LOTR vs HP

Just a warning this is an ultra nerdy (I mean speaking elvish nerdy) post.

I am a huge Harry Potter fan, I know shocking, right! Brian is a Lord of the Rings fan... I am not so much. I have seen all the movies (yes even the extended versions) more than once, read the Hobbit, and one more than one occasion attempted to read the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but I just cant get into it. We checked out the books on CD from the library for our recent trip to ABQ, and that has been going better. I am almost done with Two Towers (to be fair I"watched" the extended version of Fellowship of the Ring rather and started listening to Two Towers, so really I'm not that far), but even after what seems like and eternity of listening to the book I cannot get into it like Harry Potter. I know the Lord of the Rings universe is more sophisticated and involved than Rowling's Harry Potter world but still, it has been tough. As I have been listening to the CDs I have come up with several reasons why I am having a rough time with LOTR

1. Harry Potter takes place in "our" world, LOTR takes place in the mythical Middle Earth, the idea that magic can exist in our world, right under our noses, appeals more to me than a world where "magic" is common place.

2. Harry Potter includes few weapons, everything is done with wands, but in LOTR there is a lot of time spent describing battles and weapons (I know they arent magical like Harry Potter), Rowling spends time in the final book describing the battle between the Death Eaters and the Order of the Phoenix, but there arent pages and pages describing the weapons used and why they are so awesome.

3. Good vs. Evil is more apparent, in Harry Potter, for the most part, people are either good or evil,  there are some exceptions, but it seems that people are either obviously good, or evil in a way that at least the reader is aware of. Things are different in LOTR, people can be corrupted, or at least partially corrupted, the failings of men are apparent and discussed frequently, and people can turn from good to evil.

4. Despite the growing influence of evil, good remains. In Harry Potter, especially the last few books, Voldemort is obviously gaining power, but despite the "shadow" on the world, good things are still happening, people are still falling in love, babies are being born, and yes even birthday parties are still being thrown. All the good things in the world seem to have stopped in LOTR, it might just be that the story is told from the perspective of those traveling to destroy the ring and so those slice of life details are unimportant, but still, I need more than just the description of Bilbo's party in Fellowship.

5. No research needed. To read LOTR I feel like I need to do extensive research into the characters and the world before even opening the book. There are so many things discussed that it seems the reader should know before getting started, I am often confused. Harry Potter on the other hand doesn't require research. It might be because the story takes place in our world, or because the books are intended for children, but whatever the case, I feel like I can curl up with the book and have everything I need to know within the pages of that book.

So my conclusion- if you are super smart like Brian, read LOTR, Harry Potter with bore you. If you want a magical world that will suck you in and keep you turning pages and wishing there were more long after Voldmort has been defeated, ready Harry Potter.