J.R.R. 托爾金（J.R.R. Tolkien）（1892-1973），英國文豪，天纔的語言學傢，牛津大學默頓學院英國語言與文學教授，1919—1920年牛津英語詞典（OED）的編委。他以瑰麗的想像和精深的語言，建立瞭一個英語世界的全新神話體係。托爾金的雄心壯誌不在於寫作一個傳奇故事，或一部史詩。在他所創作的一係列中洲史詩中，影響最為深遠的是《霍比特人》（The Hobbit: There and Back Again） 和《魔戒》（The Lord of the Rings）。這兩部巨作被譽為當代奇幻作品的鼻祖，至今已暢銷2.5億餘冊，被翻譯成60餘種語言。美國每年銷售的大約一億本平裝書中，就有四分之一可以追溯到托爾金的作品。《魔戒》被美國亞馬遜網絡書店票選為“兩韆年以來最重要的書”。由托爾金小說改編的電影《指環王》《霍比特人》掀起21世紀奇幻文藝的全麵復興。世界拜倒在他腳下。

吳剛，上海外國語大學副教授，英美文學博士。教文學教翻譯為生，讀文學做翻譯為樂，嗜書如命的永久性文學青年。

The Hobbit is the unforgettable story of Bilbo, a peace-loving hobbit, who embarks on a strange and magical adventure. A timeless classic. Bilbo Baggins enjoys a quiet and contented life, with no desire to travel far from the comforts of home; then one day the wizard Gandalf and a band of dwarves arrive unexpectedly and enlist his services - as a burglar - on a dangerous expedition to raid the treasure-hoard of Smaug the dragon. Bilbo's life is never to be the same again. Seldom has any book been so widely read and loved as J.R.R. Tolkien's classic tale, 'The Hobbit'. Since its first publication in 1937 it has remained in print to delight each new generation of readers all over the world, and its hero, Bilbo Baggins, has taken his place among the ranks of the immortals of fiction.