The Lord of the Rings
From KneeQuickie
The Lord of the Rings is a novel by J. R. R. Tolkien, set in his conworld of Middle-Earth, and involving several of his conlangs, including Quenya and Sindarin. It is a sequel to Tolkien's earlier book The Hobbit.
Bilbo Baggins, the hero of The Hobbit, leaves home to travel once more, making his nephew Frodo his heir, and leaving him a magic ring he found during his adventures in the earlier book. Frodo is warned by the wizard Gandalf that the ring is in fact the One Ring of Sauron the Dark Lord, who will acquire immense power if he regains it. To keep the Ring safe, Frodo must leave home immediately and take it to the Elves of Rivendell; but the Black Riders, Sauron's servants, are already pursuing him.....
The novel is notable for its universal themes of friendship and loyalty, and its realistic portrayal of the various concultures of Middle-earth, as well as the realistic depiction of warfare. The Lord of the Rings was made into a blockbuster trilogy by Peter Jackson, featuring dialogues in Tolkien's languages, and the music by Howard Shore also featured many lyrics in Tolkien's languages. See also Hobbits.
Critical reception
The Lord of the Rings has proven one of the most popular novels of all time and arguably laid the groundwork for entirety of the modern fantasy genre. Among conlangers, it has almost universal high regard and praise and many consider it a significant inspiration to their own pursuit of conworld creation.
Nonetheless, the book is not without its critics. Some, such as David Brin, have alledged that the novel pushes a regressive and overly sentimental view of the past that contradicts the goal of social and political progress.
