My Dad read The Hobbit aloud to me each night for about two months when i was about 8, and i remember thinking it was awesome, but i didn't really get hooked on it until i was about 11 and my Dad and my older cousin were arguing about somethign to do with how Sauron should be pronounced, and i got a bit curious, so i got the book off my dad's bookshelf and started to read. It was the start of a very long, (still going) obsession.