Originally Posted by Trollheart

If you think Fellowship is heavy you have no chance with Silmarillion. Basically I see it like this: Hobbit = kids and young adults, very entertaining, can be read easily and even as a standalone if you want. LOTR = older adults, requires a lot of work and attention, three books lead into each other. Silmarillion = college professors and people with lots of time. Very dry, very musty, not much in the way of story and more history than anything else. Very heavy on the names, battles, and so on.