The Hobbit – Pocket Hardback (75th Anniversary Edition, 2nd Impression, HarperCollins, 2011).

An early impression of the scarce 75th Anniversary miniature hardback — far less commonly encountered than later reprints.

This is the official HarperCollins 75th Anniversary Pocket Edition of The Hobbit, issued in 2011 to commemorate seventy-five years since the original publication of Tolkien’s classic.

Produced in a distinctive miniature hardback format, this edition reproduces J.R.R. Tolkien’s original dust jacket design in full wraparound form — featuring the iconic mountain range, red sun, and decorative runic borders. The front cover carries the gold “75th Anniversary 1937–2012” roundel.

Internally, the book includes Tolkien’s own illustrations and the familiar red-and-black maps, carefully adapted to this compact format — a remarkable miniature production of the standard hardback edition.

While this pocket edition was conceived as a one-off anniversary issue, it has since been reprinted many times. As a result, early impressions are increasingly difficult to source, with most copies available today being later printings.

This example is a confirmed 2nd impression, identified by the full number line on the copyright page.

For collectors, this represents one of the earliest obtainable states of this modern Tolkien issue. Together with the true 1st impression, it forms a natural pairing for those wishing to document the edition properly — both of which are now increasingly hard to find on the open market.

Edition details
– Publisher: HarperCollins
– Year: 2011
– Format: Pocket hardback (miniature edition)
– ISBN: 9780007440849
– 75th Anniversary Edition
– 2nd impression (number line present)

Condition
Very good condition overall. Clean and tight binding, with light handling wear only. A well-preserved and attractive copy of this increasingly collectible miniature edition.

A charming and now elusive Tolkien item — and an ideal companion to the true first printing of the same edition, also available separately.

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