Eighty years ago, J. R. R. Tolkien’s fantasy classic The Hobbit was first published and it has enchanted both children and adults ever since. One of the best selling books of all time, it has sold over 100 million copies and been translated into over forty languages.
I first read The Hobbit in the fourth grade and fell in love with it. There is something so appealing about following the adventures of mild mannered Bilbo as he is flung from one danger to another. Outwitting trolls, pilfering from a dragon’s treasure hoard, and playing a game of riddles in the dark inside of a mountain, are just a few of the great moments that made this book something that helped foster my love of fantasy.
This single book, and the trilogy that followed it, forever changed the landscape of fantasy literature. Inspiring generations and adding characters like the wizard Gandalf and the dragon Smaug to the vocabulary of the world. You can see Tolkien’s influence in so many fantasy writers, especially in the last fifty years, and I for one am grateful. So let’s all lift a tankard of mead to Bilbo and wish him a heartfelt happy birthday.
