Review: The Hobbit Encyclopaedia

Article by Adam Ray

Hello readers. Our more avid among you may remember us talking about the release of the Hobbit Encyclopedia well over a year ago. It's finally landed on the doorstep of our Hobbit Hole, and it's far more beautiful in person, than we could ever expect!

This tome is well over 300 pages of lengthy, rich accounts from across the history of Middle Earth. Not just the lore of the Hobbit, it's detailing the life of Tolkein, the rise and fall of the Dwarves of Erebor, and rich biographies of the grand cast of characters seen in Tolkein's writing. It's masterfully researched, with the care and attention given to a detailed account done by fans who deeply, truly, love the Hobbit and all its impact on the world of popular culture.

The way the book is written makes it feel all the more in keeping with the world and the mythology. It feels like a historical textbook, with all the care and attention of a factual accounting sourcebook. It's written as though it's history, with the real world immersion only broken at the book's early pages when it talks of Tolkein himself. There have been so many encyclopedias documenting the worlds and lives of fantasy novels, and some of them read very dense and stuffy. Not here. This book sings with love and detail on every page.

Another place where this book shines is in its artwork. The detailed illustrations by Sandrine Gestin, Xavier Sanchez, and Leslie Boulay give us the wispy, storybook quality that's always been prevalent in The Hobbit, whilst other pieces bring the characters to life in their stunning portraits.

Any serious fan of the myths of Tolkein would deeply love this book for their collection. It's available now wherever books are sold.

Now we want to hear from you! Will you be grabbing a copy of the Hobbit Encyclopedia for yourself? What Tolkein writing do you treasure in your dragon's hoard? Let us know on our Twitter or the Comments below.