[Child of the 7th Age]

Bethberry,

Something like that would indeed be fun! Unfortunately, however, my need is more immediate. I spend so much time in my car shlepping kids in the summer that I have decided to invest in several audio books for those times when it's just too hot to read or write or do anything requiring physical activity. (I live in Houston where the weather resembles that of Harad!)

Essex - The person who narrates the unabridged version of LotR is Rob Inglis (if my spelling is right!). I have seen the entire CD set go on e-bay for about $50, which is still not cheap. The alternative is to get the books one at a time. This costs more in postage, but at least you can spread out the bills. If you're patient, you can pick up the individual books for about $20 each. If you try for cassettes instead of CDs, you can sometimes get it for even less. The alternative is to try your public library: mine has a long waiting list.

I am most interested in getting hold of the unabridged Silmarillion, which seems to go for $25-30 used.

Now, back to your regularly scheduled topic.....