Customer Reviews

Bilbo's Last Song

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Strictly speaking, this book/poem is neither "the last poem in The Lord of the Rings" (as the Horn Book review misstates) nor "a sequel to The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings" (as one of the customer reviews claims). "Bilbo's Last Song" is not in The Lord of the Rings, and it's not substantial enough to qualify as a sequel. It's a short but moving poem that was originally published as a poster (shortly after Tolkien's death, if memory serves). It's Bilbo's farewell to Middle Earth and, by extension, Tolkien's farewell to both his fictional world and our world. In its current form, this little poem has been stretched into a book to capitalize on the current resurgence of interest in Tolkien. Pauline Baynes' drawings are characteristically simple and effective but not a good enough reason to buy this book. Unless you're a Tolkien collector, skip this one and spend your money on something more substantial of Tolkien's, such as The Tolkien Reader or Unfinished Tales. What we *really* need is a collection of *all* of Tolkien's poems in one volume.

This book was one that I stumbled apon in [a local store] as I was browsing the Tolkien area as usual. Since it was a rather short read, I sat down at a table in the back of the store. By the time I reached the last page my heart ached, tears came to my eyes, a smile appeared on my face, and I knew I could never put it back on that shelf. I could truly sense the love Tolkien felt for his Hobbits, and all of their friends. It is the perfect encore to the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings. I've enjoyed Bilbo's Last Song so many times since that day that I highly recommend this book to all true Tolkien fans. Ignore the price and buy this wonderful book!

In the recent swell of Tolkien-related books, because of new fans of the movies, this little gem is often overlooked because it is basically a gift book, one of those tiny little books that are mostly pictures. But even if you don't buy gift books, this is so far and above the other ones that it should definitely be purchased.

This is Bilbo's song as he arrives at the Grey Havens at the finale of "Lord of the Rings," at the Elven ships that will sail for the Undying Lands. His thoughts as he prepares to leave Middle-Earth are looking back on his long, adventure-filled life -- poignant, peaceful, and a little bit hopeful for the future.

While this is not a story or a sequel, it is nevertheless very Tolkienish. The rhythm, meter, and wording of this little poem is very recognizable as Tolkien's work, for anyone who has read his books and the wonderful poetry that is sprinkled through them. And Pauline Baynes has augmented the poetry with a series of beautiful pictures. Quite detailed and pretty, they have a slightly unearthly tinge, like the starlight around the Elves. And this new edition has excellent paper and printing, very high quality.

Even those who aren't die-hard Tolkien fans can appreciate the beauty of his poetry and the perfect accompaniment of Baynes' pictures. Lovely little gem.

"Bilbo's Last Song," by J.R.R. Tolkien, is illustrated by Pauline Baynes. The text is a poem/song attributed to Bilbo Baggins, a character from Tolkien's fantasy epic "The Lord of the Rings" and its companion volume, "The Hobbit." The song itself is a tender, wistful message of farewell. It opens, "Day is ended, / dim my eyes, / but journey long / before me lies."

The song is illustrated throughout with scenes from both "Lord" and "the Hobbit." Fans of Tolkien's tales will recognize many familiar scenes and characters: the doorway to Bilbo's home, the wizard Gandalf, the tragic Gollum, the dragon Smaug, and more. The illustrations vary from quaint and homey to action-packed to tenderly evocative. A key at the end of the book tells the origin of each scene illustrated. Bayne's pictures are full of color, charm, and interesting detail; I really believe this is a book one can come back to again and again.

This is a lovely little keepsake book with colorful illustrations highlighting many scenes from The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. The paper is high quality, the printing and inks are excellent, and there are lovely silver accents on the cover. Pauline Baynes, a long-time friend of Professor Tolkien, may be better known as the illustrator of C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia. In this work which is the song written by Bilbo at the time of his parting to go to the Grey Havens and thence to take ship for the Undying Lands, the illustrations are graceful and filled with heart-felt reminiscence. They are detailed and emotional and do perfect justice to Bilbo's thoughts as he looks back upon a life filled with adventures, old friends and the riches of a life well lived. The little song is short and very touching and captures the swirl of feelings as he leaves Middle-Earth and embarks upon his journey to his final home among the Elves and the Ring Bearers.
This strikes me as a work that would be lovely to read at the passing of a loved one for it captures the longing to set forth as well as the sadness of the leaving.
It is a must for any Tolkien fan and certainly for any fans of the talented Pauline Baynes. Bilbo would be well pleased.

I wanted to purchase this book for my husband's birthday. I went looking for it at a local bookstore after discovering it here on amazon and reading the great reviews - we are both lovers of Tollkien's works. My first reaction was - 'gee, its tiny' - being only slightly bigger than a pocket size book. Then I looked more closely. A hardcover, yes, but nothing spectacular in quality. The pictures are sweet, light and airy, but I expected more. And as for the verse - I also expected there to be more. It is well written, but very brief. Four brief lines of verse on each right-hand page, while the page on the left was an illustration. I didn't stand there and count lines of text, but since there are maybe 24 pages in the book total, that would make it 12 pages of text or 48 short lines of verse in the whole book. It could have been printed on one or two pages and still been surrounded by lovely illustrations.
It's just not worth the money in my book - no pun intended.

Don't expect a full-length story of Middle-Earth in J.R.R. Tolkien's Bilbo's Last Song, but a rather lovely illustrated poetry/song piece considered to be Tolkien's epilogue to Lord of the Rings. Pauline Baynes provides the gorgeous, delicate color drawings in this short but beautiful little gift item.

Okay, why only two stars?
It cannot be the author, nor the layout or illustrations. The poem itself is lovely, as are the bright illustrations by Tolkien's favourite illustrator - Pauline Baynes.
And that is exactly what one would find attractive in this book: the pictures. One can get the poem anywhere from the Internet and the book has no annotations or notes, apart from pointing each illustration to the according segments of Tolkien's books.
The illustrations would be the only reason, I can imagine, for a moderate Tolkien-enthusiast to buy this booklet. And there lies the problem: it's too expensive.
Sure it's a hardback, with paper most suitable for illustrations, and it is mighty hansom to leaf through. But it's a trifle too small for that price.
Worthy of publishing indeed, and perhaps it's even great to show your kids. But being a Tolkien-collector myself, buying and reading beyond an enthusiast's taste, I was disappointed by this.
I bought it via mail order, which is why I have it at all: would I have seen it in a bookstore, the ridiculous price would have made it stay put. See if you can get it second-hand.

This one gets three stars for the loveliness, minus one for the "all Tolkien-fans say moooh!" attitude.
Two.

Bram Janssen,
The Netherlands

This smile inducing poem-in-a-picture-book is a chance to return to Middle Earth for something new, shown to us by a loved and familiar character.

This is a great tabletop book and reveals yet more of Tolkien's incredible gifts of writing and artistic inspiration.