A paperback copy of the Hobbit is always a nice gift. First because it is not too expensive and still looks good. It lies very good in the hand and most of the time the paper is a bit darker and so reads very well. It has a perfect size to take with you, wherever you wish to go.

This paperback contains all the stunning paintings by Alan Lee, depicting key scenes from this all-time classic (scenes such as Gollum and Bilbo, The Wargs, Smaug the Dragon and The Battle of the Five Armies), and this beautiful volume also includes a wealth of integrated pencil drawings which demonstrate perfectly Alan's genius at work.

A similar hardback edition, with 22 illustrations, was published in 1997. It remains one of the best Hobbits to read out when you have kids - or just love good illustrations!

In 2007 we celebrated the 70th anniversary of The Hobbit with a brand new edition. It featured a short introduction by Christopher Tolkien, a reset text incorporating the most up-to-date corrections, and all of Tolkien’s own drawings and color illustrations, including the rare “Mirkwood” piece.

Read my review of this book here. A Hobbit is always a nice present, especially this fantastic looking celebration edition! The cover by J.R.R. Tolkien himself remains one of the best book jackets ever designed and this edition sits well on every bookshelf.

The excellent quality of this Hobbit will be enjoyed by any person willing to read the book - probably the best price versus quality out there!

Here is a picture of how a set will look like with this new addition.

The three-volume collector’s boxed set presents for the first time the complete text of the original manuscript of ‘The Hobbit’ alongside the definitive hardback edition of the book. It tells the story of how the Hobbit came to be and grew into the final shape as we know it today. It records the many changes made to the story both before and after publication, and examines – chapter-by chapter – why those changes were made and how they reflect Tolkien’s evergrowing concept of Middle-earth.

Douglas Anderson's annotations make fascinating reading. Additionally, many of Tolkien's own illustrations embellish the text, and numerous illustrations from foreign editions exhibit an extraordinary range of visual interpretation. This book is a perfect gift for a Tolkien fan who enjoyed the Hobbit and is looking for extra info on the book and the author Tolkien.

John Howe is the second artist, who next to Alan Lee, defined much of how Peter Jacksons movie adaptation looked like.