Oh, what sad times are these when Tolkien podcasters can make it through an entire season without a single reference to shrubberies? For our final episode on The Hobbit, we return with a retrospective: one that sounds nice (of course!) and not too expensive. First, we cut down the mightiest themes in the story wiiith… a revisiting! Then we answer your questions in an extra-long Barliman’s Bag segment, placed beside the first segment, so we get the two-segment effect with a little path running down the middle. You must listen or else you will never pass through this season… alliiive!
Hat tip to listener Trotter for the information about the new The Hobbit Facsimile Gift Edition! Trotter has kindly shared a comparison photo of four different Hobbit editions from his collection: the 2016 Facsimile First Edition (top left); 2018 Facsimile Gift Edition (top right); 1937 George Allen & Unwin first edition, first impression (bottom left); and 1937 George Allen & Unwin first edition, second impression (bottom right). The two from 1937 are as magnificent as Smaug himself!
The Facsimile Gift Edition is only sold in the UK right now (Amazon UK link here), but it is available through third-party sellers at Amazon.com. We’ve also found some online UK booksellers who offer free delivery worldwide, such as BookDepository.com.
Also from Trotter: for more on the folklore behind “fairy rings” see this Wikipedia entry. Skip ahead to the folklore part, not the shortcut to mushrooms!
Recommended Reading:
Tolkien, J. R. R. The Hobbit (Mariner Books, paperback)
Tolkien, J. R. R. and Douglas A. Anderson, ed. The Annotated Hobbit (HarperCollins, hardcover)
Rateliff, John D. The History of the Hobbit (HarperCollins, one-volume hardcover)
Tolkien, J. R. R. (Christopher Tolkien, ed.) The Silmarillion (Mariner Books, paperback)
Tolkien, J. R. R. Tales from the Perilous Realm (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, hardcover)
Shippey, Tom. J.R.R. Tolkien: Author of the Century (Mariner Books, paperback)
I just finished reading The Hobbit. I usually give up on books about one third of the way through but listening to you guys kept my motivation up. However, I should give most the credit to the Professor I suppose. Such an incredible journey and having you all along for the ride, getting deep into the text in a way that I still am amazed by, was wonderful. Thank you so much for this podcast.
Now back to LOTR! Which I stopped reading to start The Hobbit. I guess I figured the beginning was the best place to start!!…Not sure where I heard that before….
The credit is due to the Professor, of course… but we’re glad we could help you stay motivated and helped you get more out of your reading!