The Fellowship of the Ring - the first book of J.R.R. Tolkien's three-volume epic, The Lord of the Rings - is set in the imaginary world of Middle-earth, a place of high and heroic adventure populated by many strange creatures - most notably hobbits, a peace-loving "little-people" with furry feet. Hobbits are cheerful and shy, enjoy large meals and long naps, and almost never lock their doors at night. But dark forces from the enemy land of Mordor threaten these lovable beings, along with the other inhabitants of Middle-earth - dwarves, elves, and even men.

A the center of the saga is Frodo Baggins and the magical ring he inherited from his older cousin Bilbo (hero of Tolkien's earlier novel The Hobbit), a ring that has the power to corrupt even the strongest soul with a lust for power. From the wise wizard Gandalf, Frodo learns that he must abandon his comfortable hobbit hole in the Shire and with a band of brave companions, set off on a perilous journey to save the ring from enemy hands. They are pursued along the way by Orcs and the terrifying Black Riders commanded by Sauron the Dark Lord of Mordor; and they are hunted by the treacherous Gollum, who once owned the ring. But Middle-earth dwellers of all sorts also come to the company's aid, as their quest takes them to Rivendell, Moira, and the Elvish land of Lorien. Yet the most dangerous part of their journey is still to come - a desperate trip into the shadowy depths of Mordor to destroy the ring once and for all. "No imaginary world has been projected which is at once so multifarious and so true," wrote C. S. Lewis after The Fellowship of the Ring was first published in England in 1954. "Here are beauties which pierce like swords or burn like cold iron."
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