The Spiritual World of the Hobbit

by James Stuart Bell, Sam O'Neal (Contribution by)

Overview

Popular Author Helps Readers Discover the Christian Dimension in Tolkien's The Hobbit

The huge success of the first of The Hobbit movies has added to Tolkien's already enormous popularity. As fans eagerly await part two of the trilogy, they will be excited to find out all they can about the spiritual themes in the story's mythological world. This book explores good versus evil in Tolkien's writings, the spiritual quest of Bilbo Baggins, the guiding hand of God's providence, and much more. The author specializes in taking complex topics in religion and literature and making them accessible to every reader. A great gift for Tolkien book and movie fans.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781441260581
Publisher:	Baker Publishing Group
Publication date:	09/15/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

James Stuart Bell is a Christian publishing veteran and the owner of Whitestone Communications, a literary development agency. He is the editor of many story collections, including the Cup of Comfort series, the compiler of From the Library of Charles Spurgeon and From the Library of C. S. Lewis, and the coauthor or author of several books, including Inside the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and The Complete Idiot's Guide to the World of Narnia. He and his family live in West Chicago, Illinois.
James Stuart Bell is a Christian publishing veteran and the owner of Whitestone Communications, a literary development agency. He is the editor of many story collections, including Angels, Miracles, and Heavenly Encounters; Heaven Touching Earth; and Encountering Jesus, as well as the coauthor of numerous books in the Complete Idiot's Guide series. He has cover credit on more than one hundred books. He and his wife live in a western suburb of Chicago.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments 9

Introduction 11

Part 1 Behind the Scenes

1 Faërie and Fairy Stories 19

2 Tolkien as Sub-Creator 27

3 A Short History of Middle-Earth 37

Part 2 Between the Pages

1 A Comfortable Life 49

2 A Poor Beginning 59

3 An Old Friend 71

4 Darkness and Light 79

5 Turning Points 91

6 Two Escapes 99

7 A Blessed Rest 107

8 A New Hobbit 111

9 The Hidden Hero 119

10 The Long-Awaited Party 125

11 The Waiting Is the Hardest Part 135

12 Bilbo's Two Battles 147

13 The Seeds of Greed 159

14 Whispers and Flame 169

15 The King Under the Mountain 179

16 A Shrewd Hobbit 191

17 The War With Two Sides 203

18 Beyond the Veil 215

19 A New Creation 227

Notes 235

Editorial Reviews

11/15/2013
Peanuts, The Simpsons, and the Narnia books have all had their turn, so why not the world of J.R.R. Tolkien? The trick with Tolkien, as Bell (Inside the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe) rather dimly recognizes, is that Tolkien was not a great fan of allegory: discovering Christianity in The Hobbit prompts the vexed question of religion within Middle Earth—are they waiting for their own Christ? Or are they all virtuous pagans living long before Christ? Beyond this, this work is an effective if rather simplistic close reading for moral and ethical lessons. VERDICT Tolkien's most devoted fans are no strangers to finding meaning and personal values in The Hobbit, but this straightforward little volume may shed light for newcomers.

Library Journal