I love LOTR; it was one of my first fantasy series
Anybody else seen his art? The Tolkien estate recently put it on online display. He was actually an excellent artist!
End, definitely. If I'm not impressed by the beginning, I might still go on to enjoy the book, and end happy. If I start out impressed but end up let down, it will just leave a (metaphorical) bad taste in my mouth.
Oh In that case I have no idea, I just commented on newer posts with few replies before they gather attention I guess. Either that or I am wittier than I thought