Product Description

An enduring Tolkien classic now available for the first time on CD. Bilbo Baggins enjoys a quiet and contented life, with no desire to travel far from the comforts of home; then one day the wizard Gandalf and a band of dwarves arrive unexpectedly and enlist his services -- as a burglar -- on a dangerous expedition to raid the treasure-hoard of Smaug the dragon. Bilbo's life is never to be the same again. The Hobbit became an instant success when it was first published in 1937, and more than 60 years later Tolkien's epic tale of elves, dwarves, trolls, goblins, myth, magic and adventure, with its reluctant hero Bilbo Baggins, has lost none of its appeal.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10285 in Books
• Published on: 2000-11-06
• Released on: 2007-01-01
• Formats: Abridged, Audiobook
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 5
• Binding: Audio CD

Synopsis
An enduring Tolkien classic now available for the first time on CD. Bilbo Baggins enjoys a quiet and contented life, with no desire to travel far from the comforts of home; then one day the wizard Gandalf and a band of dwarves arrive unexpectedly and enlist his services -- as a burglar -- on a dangerous expedition to raid the treasure-hoard of Smaug the dragon. Bilbo's life is never to be the same again. The Hobbit became an instant success when it was first published in 1937, and more than 60 years later Tolkien's epic tale of elves, dwarves, trolls, goblins, myth, magic and adventure, with its reluctant hero Bilbo Baggins, has lost none of its appeal.

From the Publisher
An enduring Tolkien classic now available for the first time on CD. Superb characterisation of all Tolkien’s characters from Martin Shaw

About the Author
J.R.R.Tolkien (1892-1973) was a distinguished academic, though he is best known for writing The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion, plus other
stories and essays. His books have been translated into over 30 languages and have sold many millions of copies worldwide.

Customer Reviews

Bad reading of a brilliant book
Brilliant book, dreadfully abridged, shamefully read.
I felt there was no need to abridge this brilliant book, but then the reading just adds insult to injury.
There are other unabridged versions available and substantially better well read...sorry, but don't touch it!
NOTE: One star is the lowest rate on this item...zero would have been a better choice!

the hobbit by rob inglis
AFTER listening to the entire harry potter series narrated by jim dale on cd/ipod, i could not wait to hear the hobbit, by jim inglis!!! i was horribly disappointed by this narrator's rendition! his voice is annoying, and i can't stand when he makes up tunes for the songs in the book. and when he does, i can barely understand a word he's saying. it makes me wish i had the book in front of me. i find myself fast forwarding through the "songs" which of course, makes me miss some important dialog.
i don't get it. does the author tell the narrators what tune to use? or do they make it up as they go along? after all, if i'm reading the book, its not like a tune will pop up in the book when its song time. so why can't the narrator just stick to the script???
my vote is that for an english accent, all books should be narrated by jim dale.

Martin Shaw
J.R.R. Tolkien really write well, and Martin Shaw reads amzingly. His readings are just as good as in the Silmarillion, and that was an achievement in itself, but this is a good buy because its about the only rendition of the Hobbit that can be enjoyed by both children and adults. His readings truly bring you into another world. And his voice truly belongs in Tolkien's world, as some of the other reviews say, he truly brings you into another world, and you enjoy every minute of it.

Although this is abridged, it is better than Rob Inglis' version.