I’ve loved J.R.R. Tolkien fiercely for many years. When I finally got to see The Hobbit on the big screen, I was simultaneously entranced, delighted, and dismayed. Very mixed feelings. I think I’ll have to see the film at least three more times before I’ll know how I REALLY feel.

I got home from the theater and was consumed by an uncontrollable longing for the world of Middle Earth. There are so many editions of this beloved novel, one doesn’t have to settle for Peter Jackson’s vision alone. A quick re-read of Douglas A. Anderson’s The Annotated Hobbit gave me just the fix I needed. Wonderful (and sometimes very funny) annotations abound, as well as illustrations from a number of international editions. Babel Hobbits, an online collection of multilingual editions, provides even more images of Hobbits, Dwarves, and Middle Earth.

Here is a Russian Gollum, illustrated by Mikhail Belomlinsky.
Eric Fraser’s “Durin’s Day,” in the 1979 Folio Society Edition. I love this one!

Tolkien’s own depiction of the forest. So Art Deco and evocative!