Say Dave, what books do you like? In the same day, you manage to knock both Narnia (a childhood favorite series of mine) AND Middle Earth. Sheesh. You just trying to stir up the board, or what?

However, I do agree largely with your problems reading Tolkien. I think it took me a year to read Fellowship, just because I kept stopping (also, my dog ate my first copy, and it took me forever to get another one). Once I finished the first half, I really got into the series (except for that dull part in the middle, um, I think it was called The Two Towers?). I can say that I read Return of the King pretty much without putting it down, and I REALLY enjoyed that book. Overall, I really like the trilogy, but it does go SLOW at times.

(By the by - has anyone actually read the Silmarillion [and if my spelling is off, oh well, I'm too lazy to check] all the way through? You want to talk about dull books...]