I FINALY FINNISHED!!!

bmilder, I'm shocked that's such a general opinion about the Silmarillion. I always thought it was very moving, esp. the earlier parts. I love the Ainulindale.

Shanamir, you can't very well read Unfinished Tales before The Silmarillion! It's kind of required for Of Tuor and his Coming to Gondolin and the Narn-I-Hin-Hurin, well, also for some stuff in other texts.

The order in which people usually get into Tolkien's Middle-earth is The Hobbit, Lord of the Rings, Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales and the rest is very variable.

Strictly the prequel to the Lord of the Rings is actually The Silmarillion. Originally the Lord of the Rings was supposed to be the sequel to The Hobbit, but that's not how it turned out.

[edited: taking a hint from other threads, I checked the date. lady, you do realize when all this stuff took place, don't you?]