[amyrlis]

Nicely said Stone of Vision! A beautiful verse you have written! I just want to echo some of the sentiment already expressed here as to why Tolkien moves me. I believe it is because Tolkien created Middle Earth in such a way that it is so close to being real, you almost can't help but believe it is. It is so easy to look at something from our everyday world and see Tolkien's work there. The wind swept prairies of Wyoming elude to Rohan's sweeping grasslands. The gray peaks of the Sangre de Cristos are reminiscent of the Misty Mountains. When the weather gathers on Long's Peak I can see an angry storm on Caradhras. Watching lightening bugs glowing in the trees conjurs visions of Rivendell. I don't have to escape the world I live in, Middle Earth is all around me!
The manner in which Tolkien writes is also a major reason why I am so moved by it. He is beautiful, touching, and emotional without being sappy, trite, or cliché. Some exceptional passages that come to mind are Sam leaving Frodo on Cirith Ungol and Eomer finding Theoden on the Pelennor Fields. There is so much sorrow, but it is portrayed at just the right level. I'm not sure if I can really explain it, but his words can pierce my very soul.