Okay...start from the begining...there's this ring, see?...

[Carorëiel]

I agree that you shouldn't force anyone to read it if they really don't want to. It'll ruin it for them.<P>However, if you do manage to convince someone that they may actually want to read LotR but they're still leary, try writing a brief guidebook for them. Include a list of characters with a brief description of each, some info on who they are and how they relate to other characters, and what other names they might be called (Aragron, Strider, Elessar, etc). Also include a brief discussion of the differences between peoples in Middle Earth (hobbits, elves, men, dwarves, ents), and a list of important place names (Shire, Bree, Amon Hen, Mordor, etc) and things (the Ring, palantir, Narsil, etc). I did this for my grandmother. I put in pictures of the characters from the movies so she'd have some visuals to help her remember who was who. <P>I know this sounds like a lot of effort, but I had a great time doing it and it even strengthened my own understanding of LotR. And best of all, my grandmother's now reading LotR, understanding it, and enjoying it. I'm so excited!