Tolkien’s own art used on the cover of various editions, including the one I own

(1) J.R.R. TOLKIEN –

THE HOBBIT (1937)

While the top entry in my Top 10 Fantasy Books, Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, was written for adult readers, it is also regularly read by children – as indeed it was by me, first reading and being enchanted by it as a child.

However, the book to which it was a sequel, The Hobbit, was very much a children’s fantasy book, evident from its opening line onwards. Hence, it has to be Tolkien’s entry among my special mentions for children’s fantasy books – and it has to be my first special mention, reflecting Tolkien’s top spot for fantasy books in general.

“The Hobbit is set in Middle-earth and follows home-loving Bilbo Baggins, the titular hobbit who joins the wizard Gandalf and the thirteen dwarves of Thorin’s Company on a quest to reclaim the dwarves’ home and treasure from the dragon Smaug…The story is told in the form of a picaresque or episodic quest, several chapters introduce a new type of monster or threat as Bilbo progresses through the landscape.”

It might be more accurate to describe The Lord of the Rings as successor to The Hobbit rather than sequel – “the story began as a sequel to Tolkien’s 1937 children’s book The Hobbit but eventually developed into a much larger work.” However, there’s still parts of The Lord of the Rings that evoke the sense of children’s fantasy, or at least the childlike sense of wonder, from The Hobbit – particularly in the opening birthday party for Bilbo through to Tom Bombadil, the latter very much a character of children’s fantasy whimsy who wandered into the main plot.

RATING: 5 STARS*****

S-TIER (TOP TIER)