Because it's quite jokey at home - " Oh, you're in a band?
3
I was worried that the book would be too jokey and informal, but the writing style is great.
4
The tone is often jokey, even slightly condescending.
5
Tolkien cleverly uses the construct of Bilbo's 'eleventy-first' birthday party bash to transition the tone, from the avucular jokey one he used in The Hobbit, to one more appropriate for the telling of an Epic High Fantasy Quest.