I think the Chronicles of Narnia are better than the Hobbit, but far inferior to LOTR and the Silmarillion.

I'm with you Grondy. I loved Narnia when I read it, and I love LOTR (now and forevermore...). I would quite like to read Narnia again though, especially the horse & his boy.

I agree that they're definately two different styles, but for me it's rather difficult to choose which is better. I've always liked both. LOTR may be more complex, and I'm quite sure I'd choose it at this moment, but whenever I pick up a Narnia book it's just Narnia for me! I really can't decide...But for the time being, I'm pretty much LOTR-ish...(the Silmarillion was the best!)

i love both books but they are way too different to compare. But if i had to choose one it would be Middle-earth because it is more indepth than Narnia.

No D’neniel, I don't think anyone has confused me with Grendel.

Choose? CHOOSE?!?

How can you ask me to choose? I love them both--
and am grateful for both Lewis & Tolkien's ability & will to
write.

Doubtless we know more of ME than of Narnia; Lewis only
chronicles the experiences of children of our world in that one,
whereas ME is full of adult experiences of all kinds, and is
furthermore a myth of "our" own world, and not of another world
entirely. Equally doubtless (in my mind) is the idea that,
were I to travel back to Tolkien's mythological time on this
world, or were I to be called into Narnia's past by Aslan, I
would find myself surrounded in either case by a living breathing
environment full of wonders and details and history and people
of complex and of simple character --just as I am surrounded by
such realism and breathless beauty in this world.

What do you think are the merits (or drawbacks) of having, say,
either Aslan, or Gandalf, as your mentor/powerful ally/friend?

I think that Hobbit is great book, maybe because it was a firs fantasy book I
have read so...

If I were to choose where I'd like to wake up and mysteriously find myself transported to, I'd wish for Narnia, simply because it seems less complicated, and more innocent. I mean, an adventure in Narnia sounds so much more enjoyable than one in Middle-Earth. I mean, usually, an adult would use ME as a moral guide, and Narnia as a fantastical retreat.

I wish the same and that they shouldn't of cut out the Dagor Dagorath(The Last Battle) out of it. The Silmarillion is the best and also should they make a poll about your favourite Tolkien book?Well the Silmarillion is the best in my opinion. I like the Sellamillion, the parody of th Silmarillion and it's sooooooo funny!! If you see it in a book store you should buy it. They had the Tale of Earwiggi, Belend and Luthwomen, Mogothic, The tale of the Sellami ect. It's so cool and funny you could laugh all day, but you have to read the Sillmarillion first.

And no pipe-weed either!! I'd choose Middle Earth too.

Well the English culture, as much of European culture includes of course wine and spirits. JRR loved his wines at least as shown in the letters. But I sometimes got the impression it came from the effect of the wine in overcoming feelings of hunger for pricier foods and to comfort for all the things he and Edith went through and the horrible memories of the past more than just a taste for alcohol. As for Jack, I cannot say. I know that when the children were in the house of the Beavers, the children were given milk of some sort and Mr. Beaver stuck to his beer.

I have to agree with dear Cloveress, I would rather wake up to find myself in Narnia. More innocent , though the enemy was still cruel. But in Middle-Earth, the cruelty is beyond vicious and no different to my mind than finding myself with the fear of having to avoid nazis or anyone bent on ethnic cleansing. Saroman's prediction that the world of man was over sent shivers down my spine. No, in this instance at any rate give me Narnia.

But Laura, that is just the treatment used by Jack. A writer has a right to tell his or her tale in whatever setting and context preferred. I like both approaches, JRR' suited his sub world and Jack (Clive Staples Lewis) was perfect for the world he created. I honestly don't believe comparison's are that helpful. Just as everyone has a unique set of fingerprints, so too an author has a unique way of expressing his or her self. Tolkien spent fifteen years or so, Jack did not, so right there you will have a vast difference. John Reul helped bring Jack to the Catholic faith, so there was even ground between the two. John Ruel used his whole sub world as a canvass if you will to showcase the languages that he worked hard on and was proud of; Jack said he wrote the Narnia tales for children to teach them about God and to learn good manners. So if one does not believe in God then perhaps reading the tales won't be that great an experience. I like the relatively gentle atmosphere of Narnia  better than middle earth which is always bleak and hopeless in a way before the crowning of The King, but I love the majesty and grandeur and military strategies and the languages of Middle Earth.

I agree with Elanorraine.