The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien - Free Book Summary
Introduction to The Hobbit It all began with The Hobbit. Middle Earth, hobbits, wizards, elves, dwarfs, people, the Lord of the Rings. The fantasy adventure of The Hobbit was where it all started and sometimes it seems that our entire imagination could not have evolved to what it is today without The Hobbit. Tolkien’s world has been in the hearts and minds of generations around the world and getting to know The Hobbit is a first step into this wonderful world. The Hobbit – Executive Summary "Dear Ruth, Gracias for this book summary!" Bilbo Baggins, a small, hairy-footed hobbit, was perfectly content to live in his comfortable little hole in the hillside in the quiet village of Hobbiton, if Gandalf the Wizard hadn’t come into his life. Gandalf wanted Bilbo to join him and a party of 13 dwarves on a great adventure. Bilbo’s hesitance was noticed by Gandalf, but not by the dwarf band, led by Thorin Oakenshield. Thorin explained that he was the dwarf grandson of Thror, King Under the Mountain. A fierce dragon named Smaug had driven the dwarves from their homeland. Now the dwarves aimed to travel to Lonely Mountain, kill Smaug, and reclaim the mountain’s treasures. Bilbo would serve as the mission’s burglar—even though, he tried to tell them, he knew nothing about burgling. The party set off, following the paths on the ancient dwarf maps as best they could. One evening, they noticed a campfire in the distance. Bilbo was sent to investigate—and was immediately captured by trolls. One by one, the dwarves followed him, until they had all fallen into the trolls’ trap. The trolls argued about whether to eat their captives now, or wait until later. Gandalf, aware that the trolls had slow wit and loved to argue, cleverly kept the discussion going until daylight, at which time the trolls turned into stone. Rescued from the trolls, the party searched for the treasure the trolls were sure to keep, and found some food, coins, and swords in the lair. The swords would be particularly useful, as they had no other means of defense. Even tiny Bilbo found a knife, although to him it seemed to be the size of a sword. The adventurers next made their way to the valley city of Rivendell, where Elrond ruled the land of the elves. They shared a hardy meal and lively conversation. During the chat, Bilbo asked Elrond to interpret the writings on the dwarf maps. Elrond, examining the maps, explained that they gave a clue to a secret entrance to Lonely Mountain. The object of the clue would become apparent later. This free book summary of The Hobbit is complimentary from the www.free-book-summary.com website. Want to say Thanks? Tell about the book summary to your friends, link to it from your blog, or include a link to it in a book report forum. Cheers! The treacherous Misty Mountains lay in the party’s path. Scaling these could take days. After a long day’s excursion up the trails, the band sought shelter in a snug, dry cave. During the night, however, goblins entered through secret entrances and stole the party’s horses. The dwarves, and a reluctant Bilbo, managed to capture the small band of goblins and bring them before their goblin king. The thieves had nothing personal against the dwarves, they explained in their defense; they only wanted the horses. But then the goblin king saw the writing on the troll-sword Thorin carried: “Orchrist, the Goblin-cleaver,” it read in ancient goblin language. Angry, the king ordered all of the dwarves killed. But Gandalf came to their rescue—at the last possible moment, as wizards make a habit of doing. He conjured up a strong wind to blow out the goblins’ torches and used his sword to kill the goblin king. Bilbo and the dwarves fled for their lives down the dimly lighted passageways. During the escape, the unfortunate Bilbo was knocked unconscious and became separated from the rest of the party. When he came to, Bilbo wandered for hours in the dark mountain corridors. Cold, tired, and hungry, he needed to find the way out. As he traveled, he came across a small ring. It must be a goblin ring, he decided—and put the trinket in his pocket. He soon came across a cold underground lake. Gollum, a small, slimy lake dweller who feasted on fish and goblins who got lost in the tunnels (not unlike Bilbo), suddenly appeared. Gollum hungrily eyed Bilbo, sure the hobbit would make a tasty treat. But Bilbo was not about to let this happen. After discussion, they came up with a compromise: They would have a game of riddles that would give the winner his wish—either freedom from the tunnels, or a nice dinner. Each took his turn posing a riddle that the other guessed correctly. Bilbo finally got the best of Gollum with the modest riddle, “What have I got in my pocket?” Gollum, stumped, attempted to stall by mentioning a “birthday present” he had for Bilbo, which he immediately went to find. Returning, Gollum soon guessed that the object in Bilbo’s pocket was a ring, as it happened to be the thing for which Gollum had been hunting. Gollum began chasing Bilbo, but Bilbo was already well out in front, running through the tunnels. Unexplainably, Bilbo put on the ring—and was astonished to see Gollum run right past him. As Bilbo followed him, hoping to find an exit, Gollum’s own mutterings revealed the secret of the ring: it made its wearer invisible. Bilbo merely had to follow Gollum through the tunnels that led to the surface. Bilbo rejoined the party of dwarves, but kept the ring a secret as he told what had happened. The travelers moved on through the forest toward Lonely Mountain. By and by they were surrounded by vicious wolves. The only escape was up into the trees, a place that seemed safe enough—until the trees began to burn. Fearing for their lives, the adventurers again looked to Gandalf to rescue them, but even he could not come up with a solution. This time, their freedom would come from a different source: eagles. Long ago, Gandalf had rescued and nursed to health the king of the eagles. Now this king had decided to return the favor by having his eagles carry the party to safety. As the company made its way through the gloomy forest of Mirkwood, they had another near-fatal adventure. They traveled without Gandalf these days, as he was attending to other matters. Day after day they walked, never seeing the direct sunlight. Then they awoke one morning to find themselves covered with spider webs. Bilbo donned his magic ring, escaped from the webs, and freed the others. As they ran to safety, Bilbo used his ring again, along with his sword, to slay many of the hungry beasts. He was so impressed with himself that he named his sword “Sting,” after its ability to kill spiders. When Bilbo returned to the others, he found that they had been captured by wood-elves. Bilbo, still unseen, followed silently and watched as his friends were put in jail. It took weeks for Bilbo to come up with a strategy to free the dwarves. He learned that after finishing a barrel of wine, the wood-elves floated the empty barrel back down the river to the humans who produced it. Bilbo freed his dwarf friends, smuggled them to the dock, and hid them in the empty barrels. One by one he sent them all down the river, hopping on the last barrel himself. The humans of Lake Town were surprised to find dwarves in the barrels, but when the dwarves explained the situation, all was well. Lake Town lay in the shadow of Lonely Mountain—and the dwarves were pleased that their journey was nearing its end. They traveled the rest of the way to the mountain and began looking for the secret passageway. Bilbo remembered the clues given by Elrond the elf king, and found the hidden door that led to the passage opening. This free book summary of The Hobbit is complimentary from the www.free-book-summary.com website. Want to say Thanks? Tell about the book summary to your friends, link to it from your blog, or include a link to it in a book report forum. Cheers! Now came Bilbo’s opportunity to be a burglar. The dwarves sent him to steal a piece of treasure. Though the sight of the magnificent and deadly Smaug, still in the castle after all of these years, awed Bilbo, he managed to do what the dwarves had asked. Smaug could smell Bilbo, but of course could not see him. The hobbit noticed a spot on Smaug where the armor protecting him had fallen away. This spot was near a vital organ, and Bilbo saw this as perhaps Smaug’s only weakness in battle. A small bird had followed Bilbo into the cavern, and he made sure he pointed out the weakness to the bird. As Bilbo left with his small piece of stolen treasure, Smaug became enraged and vowed revenge against the people of Lake Town. He immediately took to the air, breathing fire on the town and burning down several buildings. Meanwhile, the bird carried his valuable information to Bard, the mayor of the town. Bard, an expert marksman, drew his surest arrow and, aiming carefully, brought down the evil Smaug, dead. After many days of uncertainty about Smaug’s demise, the dwarves entered the mountain. Ecstatic at roaming the halls of their ancestors’ castle, carved into the mountainside, they assumed their mission was complete and reveled in their good fortune. A while later, however, Bard appeared at the castle gates asking for a share of the treasure to rebuild the town; he’d been the one to get rid of the dragon, and Lake Town had sustained much damage. The stubborn dwarf king refused to share the hoard, claiming birthright inheritance to everything. But Bard, equally as stubborn, vowed to fight for what he felt was his fair share. The matter became more complicated when an army of wood-elves arrived and also demanded a portion of the riches. On the morning of the great battle between the three armies, Gandalf suddenly appeared to announce that an even greater danger approached: the goblins, teamed up with a vicious pack of wolves, bent on revenge against the dwarves who had murdered their king. Threatened by a common enemy, the three armies quickly settled their differences and joined forces to fight the goblin swarm. The pitched battle proved to be long lasting, the goblin forces appearing to gain ground on the battlefield. Then yet another army appeared, the eagles. Together with their new allies, the dwarf, human, and wood-elf troops emerged victorious. Victory, however, was not without sacrifice. Thorin Oakenshield, the new King under the Mountain, lay mortally wounded. Before dying a noble death, he patched up whatever differences he had with his former enemies, and bid Bilbo a fond farewell. The dwarves set up a new kingdom in the mountain, summoning all their scattered relatives to join them. The men of Lake Town, who had fought valiantly, gained more than enough treasure to rebuild their city, and the elves shared in the prize as well. As for Bilbo, he took only two small bags of treasure, enough to last him a lifetime in his humble way of life, but he carried with him a wealth of memories of this, his greatest adventure. The Hobbit, published in 1937, was only the beginning of the adventures in Middle Earth. J.R.R. Tolkien (1892–1973) followed up this story with his The Lord of the Rings trilogy (1954-55) and The Silmarillion (1977). In the later stories, Bilbo passes the ring down to his nephew, Frodo, who also strikes out on many adventures and runs into Gollum like his Uncle Bilbo had. In addition to being a fanciful adventure novel, The Hobbit can also be read as a coming-of-age book. Bilbo, although mature in years, still needs to learn more about his true self, the one that savors adventure. Here, Bilbo tests himself, discovers his gift for helping others, and gradually becomes a better, more caring person as a result of his greater understanding. The Complete Book Tolkien, J.R.R. The Hobbit (1937).
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