The Hobbit or There and Back Again by J.R.R. Tolkien is the prequel to the epic fantasy series, The Lord of the Rings. The Hobbit follows the story of a hobbit, which is a very short breed of human, named Bilbo Baggins. Hobbits generally live a serene, quiet life in comfortable halls built into the side of hills, or hobbit holes. Bilbo was enjoying another sunny day in the Shire (the main village of hobbits), when the great wizard Gandalf and a gang of 13 dwarves took him on an adventure to the Lonely Mountain to defeat the dragon Smaug and take back the mountain, which was the home of the dwarves before Smaug attacked it. Bilbo, a small, cheerful, and peaceful hobbit is taken on a journey there and back again that will change him forever. Tolkien’s writing paints the fantastical world of Middle Earth for the reader to enjoy. The reader can find many different cultures, such as the Elves of Mirkwood, or the familiar Men of Dale. Tolkien’s allegory really helps build the feel of these different races. However, at times, Tolkien’s description may go a bit overboard, leaving the reader bored of reading the same thing in a different way. Writing isn’t the only way Tolkien shows the world of Middle-Earth. The book also comes with maps for the reader to follow along the journey. I was constantly flipping back and forth between the maps and my page to check where the company was on the map. Sometimes, the passage of time and distance isn’t accurately displayed in the maps, but it’s still enjoyable to see the journey unfold on the map. The characters of Middle-Earth are also very well crafted. The protagonist, Bilbo, has fantastic character development, going from a pacifistic, gentle countryman to a courageous, noble adventurer. However, not all the characters are well made. Many of the dwarves in the company feel as if they are nothing more than filler for the reader. However, there are still more great characters in the book, such as Thorin, the leader of the dwarf group. Tolkien’s The Hobbit is an immersive and warm start to the The Lord of the Rings series.