The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them. One Ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them.

In ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, the Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others. But the One Ring was taken from him, and though he sought it throughout Middle-earth, it remained lost to him. After many ages it fell into the hands of Bilbo Baggins, as told in The Hobbit. In a sleepy village in the Shire, young Frodo Baggins finds himself faced with an immense task, as his elderly cousin Bilbo entrusts the Ring to his care. Frodo must leave his home and make a perilous journey across Middle-earth to the Cracks of Doom, there to destroy the Ring and foil the Dark Lord in his evil purpose.

Yeah, I know. I'm reviewing like one of the most well-known books ever. This probably isn't exceptionally helpful, but hey. I plead borderline insanity. I'm multitasking on about three important projects right now, and this book happened to be the one we just finished reading in English. Sorry about the shortcut. Anyway, I kind of started the book with that annoying mentality that I was being forced to read it, so I didn't completely love the first half of the book (though I have the sneaking suspicion that I would feel the same even if I had started it voluntarily). It was a lot of information and a little too much wordiness with the events. I started getting into it more in the second half, but it definitely wasn't ever to that really compelling point. It was actually pretty surprising, that I enjoyed the movie a good deal more than the book; the events were the same, but the movie made it more engaging. I think one of the hazards of the book is that it was pretty long, and that left a lot of risk to just be plodding along. Still, it turned out pretty good by the end. I would recommend reading it, but (and this is probably the only time I'm gonna suggest this) watching the movie either before, while you're reading it, or after you finish actually does help. I feel bad, but for someone who's not in the mood for absorbing the last 500 years of history and minute details of the story, it helps. You can find the book at Kettleson, KGH, BMS, SHS, MEHS, and all those other letters.