Sixty years after returning home to Bag End from his unexpected adventure, Bilbo Baggins has become a legend among hobbits. Though nearing his eleventy-first birthday, he has not aged visibly since he was fifty; his unexplained youth and wealth have become a popular topic of gossip throughout the Shire.
As the 22nd of September draws closer, all of Hobbiton is busy making preparations for a party of special magnificence: a combined birthday celebration for Bilbo and his nephew and heir, Frodo. As packages and parcels pour into Bag End, Gandalf the wizard also arrives in the Shire, though he comes with “far more difficult and dangerous” business than anyone realizes…