J.R.R. Tolkien. THE HOBBIT. Houghton, 1966. 2nd U.S. ed./later printing. Scarce!

Description: Tolkien, J.R.R. THE HOBBIT. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin, 1966. 2nd U.S. edition, 40th printing. In the publisher’s original bright green cloth with black lettering on the spine of the book and on the front cover of the book. With number line V 40 39 38 37 36 35 34 printed on the copyright page. With 2-page “Thror’s Map” on the reverse side of the contents page and the next page and with the “Wilderland” map at the end of the book just before the endpapers. This is NOT a book-club book. This is NOT an ex-library book. Buyer beware: There were multiple later printings of THE HOBBIT that were published in this exact hardcover format and also in similar, but slightly different, formats. This is the 40th printing of the 2nd U.S. edition of THE HOBBIT in a very nice full-cloth binding. SCROLL DOWN THIS PAGE IMMEDIATELY TO SEE THE CONDITION OF THIS BOOK AND THIS DUST JACKET. J.R.R. Tolkien was born in 1892 in Bloemfontein in the Orange Free State (now Free State Province in South Africa). He died at age 81 in 1973 and was buried with his wife, who had died 21 months earlier. He was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, who is best known for authoring THE HOBBIT (offered he and THE LORD OF THE RINGS. At one time Tolkien was good friends with the famous C.S. Lewis. While others had published fantasy fiction before Tolkien, his great success with THE HOBBIT and with THE LORD OF THE RINGS led to a popular resurgence of the fantasy genre. He has been called the father of modern high fantasy literature. J.R.R. Tolkien was a keen student, a fast reader, and a fluent writer at a young age. He was taught (and stayed interested) in botany, adventure fiction, and languages (and the structures of languages). When England became directly involved in World War I, Tolkien entered a program wherein he could delay enlisting until he finished his degree in July of 1915. He was commissioned at a Second Lieutenant in the Lancashire Fusiliers. In letters to his wife Edith, he wrote of “junior officers being killed off, a dozen a minute. Parting from my wife then . . . it was like a death.” Because of the enormous amounts of lice that lived in the trenches, Tolkien came down with trench fever and was invalided to England. Many of his dearest school friend were killed in World War I. According to John Garth: “Although Kitchener’s army enshrined old social boundaries, it also chipped away at the class divide by throwing men from all walks of life into a desperate situation together. Tolkien write that the experience taught him ‘a deep sympathy and feeling for the Tommy; especially the plain soldier from the agricultural counties.’ He remained profoundly grateful for the lesson. For a long time, he had been imprisoned in a tower, not of pearl, but of ivory.” When Tolkien recovered (to a degree), he was stationed as various camps to do home service. While he was stationed at Kingston upon Hull, he and Edith went walking in the woods in Roos, and Tolkien remembered, after Edith’s death: “ . . . I never called Edith Luthien -- but she was the source of the story that in time became the chief part of the Silmarillion . . . In those days her hair was raven, her skin clear, her eyes brighter than you have seen the, and she could sing -- and dance . . . . “ In 1920 Tolkien took up a post as Reader in English Language at the University of Leeds, and became the youngest professor there. While at Leeds, he produced A MIDDLE ENGLISH VOCABULARY and a definitive edition of SIR GAWAIN AND THE GREEN KNIGHT with E.V. Gordon, both becoming academic standard works for several decades. In 1925 he returned to Oxford as Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon with a fellowship at Pembroke College. During his time at Pembroke he wrote THE HOBBIT and the first two volumes of THE LORD OF THE RINGS. Tolkien’s 1936 lecture “Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics” had a lasting influence on Beowulf research. The article Tolkien wrote about Beowulf is “widely regarded as a turning point in Beowulfian criticism.” In class, Tolkien would come silently into the room, fix the audience with his gaze, and suddenly begin to speak in a resounding voice the opening lines of the the poem in the original Anglo-Saxon. It was a dramatic performance and it impressed generations of students because it brought home to them that Beowulf was not just a set text to be read for the purposes of examination, but a powerful piece of dramatic poetry. Decades later, W.H. Auden wrote to his former professor: “I don’t think that I have ever told you what an unforgettable experience it was for me as an undergraduate, hearing you recite Beowulf. The voice was the voice of Gandalf [!!!!!!!].” Later, in 1945, Tolkien moved to Merton College, Oxford, becoming the Merton Professor of English Language and Literature where he remained until his retirement in 1959. Tolkien had finished THE LORD OF THE RINGS in 1948. From Tolkien’s retirement in 1959 through his death in 1973 he received steadily increasing public attention and literary fame. J.R.R. Tolkien never expected his stories to become popular, but by sheer accident a book called THE HOBBIT, which he had written some years before for his own children, came in 1936 to the attention of Susan Dagnall, an employee of the London publishing firm George Allen & Unwin, who persuaded Tolkien to submit it for publication. However, the book attracted adult readers as well as children, and became popular enough for the publishers to ask Tolkien to produce a sequel. The request for a sequel prompted to continue his work on THE LORD OF THE RINGS and for the three volumes to be published in 1954-1955. Tolkien first intended THE LORD OF THE RINGS to be a children’s tale in the style of THE HOBBIT, but it quickly became darker and more serious in the writing. THE LORD OF THE RINGS became immensely popular in the 1960’s and has remained so ever since. J.R.R. Tolkien was the author of such great and famous books as THE HOBBIT (offered here), THE LORD OF THE RINGS, THE SILMARILLION, THE ADVENTURES OF TOM BOMBADIL, THE ROAD GOES EVER ON, “The History of Middle Earth,” consisting of 12 volumes such as THE BOOK OF LOST TALES, THE BOOK OF LOST TALES 2, THE LAYS OF BELERIAND, THE SHAPING OF MIDDLE-EARTH, THE LOST ROAD AND OTHER WRITINGS, and several others (all edited by Tolkien’s son Christopher Tolkien), THE CHILDREN OF HURIN (edited by Christopher Tolkien), and a number of others that were continue by and edited by Christopher Tolkien. From the dust jacket flap: “ . . . THE HOBBIT . . . When THE HOBBIT was first published in this country over twenty-five years ago the American Library Association’s reviewer said in the ALA Bulletin: “At this time of writing, still under the spell of the story, I cannot bend my mind t ask myself whether our American children will like it. My impulse is to say if they don’t, so much the worse for them . . . ‘ . . . at the same time, Anne Carroll Moore, for so many years America’s most distinguished children’s librarian, called THE HOBBIT ‘A refreshingly adventurous and original tale . . . There is sound learning behind THE HOBBIT, while a rich vein of humor connects this little being, described as smaller than a dwarf, with the strange beings of the ancient world and the world we live in today.’ . . . By now, THE HOBBIT has become a classic, and the HORN BOOK’s prophetic review gives some hints as to why: ‘The background of the story is full of authentic bits of mythology and magic and the book has the rare quality of style. It is written with a quiet humor and the logical detail in which children take delight . . . this is a book with no age limits. All those, young or old, who love a finely imagined story, beautifully told, will take THE HOBBIT to their hearts . . .’ . . . “ From the rear flap of the dust jacket: “ THE LORD OF THE RINGS by J.R.R. Tolkien . . . THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING THE TWO TOWERS THE RETURN OF THE KING THE LORD OF THE RINGS is not a book to be described in a few sentences. It is an heroic romance — something which has scarcely been attempted on this scale since Spenser’s FAERIE QUEEN, so one can’t praise the book by comparisons — there is nothing to compare it with. ‘What can I say then?’ continues RICHARD HUGHES, ‘for width of imagination it almost beggars parallel, and it is nearly as remarkable for its vividness and for the narrative skill which carries the reader on, enthralled, for page after page.’ . . . By an extraordinary feat of the imagination Mr. Tolkien has created, and maintains in every detail, a new mythology in an invented world. As for the story itself, ‘it’s really super science fiction,’ declared NAOMI MITCHISON after reading the first part of the trilogy, THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING,’ but it is timeless and will go on and on. It’s odd you know, one takes it as seriously as Malory.’ . . . C.S. Lewis is equally enthusiastic. ‘If Ariosto rivaled it in invention (in fact he does not) he would still lack its heroic seriousness. No imaginary world has been projected this is at once as multifarious and so true to its own inner laws; none so seemingly objective, so disinfected from the taint of an author’s merely individual psychology; none so relevant to the actual human situation yet so free from allegory. And what fine shading there is in the variations of style to meet the endless diversity of scenes and characters — comic homely, epic, monstrous, or diabolic.’ . . . Spenser, Malory, Ariosto, or Science Fiction? A flavour of all of them and a taste of its own. Only those who have read THE LORD OF THE RINGS will realize how impossible it is to convey all the qualities of a very great book . . . “ Some of the awards and award nominations that J.R.R. Tolkien has been honored with: 1957: THE LORD OF THE RINGS. International Fantasy Award winner for Best Fantasy Fiction. 1966: THE LORD OF THE RINGS. Hugo Award winner for Best All-Time Series. 1973: J.R.R. Tolkien is honored by being named a Gandalf Award Grand Master of Fantasy Fiction. 1977: THE SILMARILLION. Locus Award winner for Best Fantasy Novel. 1977: THE SILMARILLION. Ditmar Award winner for Best International Fiction. 1977: THE SILMARILLION. Gandalf Award winner for Best Book-Length Fantasy. 1978: J.R.R. Tolkien is honored by being named a Balrog Award co-winner Professional Achievement. 1980: UNFINISHED TALES. (by J.R.R. Tolkien; edited by Christopher Tolkien). Locus Award nominee for Best Single Author Collection. 1980: UNFINISHED TALES. (by J.R.R. Tolkien; edited by Christopher Tolkien). Mythopoeic Award winner for Best Fantasy. 1980: UNFINISHED TALES. (by J.R.R. Tolkien; edited by Christopher Tolkien). Balrog Award winner for Best Collection/Anthology. 1984: THE BOOK OF LOST TALES. Mythopoeic Award nominee for Best Fantasy. 1988: J.R.R. Tolkien is honored by being named 36th Best in the Interzone Poll All-Time Best Science Fiction [and Fantasy] Author Poll. 1988: THE RETURN OF THE SHADOW. (by J.R.R. Tolkien; edited by Chrisopher Tolkien). Mythopoeic Award winner for Scholarship/ Inkling. 1991: THE LORD OF THE RINGS. (by J.R.R. Tolkien; illustrated by Alan Lee). Locus Award nominee for Best Nonfiction. 1998: ROVERANDOM. (by J.R.R. Tolkien; edited by Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull). Mythopoeic Award nominee for Inkling Studies. 2002: J.R.R. Tolkien is honored by being named a Phantastik Award winner for International Writing. 2002: BEWULF AND THE CRITICS. (by J.R.R. Tolkien; edited by Michael D.C. Drout). Mythopoeic Award winner for Best Inklings Studies. 2007: THE CHILDREN OF HERIN. Phantastik Award nominee for Best Foreign Novel. 2008: J.R.R. Tolkien is honored by being ranked sixth on a list of “The Greatest British Writers Since 1945.” 2009: THE LORD OF THE RINGS. Prometheus Award winner for being inducted into the Prometheus Award Hall of Fame. J.R.R. Tolkien is widely regarded as the greatest fantasy fiction writer of all time and THE HOBBIT is the basis for much of his fantasy fiction (including THE LORD OF THE RINGS). ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ I grade books and dust jackets: fine, near fine, very good, good, fair, and poor. I describe all faults. If you sell books on EBAY (or anywhere else), it is de rigueur not to list 1st printings of book club books as 1st editions (unless they ARE the 1st edition, which occurs only occasionally); also, a 1st edition, 7th printing, is not a 1st edition. Ex-library books must be noted as such since generally they are of little value to the collector of 1st editions. Condition is also very important to those collectors. Books and dust jackets must be described in detail. In other words, it is incumbent upon the SELLER to know what is and is not a 1st edition. Mistakes can be made (and corrected), of course, but if you DON'T KNOW, don't try to sell a book as a 1st edition. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ CONDITION: A FINE book in a GOOD+ to VERY GOOD- dust jacket. The book is tight and square in its bright green full-cloth binding with dark blue lettering on the spine of the book and on the front cover of the book. The book has the correct yellow endpapers. The dust jacket has undergone some archival restoration using archival (non-acidic and no tape) materials that has been accomplished by a professional paper conservationist. There is some wrinkling to the front panel and rear panel of the dust jacket; largely unobtrusive. The dust jacket flap is price-clipped. The artwork on the dust jacket is the same artwork that is on the true 1st edition of THE HOBBIT that was originally published in 1937. I use the EBAY shipping system to send out the majority of the books that I sell. Insurance is included in the shipping charges for this book that the buyer will be paying. One would assume that the buyer would want to insure this book for its correct value. A must for the collector of famous fantasy fiction books and/or the collector of various editions of THE HOBBIT and/or the collector of J.R.R. Tolkien novels, regardless of edition. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Additional photos are available upon request. I am continuing to list some of my best books (especially science fiction, fantasy, and horror 1st editions) on EBAY not so much as auctions (due to the fact that EBAY charges quite a bit to list items for reserve auctions), but more along the lines of listing my "catalogue" of books that I have for sale. I'm not going to "give" these books away, but my opening bids and Buy-It-Now prices are usually a fair amount below market value. Furthermore, however, for certain scarce books in great condition, I do expect to get close to what they're worth. Stay with me; I always have a number of important, collectible, cornerstone science fiction, fantasy, and horror 1st editions listed. Many thanks! All items are listed for sale elsewhere; I reserve the right to end a listing early. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Note: I own the following two books: Leckie, Anne. ANCILLARY JUSTICE. Subterranean Press, 2014. 1st limited edition. (#2/500). Leckie, Anne. ANCILLARY MERCY. Subterranean Press, 2016. 1st limited edition. (#2/500). I am looking for: Leckie, Anne. ANCILLARY SWORD. Subterranean Press, 2015. 1st limited edition. (#2/500). I would like to round out this set by acquiring the #2/500 copy of ANCILLARY SWORD. If anyone has this copy and is willing to sell it on EBAY, I would be highly interested in obtaining it so that all my copies would have matching numbers. Many thanks. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Contact me if you're looking for a particular title or titles. I have thousands of books for sale that may or may not show up in my EBAY listings. I am happy to set up flexible PAYMENT and/or HOLD PLANS for any book(s) that you bid on and win.   Shipping: $4.00 for USPS Media Mail shipping. $10.00 for USPS Priority Mail shipping. Buyers who wish to have packages sent to addresses outside of the U.S. are required to pay for the postage necessary to send such packages. Please note: if you want something other than USPS Media Mail shipping, you must wait for me to send you an EBAY invoice or if you are a buyer outside of the United States, you must wait for me to send you an EBAY invoice. You must be willing to pay for non-USPS Media Mail shipping charges or for international shipping charges. I reserve the right to negate a purchase if you are unwilling to pay for the correct shipping charges either to an address in the U.S. or if international shipping is required. I am happy to set up flexible payment and layaway plans if these options make it easier for you to participate in bidding and winning. Please e-mail me if you have any questions. See my other auctions on EBAY for excellent science fiction, fantasy, and horror 1st editions (and a few other items). I specialize in science fiction, fantasy, and horror 1st editions: award winners, cornerstone books, and generally recognized important books in the genre(s). I GUARANTEE THE CONDITION OF THIS BOOK; IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT, SEND IT BACK! If you prefer payment methods other than PayPal (as I do), I am happy to arrange for a different payment method for you.   Before you buy from others, check out their return policies and their guarantees and compare them to mine. I stand behind all of my items FULLY. 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Price: 149.99 USD

Location: Lincoln, Nebraska

End Time: 2025-01-31T07:00:05.000Z

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