rcb said:
the only book i understood was the hobbit. fun little adventure to read about.

If you liked The Hobbit, I'd highly recommend Tales from a Perilous Realm to you. Specifically the stories Leaf By Niggle and Farmer Giles of Ham (one of my all time favorite Tolkien tales), which are both included in the previously mentioned collection. Personally, I didn't care too much for the other two stories in the Perilous Realm collection, but having all four works in one volume is an excellent value. The Father Christmas Stories and Roverandom are two other fun little works written by Tolkien. None of these stories take place in Middle-Earth, but they all share the same fun and charming adventure element found in The Hobbit that many felt was absent in The Lord of the Rings.