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Book Review - The Hobbit

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I'm starting out with a book that I know well (because, yikes, it's my first review!  *insert panic here*)  I've loved Tolkien's works ever since my mom read the Hobbit out loud to us when we were about nine or ten.  I then had the chance to watch a theatre production of the Hobbit, which was the best way ever to study the characters!  (Sidenote: I will not be mentioning the movies and their flaws.  It'd take too long.)  The best facet of Tolkien's work, in my opinion, is his talent for bringing characters and settings to vivid life.  The Hobbit is a classic example of the "untalented" character having a lot more to him than is first evident.  Bilbo Baggins is not a strong, perfect hero, but he is a realistic, relatable person (fine, hobbit.)  Gandalf is the wise shepherd who occasionally just can't stand the dwarves one moment longer.  And the dwarves?  They seem a little bit like a very large homeschooling family.  . ....
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Ordinary People, Extraordinary Stories

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Characters - they're what drive our stories along and lift them to new heights.  Without characters. there can be no conflict; without conflict, there can be no story.  But, if you think about it, characters are people - ordinary, commonplace, normal people you might meet on the street.  Everyone has their own personality, so why are characters so often cut from the same molds?  Tolkien's elves have popped up in dozens, hundreds, of different incarnations, and his dwarves are nearly as popular.  Why can't our elves be bright blue, thirteen feet tall, deaf, and covered in pink mud?  Why can't our dwarves have four legs and suddenly have to go in search of the remedy for itchy noses and patchy ear hair?  (That was all off the top of my head, so . . .) We don't need to follow any expectations for our characters.  As a matter of fact, the most intriguing real fictional people don't meet any lists of criteria; they make the lists.  And...
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The Tag That Must Not Be Named

The Nameless Tag by Brianna Stacyn Pardon the joke.  :D  On to the tag!  The lovely Lila Kims tagged me for whatever this thing is, so thanks to her!  She calls this tag The Mysteriously Nameless Book Tag - sounds ominous.  Here we go! What book has been on your shelf the longest? Umm . . . *goes to check*   I actually cleared out my bookshelf a year or two back because I wasn't reading the books there, but it's probably Anne of Green Gables or Little Women . What is your current read, your last read, and the book you’ll read next? Pride and Prejudice , Probing , I don't really know . . . maybe The Tethered World ?  It'll end up being whatever I have time for, really. What book did everyone like, but you hated? Les Miserables.   I couldn't get through it.  Granted, I was reading the full version, but I just couldn't stand it.  I'll pick it up again this summer.  Hopefully, I'll make it through this ...
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