What was the title of J.R.R. Tolkien’s 1937 book about Bilbo Baggins?

J.R.R. Tolkien’s 1937 book about Bilbo Baggins is titled The Hobbit.

The Hobbit, or There and Back Again was published by George Allen & Unwin on 21 September 1937. It introduces Bilbo Baggins, a comfort-loving hobbit who joins Thorin Oakenshield’s company on a journey to the Lonely Mountain. Their goal is to reclaim the treasure and kingdom held by the dragon Smaug.

The book began as a children’s fantasy, but it contains elements that connect it to Tolkien’s larger mythology. Bilbo finds a mysterious ring in the caves beneath the Misty Mountains, meets Gollum, and later uses the ring’s invisibility. Tolkien expanded the significance of that object when he developed The Lord of the Rings.

The full subtitle, There and Back Again, emphasizes the journey and Bilbo’s return to the Shire. The novel’s success led Tolkien’s publisher to request a sequel, eventually producing the much larger Lord of the Rings story.