The Hobbit, JRR Tolkien

Read in hardback.  My copy has a plaque in the front which states that it was awarded to me as a Science Prize in 1981.  Not sure how many times I've read it since then.

I went to see the Peter Jackson movie, and when I got home I was interested to see how faithful to the book the film was, and whether there was enough material to string out to another two films.  I found that the film was fairly true to the book.  You don't get as much of what Bilbo is thinking, since you can't have him voice all his thoughts out loud in a movie, also some of the more whimsical elements have been left out, in favour of action scenes and comedy in the film.  Furthermore I can see that by adding in the action sequences there is easily enough material for episodes 2 and 3.

All in all, I was pleased to revisit an old favourite.  Another version I would recommend is the original Radio 4 dramatisation.  That was the first Hobbit I ever heard, and I do think it stands the test of time.