What editions of Tolkien books have really good illustrations?

I'd avoid the Silmarillion, it's quite dry and I doubt a tween would make it through the book. I know I sure didn't, and it's probably the only book I never finished. But, mine was a 1999 edition from HarperCollins and other than having 3 maps at the back of the book there are no pictures to speak of... so you can avoid that edition.

If he likes the sword fight and elves brand of fantasy, I'd recommend two authors.

"The Sword of Shannara" by Terry Brooks. This is a huge series that started in the 70s, and frankly it was the Harry Potter of 25 years ago for getting kids to read. A fantastic series influenced by LoTR (and what book in this genre isn't?) with about 10 books altogether.

..... or one of the early RA Salvatore trilogies (Icewind Dale or the Dark Elf Trilogy, both can be found as individual books or together in 1 volume.) This is a Dungeons & Dragons 'Forgotten Realms' book featuring a drow named Drizzt. There's I think 6 trilogies based on these characters (dubbed the Companions of the Hall), ranging from the 80s to about 6 months ago. Plus, if he likes the setting there are a TON of FR books around... though I haven't read any of them myself lol.

look for anything illustrated by alan lee or john howe. they're pretty famous for their LOTR illustrations and were actually called on set to design the movies, so a lot of the rich details you see are influenced or created by these two men. sure you can find some stuff on amazon with a bit of sleuthing.

try children of hurin--illustrated by lee; and much easier to follow than silmarillion. i loved it, as did many of my classmates (none of us were required to read it).

there's also a 'lord of the rings sketchbook' that compiles howe and lee's illustrations. not tolkien's writing, but a lovely book to look at regardless :)

I picked up one a couple of birthdays back for a friend of mine. The site I bought it from usually has a few in stock, try this link:

http://www.awesomebooks.com/search/?q=tolkien+illu...

These guys normally sell it cheap and ship it fast. If they don;t have an image, check it out on Amazon and then order from them.