The Annotated Hobbit
| The Annotated Hobbit | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Author | J.R.R. Tolkien |
| Editor | Douglas A. Anderson |
| Illustrator | various artists |
| Publisher | Houghton Mifflin (US) Unwin Hyman (UK) |
| Released | 28 October 1988 (US) 1989 (UK) |
| Format | Hardcover |
| Pages | 335 |
| ISBN | 0395476909 |
The Annotated Hobbit is an edition of The Hobbit with commentaries by Douglas A. Anderson. It was first published in 1988 in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the first American publication of The Hobbit by Houghton Mifflin, and later in 1989 by Unwin Hyman.[1] It is the winner of the 1990 Mythopoeic Scholarship Award in Inklings Studies.[2]
Overview[edit | edit source]
The book includes more than 150 black-and-white illustrations from foreign editions and some that were drawn by Tolkien himself, as well as some photographs. The commentary notably includes a breakdown of all the differences between the original and revised version of chapter five, Riddles in the Dark, printing the altered sentences and sometimes full paragraphs where necessary.
Revised edition[edit | edit source]
In 2002, a revised and expanded edition was published by Houghton Mifflin. This version included maps and colour paintings. It also provided many new sources, due to the amount of new literature published. The British edition was published in 2003 by HarperCollins.[3] This edition includes several rare or previously unpublished poems and writings by J.R.R. Tolkien:
- Previously unpublished:
- Had been published elsewhere:
- "Goblin Feet"
- "Enigmata Saxonica Nuper Inventa Duo"
- "Iúmonna Gold Galdre Bewunden"
- "Progress in Bimble Town"
- "The Root of the Boot"
- "The Dragon's Visit"
- "The Quest of Erebor"
Gandalf's account of how he came to arrange the expedition to Erebor and send Bilbo with the Dwarves.
(The earliest version is published in The Peoples of Middle-earth, and a later version in Unfinished Tales. It was originally intended to be part of Appendix A of The Lord of the Rings.)
Third edition[edit | edit source]
Since at least 2019, rumors have been circulating about a third edition being in the works.[4] Anderson confirmed that he was working on it in a 2021 interview, but that he had also lost a lot of his progress when his house was struck by lightning.[4]
Publication history and gallery[edit | edit source]
|
- First Edition
- First Impression: Houghton Mifflin hardcover (1988), pp.335. ISBN 0395476909
- Second Impression: Unwin Hyman hardcover (1989), ISBN 0044403372
- Revised Edition
- HarperCollins hardcover (2002), pp. 399. ISBN 0007137273
See also[edit | edit source]
External links[edit | edit source]
References
- ↑ Preface to the second edition, The Annotated Hobbit
- ↑ Complete list of Mythopoeic Awards winners on mythsoc.org (accessed 16 May 2023)
- ↑ The Annotated Hobbit: the Hobbit, or There and Back Again (accessed 21 May 2022)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Interview with Douglas A. Anderson on Youtube(accessed 16 May 2023)
