No, the book isn't necessarily always better than the film. Sometimes the film is better (Jaws, The Godfather, Planet of the Apes, Les Diaboliques, Vertigo, Psycho). Sometimes the film can be just as good in its own right despite major changes (The Iron Giant, The Shining, the James Bond films, etc, etc).

More of my thoughts in detail here, if you're interested. :)

Why the Book Isn’t Always Better than the Film | Frame Rated (medium.com)

Also, to your point at hand, I completely agree re: so-called fans dicatatorially attempting to impose their methodology on others. The Lord of the Rings films are outstanding on their own terms. Whilst I think the novel contains a depth and life all of its own that the films couldn’t hope to reach, the films do a great job of emphasising what is cinematic. Would I prefer people discovered the novel first? Yes. Does it matter? Not really. Would I try to inflict that on anyone? Of course not.