I got The Hobbit and the three LOTR books as a gift like a year or two ago, and I read them all over my summer break. I only recently finished reading through the Appendix at the end of the third book (just for the sake of doing so), and I'm on chapter 6 of the Silmarillion now. I've got to say, I felt that none of it (except the very end of the appendix) was boring. Long, yes; but not boring. I would definitely recommend it to anyone.