming conventions.
Books that feel like this
More by J.R.R. Tolkien
The Fellowship of the Ring
J.R.R. Tolkien, 1954
A quiet hobbit inherits a ring that is not his to keep, and leaves the Shire with friends who do not yet know the road.
The Silmarillion
J. R. R. Tolkien, 1977
The creation myth and lost legends of Middle-earth: cosmic music, doomed oaths, and the wars that made Frodo's world.
The Two Towers
J.R.R. Tolkien, 1954
The middle volume of the war for Middle-earth: a divided fellowship, a haunted guide, and two hobbits climbing toward the one place that can end it.
Where to get it
Some of these links earn us a small commission, at no cost to you. It keeps BookFeed free.
Questions readers ask
- Is The Hobbit for me?
- You may enjoy it if you like gentle adventure, wordplay and a narrator who talks to you. Be warned that some readers find the songs and stretches of walking tedious, and the prose drier than modern fantasy.
- What is The Hobbit like?
- A cosy start gives way to riddles, mountains and a dragon, told in a wry, unhurried voice that keeps wonder close to home. Feels like wonder, awe and joy. About adventure, home and love.
- What should I read after The Hobbit?
- If you liked The Hobbit, try Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (J. K. Rowling), Eragon (Christopher Paolini) and Twilight (Stephenie Meyer).
A taste of the feed
The moment a magic lesson becomes a contest of who says it right.
‘And what if I wave my wand and nothing happens?’ ‘Throw it away and punch him on the nose,’ Ron suggested. Wingardium Leviosa!’ he shouted, waving his long arms like a windmill. ‘You’re saying it wrong,’ Harry heard Hermione snap. ‘It’s Wing-gar-dium Levi-o-sa, make the “gar” nice and long.’ ‘You do it, then, if you’re so clever’ Ron snarled. Hermione rolled up the sleeves of her gown, flicked her wand and said, Wingardium Leviosa!’ Their feather rose off the desk and hovered about four feet above their heads.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone · J. K. Rowling
Advice that sounds like freedom and costs almost everything to keep.
Let no one rule your mind or body. Take special care that your thoughts remain unfettered, one may be a free man and yet be bound tighter than a slave. Give men your ear, but not your heart. Show respect for those in power, but don’t follow them blindly. Judge with logic and reason, but comment not. Consider none your superior in life. Treat all fairly or they will seek revenge. Be careful with your money. Hold fast to your beliefs and others will listen. Of the affairs of love, my only advice is to be honest. That’s your most powerful tool to unlock a heart or gain forgiveness.
Eragon · Christopher Paolini
What it feels like to be certain of something that could kill you.
About three things I was absolutely positive. First, Edward was a vampire. Second, there was part of him — and I didn’t know how potent that part might be — that thirsted for my blood. And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him.
Twilight · Stephenie Meyer
Read pages from books like this, one at a time
Keep reading in the feed