I adore The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, but I’ve never had any interest in reading The Silmarillion. The way it’s always been described to me, it sounds like it’s just an encyclopedia of lore and world-building.

That doesn’t interest me at all.

Once, when I was younger, someone gifted me a Star Wars Encyclopedia. I barely touched the thing. Lore and world-building are an important part of what imbues Star Wars and Middle-Earth with that otherworldly magic that I find so appealing, but they mean nothing to me without characters and a strong narrative.

That said, I think Shaunta’s point is that there are plenty of people who do like The Silmarillion. It’s just not a book that was written for people like you and me.