The ending, oh, the ending is hard to bear, and it's important to remember that in the films the ending is hard not to fast forward.

Merry and Pippin, who have been our viewpoint characters the whole time, really, come into their own here. They mature, they suffer, they endure loss and fear and gain the respect of their betters. Aragorn, if anything, becomes less interesting the more he grows in stature and nobility, and it's always nice when a hobbit calls him Strider. Gimli and Legolas, oh their blossoming friendship was treated poorly n the film wasn't it? And Frodo and Sam: the hardest test of all is to find the strength to keep plodding through ash and fire for days and days and days, and we feel almost every mile and every hunger pang.

But really, nearly half the book takes place when it' s all over. The long slow journey home. The Scouring. The trip to the Grey Havens. A happy, happy ending, and damn you if you don't blub up. Then, of course, you read the appendices and that time-line at the end that includes the fates of the Fellowship after the War and it's sob, sob, sob.

I loved this as a child. As an adult I'm almost shocked to discover that it was worthy of my love, and still is. I hope to return to Middle earth again some time. Maybe next year.