Based on a motion picture to be released in theaters Dec. 14, 2012, this is the story of Bilbo Baggins, a hobbit who lives in a hole in the ground and accompanies Thorin Oakenshield and his band of dwarves on a quest to recover the gold stolen from them by the evil dragon Smaug. At journey's end, after facing trolls, goblins, giant spiders, and worse, Bilbo discovers his destiny.

Inspired by The Hobbit and begun in 1937, The Lord of the Rings is a trilogy that J.R.R. Tolkien created to provide "the necessary background of history for Elvish tongues". From these academic aspirations was born one of the most popular and imaginative works in English literature. The Fellowship of the Ring, the first volume in the trilogy, tells of the fateful power of the One Ring. It begins a magnificent tale of adventure that will plunge the...