One of the many bedtime stories Ronald Tolkien told his children was the tale of the somewhat droopy hobbit Bilbo Baggins, who undertook a journey with thirteen dwarves to find a dragon's hoard. By coincidence the unfinished manuscript came to the attention of London publisher George Allen & Unwin. They urged Tolkien to finish the story. On 22 September 1937 The Hobbit was published and to the amazement of Tolkien it became a best-seller. By christmas time a second editon appeared, this time with colour illustrations made by Tolkien on the request of the American publisher. The first edition had only linedrawings by Tolkien.
In the many editions listed below some have no illustrations at all, others only the black and white ones by Tolkien, others both the b&w and the colour ones. With each edition this is indicated.
The editions are listed chronologically. The oldest first.
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