Fantasy genre

This is my response to a few question regarding the fantasy genre as a whole.  Both whether I like the category overall, and also some of my favorite settings in fantasy books and movies.

Fantasy is a great change of pace when it comes to reading.  With school books, we always tend to focus on realistic fiction or something rather historical.  Although these books are interesting, fantasy is a genre that is often more fun to sit down and read.  It's a topic that I could sit down and read all day long when I find a book that I like.  I think this is because fantasy novels create a very interesting mental image and I can often imagine myself in the same situations in the characters.  Sometimes fantasy can be a little too over-the-top for me, so different books and authors I like more  than others.

A fantasy location I'd like to visit would be Middle Earth in The Hobbit because of all the diverse and interesting things going on there.  The images that popped into my mind when I read it a bit back were fantastic and when the movie came out is was almost exactly as I pictured.  Fantasy gives you a unique perspective into something although impossible, brings out curiosity and creativity.  I really like the battle scenes in the book and also the "my precious" scene with Bilbo and the ring that becomes so important.  Scenes like this would never have been possible in standard fiction, and therefore fantasy is the best way to advance these ideas.  Middle Earth would be an adventure and definitely one that I'd like to go on.