In sixth grade, back in the '70s, my English textbook had Chapter Five ("Riddles in the Dark") as a selection. It turned out my teacher was a huge LotR fan. She gave the class a choice—we could either continue on with the textbook or each purchase a copy of The Hobbit (which was 1 dollar for the paperback) and read that instead. We opted for The Hobbit. I don't even remember her name anymore, but I would say that that decision of hers was monumental for my life. I liked reading before that, but this was something completely different.