Ocean State Libraries

"The epic conclusion to the adventures of Bilbo Baggins. The dragon Smaug rains his fiery wrath down upon the defenseless men, women, and children of Lake-town. Obsessed above all else with his reclaimed treasure, Thorin sacrifices friendship and honor to hoard it as Bilbo attempts to make him see reason."--

In bringing J.R.R. Tolkien's nearly unfilmable work to the screen, Jackson benefited from extraordinary special effects, evocative New Zealand locales, and an exceptionally well-chosen cast, but most of all from his own adaptation with co-writers Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, preserving Tolkien's vision and often his very words, but also making logical changes to accommodate the medium of film. While purists complained about these changes and about...

Presents illustrated definitions in alphabetical order of all the imaginary leasts, monsters, races, nations, duties, fauna, andflora of the worlds of middle-earth and the Undying Lands. Alsoincludes a maps and a chronology of al lthe ages.

Find your way through every part of Tolkien's great creation from Middle-Earth to the undying lands of the west. Completely revised, Karen Wynn Fonstad's The Atlas of Middle-Earth is an indispensable volume that will enchant all Tolkien fans. Here is the essential guide to the geography of Middle-Earth from its founding in the Elder Days through the Third Age, re-creating the journeys of Bilbo, Frodo, and the Fellowship of the Ring. Authentic and...

"Best known for his epic Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit, J.R.R. Tolkien was born in British-occupied South Africa. His early life was full of action and adventure. Tolkien spent his childhood roaming the British countryside with his family and could read and write by age four. He was naturally gifted with languages and used this skill as a signals officers in World War II as well as in his fantasy writing. By creating alternate universes...