The Lord of the Rings
Tolkien’s romance of the Third Age, published in three volumes in 1954 and 1955. A hobbit carries a ring of absolute power across a continent to destroy it in the fire where it was made, while the kingdoms of Men and Elves fight a war they expect to lose. It invented the shape of modern epic fantasy so thoroughly that most of the genre is still arguing with it.
Recommended by 2 People
Fredrik Backman
Over a summer when I was about 9, Tolkien consumed me. The adventure, the storytelling, the magical lands and terrifying creatures inhabiting them were all I thought about. When I was done, I started all over again. This was my first experience of absolute binge reading, and maybe my first love.
Article · May 2017
Christopher Paolini
You can’t talk about epic fantasy without talking about The Lord of the Rings, since a good chunk of modern epic fantasy wouldn’t exist without Tolkien, if not all of it.
Interview · January 2026
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