The fellowship can be a little expensive, but the mines of moria set includes the entire fellowship in plastic, so it could be a good way to start. The rule book included with it is small, but it has all the core rules and most of the profiles, so it should be enough. You may also need to buy the Scourging of the Shire supplement for some of the hobbit profiles, but you can do that when you decide to start expanding your army.

Also, I think buying the hard back rule book by itself may be quite expensive, so the mines of moria set may be better value if you don't have a copy of the rules yet.

Whether or not it is worth getting really depends on what you want. If you don't mind the fellowship in plastic, and need a copy of the rules, it may be worth getting.