73 Years of The Hobbit, Release of The Exile and... Advance Buzz

Edinor veren, or Joyous Anniversary (in Sindarin, I hope) to The Hobbit!


On 21 September 1937 The Hobbit was first published in Great Britain. Where would I be without Tolkien, I wonder? Not just rereading The Lord of the Rings every year, but all the other authors I discovered through him, and the links that run through his work to many of my other interests and explorations - Welsh language, history of the British Isles, poetry, and so on.

"To celebrate the hardback release of There and Back Again – The Map of Tolkien's The Hobbit by Brian Sibley, TheOneRing.net and Harper Collins are teaming up to give you a chance to win a free copy!"

If you'd like to win a copy of the book, sign up here. It's illustrated by Canadian John Howe.


It's also launch day for Diana Gabaldon's The Exile! I ordered my copy through Amazon so have to grit my teeth and wait, but if you've got your copy already, join the discussions here on Outlandish Observations and on the Compuserve forum.



Next week is Banned Books Week. Which books have you read?


Also, in case you missed it, Inky Fool has been doing a rundown of the planets in our solar system, ending with Pluto today. And I agree with their statement that "Anyone considering leaving a comment about how Pluto isn't a planet no more, can take that thought, cover it in brambles, and stick it where the sun only shines very, very faintly."


Buzzzz... writers' house party coming soon to the Compuserve forum... more information to follow... buzzzzz...


And now, here is Bilbo Baggins's favourite walking song:

Roads go ever ever on,
Over rock and under tree,
By caves where never sun has shone,
By streams that never find the sea;
Over snow by winter sown,
And through the merry flowers of June,
Over grass and over stone,
And under mountains in the moon.
Roads go ever ever on

Under cloud and under star,
Yet feet that wandering have gone
Turn at last to home afar.
Eyes that fire and sword have seen
And horror in the halls of stone
Look at last on meadows green
And trees and hills they long have known.

Comments

red-handed said…
The Hobbit is one of the few books that stayed with me from school ... so much more charming than LOT.
It's been so long since I read The Hobbit, I seriously need to read it again. I may have to buy it, because I doubt I even own it anymore!
Deniz Bevan said…
Yes, The Hobbit does have a different tone than LOTR. But I love both :-)
Happy birthday to Frodo and BIlbo today!

Enter the contest Susan - there're only two or three fields to fill in, very easy!
I think I read The Hobbit when I was in junior high. I love the old cartoon of it. It's one that I've actually let my kids watch without reading the book. Guess I need to get copy of the book now for them to enjoy :)
Deniz Bevan said…
Oh yes! And there's a lovely illustrated version of the book too that came out a few years ago...
Eliza said…
Oh, Love Love Love the Hobbit! Started to read it and LOTR as a teen and read them all every year through my 20's into 30's. But kind'a stopped the annual reading after LOTR came out in film. I got lazy with just the DVDs.
But...
Last winter I gave my 14 and 16 year olds each the book the Hobbit of her own and both read it for the first time!
I think it's about time I re-read them all again!
Deniz Bevan said…
I know how you feel Eliza :-) I might do my yearly reread over Christmas this year...