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Two limited editions, First edition, first printing - in new/unread condition. Still sealed in original shrinkwrap. For the first time ever, a beautiful slipcased edition of the enchanting prelude to The Lord of the Rings, illustrated throughout with over 50 sketches, drawings, paintings and maps by J.R.R. Tolkien himself, with the complete text printed in two colours and with many bonus features unique to this edition. Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who enjoys a comfortable, unambitious life, rarely travelling further than the pantry of his hobbit-hole in Bag End. But his contentment is disturbed when the wizard, Gandalf, and a company of thirteen dwarves arrive on his doorstep one day to whisk him away on an unexpected journey ?there and back again?. They have a plot to raid the treasure hoard of Smaug the Magnificent, a large and very dangerous dragon? Written for J.R.R. Tolkien?s own children, The Hobbit was published on 21 September 1937. With a beautiful cover design, a handful of black & white drawings and two maps by the author himself, the book became an instant success and was reprinted shortly afterwards with five colour plates. Tolkien?s own selection of finished paintings and drawings have become inseparable from his text, adorning editions of The Hobbit for more than 85 years. But the published art has afforded only a glimpse of Tolkien?s creative process, and many additional sketches, coloured drawings and maps ? although exhibited and published elsewhere ? have never appeared within the pages of The Hobbit. In this unique enhanced edition of Tolkien?s enchanting classic tale, the full panoply of his art is reproduced for the first time, presenting more than 50 illustrations to accompany Bilbo Baggins on his adventure ?there and back again?. Unique to this edition are two poster-size, fold-out maps revealing all the detail of Thror?s Map and Wilderland, an illustrated 88-page booklet, and a printed art card reproducing Tolkien?s original dustjacket painting. It is additionally quarterbound in green leather, with raised ribs on the spine, stamped in three foils on black cloth boards, and housed in a custom-built clothbound slipcase. The pages are edged in gold and include a ribbon marker. The History of the Hobbit by John Rateliff - FIRST EDITION, FIRST PRINTING -Brand new deluxe edition of this definitive companion to The Hobbit, quarter-bound, stamped in gold foil with a unique design inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien?s own artwork, featuring a ribbon marker and housed in a matching custom-built slipcase. The Hobbit was first published on 21 September 1937. Like its sequel, The Lord of the Rings, it is a story that ?grew in the telling?, and many characters and plot threads in the published text are quite different from the story J.R.R. Tolkien first wrote to read aloud to his young sons as one of their ?fireside reads?. Together in one volume, The History of the Hobbit presents the complete text of the unpublished manuscript of The Hobbit, accompanied by John Rateliff?s lively and informative account of how the book came to be written and published. Recording the numerous changes made to the story both before and after publication, he examines ? chapter by chapter ? why those changes were made and how they reflect Tolkien?s ever-growing concept of Middle-earth. As well as reproducing the original version of one of the world?s most popular novels ? both on its own merits and as the foundation for The Lord of the Rings ? this book includes many little-known illustrations and draft maps for The Hobbit by Tolkien himself. Also featured are extensive commentaries on the dates of composition, how Tolkien?s professional and early mythological writings influenced the story, the imaginary geography he created, and how Tolkien came to revise the book years after publication to accommodate events in The Lord of the Rings. Endorsed by Christopher Tolkien. Seller Inventory # 002349
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