This sumptuous gift set contains a replica of the very rare first edition of The Hobbit, plus a book about the books's publication history and a CD of previously unreleased archive recordings featuring J.R.R. Tolkien reading from his book. The Hobbit was published on 21 September 1937 with a print run of 1,500 copies. With a beautiful cover design by the author and a coloured frontispiece painting, the book proved to be popular and was reprinted within three months, and history was already being made. The scarcity of the first edition has resulted in copies commanding huge prices, way beyond the reach of most Tolkien fans. In addition, subsequent changes to the text - particularly those to chapter five when Tolkien decided to expand the text to marry it up to events in The Lord of the Rings - mean that the opportunity to read the book in its original form and format has become quite difficult. To commemorate the 75th anniversary of publication, this special edition reprints the first edition, so that Tolkien's book may be enjoyed in its original form. Included in the box is a CD deaturing recordings of Tolkien reading extracts from the book, including more than half an hour of archive recordings only recently discovered and never before released. In addition, a full colour booklet traces the origins of The Hobbit and its publication history, complete with a gallery of artwork and covers for this remarkable book.