The Silmarillion

As a standalone book, I don't know why anyone would want to read this. Now, I love Tolkien's world – I've read LOR multiple times, same with the hobbit. Seen the movies more times than I can count, including midnight releases for each of them. But even armed with this background, and other information gleaned from videos, Tolkien encyclopedias and other sources I couldn't get into this. It's amazing in what it is – a reference about the world – but it is not a compelling story. I think of this more as a glossary that goes at the end of LOR to help give background to the world.