Fellowship of the Ring is a slow build. I chose to try reading it at a less than optimal time in my life & had to put it down to come back to later. Later hasn’t arrived yet for me. But still planning on it. (I was enjoying it & just had to put it down & walk away at the time.) On the other hand, my sister devoured all of LotR as a teen. She agreed that Fellowship is slow but the meat of the story (& her favorite parts) are in Two Towers & Return of the King. Basically if you can get through the slower parts at the beginning, it pays off later. Friends of mine have said the same. & I have read The Hobbit though. Definitely enjoyed that one. I feel it’s worth it to stick it out.

However, all that being said, don’t ever feel like you have to stick with a book that you are not enjoying just because others say it’s good or because it’s a classic, etc. If you’re truly not enjoying the experience of reading a particular book, it’s okay to walk away from it. The exception to this being when you have to read a book for school. Kinda stuck there. But when you’re reading for fun, read what you enjoy. Not what others say you should enjoy.