I could somehow never get into Harry Potter. The first line itself turned me off. I found it a tad childish and cliched.

I got into Harry Potter when I was still a kid. The last two books I had to basically force myself to read, and I only got through Deathly Hallows because I found a MST of it. My policy on HP now is basically Fanfiction = Good, Actual Books = Bad.

I read it five years ago and I my favorite quote was:

He used often to say there was only one Road; that it was like a great river: it's springs were at every doorstep and every path was it's tributary. "It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door," he used to say. "You step into the Road, and if you don't keep your feet, there is no telling where you might be swept off to." said by Frodo about his uncle Bilbo Baggins in Chapter 'Three is Company'.
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Welcome to the Downs! Hope you enjoy being dead ;)

My mom introduced LotR to me when I was about seven. She had to read it to e, since the letters were too small. I don't remember understanding a lot, but I had a good overall feeling about the book. This inspired me to re-read it when I was eight. I can't say that I understood much more, but I remembered the general idea. I've re-read it two or three times since then, but I was twelve when it actually struck. You couldn't take me away fro the book. It was like an obsession. I set it as my goal to remember all the names, places, and events that are ever mentioned there. I had many arguments with my parents about the amount of tie I'm spending on Tolkien - probably more than on my homework. This summer I've finally managed to lay hands on The Hobbit, The Sil., and The Children of Hurin. They are fantastic!
My future Tolkien plans are to read the unfinished tales and whatever other books i can find, and also to read LotR in English (Russian is my first language, so my copy of the book is in Russian)

I was in fourth grade I believe when I was first introduced to the Lord of the Rings. At the time, I wasn't introduced to The Hobbit or the Sil. or, well, any other books by Tolkien. I didn't find out about the rest until I was a little bit older and did some research. It was around about this time I was introduced to Harry Potter as well. I loved both series, though I do believe Tolkien's style is more top notch; not to mention he's been doing this longer than her.

But I digress, this isn't about Harry Potter. :p

To get back on track, I'm glad I was introduced to J.R.R. Tolkien's works; the man is simply a genius.

Harry Potter isn't as deep as LOTR.

As I said, he has been doing this longer than J.K., but for me, it doesn't necessarily mean the HP books are bad, I'm a fan of both. J.R.R. went into more detail of the races, the area, history, etc. He went all out on it which makes his books more interesting to read for some. Had J.K. done the same for the area around Hogwarts, maybe even went into further detail about the houses and their founders, etc. the HP books would be just as interesting. It's just a matter of preference from the readers. :)

I don't really mean details - well, that too, but mostly feelings. LOVE in HP became almost a formula. You love, you're good. LOTR is totally different. It has a wide range of emotion hidden between the lines.
Well, you could say that teenage tantrums count for emotion, and that if all the LOTR characters were kids, then yeah, I guess you're right. But still, I just don't feel like I'm part of the book in HP the same way as in LOTR. In LOTR, action isn't the main thing - more like phylosophy or something like that. HP wouldn't exist if it wasn't for action. It doesn't have enough behind the action. It's shallow, if you know what I mean.

I wouldn't say it's 'shallow' but I'd say it's 'juvenile literature'. Meant for the slightly simpler minds of children. Come on, you can't expect a 5 year old to understand the themes of LotR like he/she would the themes of Harry Potter.

That's true.

I would have to agree, actually. :p Considering it DID start out as children's books, the more she began to write and develop the characters, the more it became more suitable for middle/high school kids. When she caught wind of adults reading her books, she tried to make it more...grown up for lack of better words to describe it. Really, I believe she just tried too hard, but I still like them none the less.

With the exception of the last part of the last book, she really rushed through it. :\ But, I like it now because I liked it as a kid.

If a five year old was ever able to grasp the themes of LotR and I were the parent, I would be proud of that child. :p

I wouldn't want to be the poor parent who is doomed to hour long explanations of LOTR themes to his/her 5 year old child.
However, if the child really grasps the concepts all by himself, it really is an extraordinary genius and a brilliant kid.