Which J.R.R. Tolkien novel begins with the chapter “A Long-expected Party”?

The Fellowship of the Ring begins with the chapter “A Long-expected Party.”

Published in 1954 as the first volume of The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring opens in the Shire. The chapter centers on Bilbo Baggins’s eleventy-first birthday party and his decision to leave Hobbiton. His departure eventually places the One Ring in the hands of his heir, Frodo Baggins.

The novel then follows Frodo’s journey from the Shire toward Rivendell and the formation of the Fellowship. The book is often described as the first part of a trilogy, although Tolkien conceived The Lord of the Rings as a single long work. Its two internal books end at different points from the film adaptation, and its title should not be confused with The Fellowship of the Ring film released in 2001.