The Lord of the Rings

by J R R Tolkien

Tolkien published The Lord of the Rings in three parts: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers (both in 1954) and The Return of the King (1955). This edition allows you to buy all three of them as a single volume. At more than 1,100 pages, it’s a large book and perhaps easier to read on a Kindle. Perhaps even better is to buy the whole Lord of the Rings epic as a boxset, whether plain or one of the beautifully illustrated editions.

Recommendations from our site

“This trilogy is the gold standard in terms of fantasy writing….It was that sense of scale, as well – that sense of this vast world going on, then a vast story being set inside it. It was all very inspiring to a small lad. I read it several times while growing up and each time I got something different from it.” Read more...

Best Science Fiction and Fantasy for Young Adults

Philip Reeve, Children's Author

“I first read The Lord of the Rings when I was about 17. I loved it because I’d read a lot of Scandinavian mythology and suddenly I found this book which had all those stories incorporated into this very beautifully told and engaging narrative. It drew me in completely. I was living in Middle Earth for quite some time–seeing elves everywhere! It’s not just a novel that you enjoy while you are reading it–it stays with you. I think because he had created an entire world–this allows the readers to do the same. It is an alternative world and mythological system that is totally coherent. It’s a fantastic gift that he has given us.” Read more...

Books Drawn From Myth and Fairy Tale

Alan Lee, Cartoonists & Illustrator

A great way to introduce a child to Tolkien is through the audiobooks. Listening rather than reading the books fits with Tolkien’s clear passion for oral storytelling, although it does make it harder to move quickly through bits of history that younger kids might find harder to concentrate on.

Narrator: Rob Inglis

Length: 19 hours and 53 minutes (Part I: The Fellowship of the Ring)

Ages: 12 and up

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