J.R.R. Tolkien

Baillie Tolkien

A collection of illustrated letters from Father Christmas recapping the activities of the preceding year at the North Pole. The letters were written and illustrated by the author to his children.

Letters from Father Christmas

Hanna Rybchynska

This is so beautiful and sad at the end. 
Tolkien writes to his 4 children over the years as Father Christmas... and as soon as they get older the kids stop writing to him. 
The stories he writes and the love he shares it is really amazing. One of my favorites!

Suddenly, we heard terrible growly squealy noises. We rushed out to find Polar Bear hanging on the tree himself.
“You are not a decoration,” said Father Christmas.
“Anyway, I am alight,” he shouted.
He was.
--

--
A beautiful, heart-warming glimpse into Tolkien’s mind, full of love for his children, excitement for the season, and bursting with imagination as seen in his other classic works.
The letters from Father Christmas, the Great Polar Bear, and later Ilbereth, the secretary elf are full of exciting adventures that happen in the magical North Pole, sometimes paralleling the real life events that go on during the World War era. Illustrated with the original drawings of Tolkien, there is no doubt that this book is an instant Christmas classic.

This classic festive book of Tolkien's amazing Father Christmas letters written to his children between the 1920s and the 1940s has been reworked into a new and attractive edition. It contains brand new high-quality digital reproductions of his amazing letters and pictures, including a number them that have never been printed before.'My dear children, I am more shaky than usual this year. The North Polar Bear's fault. It was the biggest bang in the world, and the most monstrous firework there has ever been. It turned the North Pole black!'Every December an envelope bearing a stamp from the North Pole would arrive for J. R. R. Tolkien's children. Inside would be a letter in strange spidery handwriting and a beautiful coloured drawing or some sketches. The letters were from Father Christmas.They told wonderful tales of life at the North Pole:,*How all the reindeer got loose and scattered presents all over the place.,*How the accident-prone Polar Bear climbed the North Pole and fell through the roof of Father Christmas's house into the dining-room,*How he broke the Moon into four pieces and made the Man in it fall into the back garden,*How there were wars with the troublesome horde of goblins who lived in the caves beneath the house!Sometimes the Polar Bear would scrawl a note, and sometimes Ilbereth the Elf would write in his elegant flowing script, adding yet more life and humour to the stories. From the first note to Tolkien's eldest son in 1920 to the final poignant letter to his daughter in 1943, this book collects all the remarkable letters and pictures in one enchanting edition. No reader, young or old, can fail to be charmed by the inventiveness of Tolkien's LETTERS FROM FATHER CHRISTMAS.

atlantisli

Dinlediğim ilk (büyük ihtimalle de son) audiobook çünkü sesli kitaplarda hiç takip edemiyorum neler olduğunu dikkatim dağılıyor ama buna bayıldım. 

Dün akşam mutfakta bir şeyler yaparken arkada podcast gibi çaldı ve oluşan atmosfer sebebiyle çok keyif aldım kendimi sanki yeniyıl için uzak akrabasından bir mektup almış da onu okuyormuş gibi hissettim. Mektuplar arası konulan melodi de çok sevimli kıldı her ne kadar bir süre sonra tekrarlı hissettirse de. Yine de çok cosy bi vibe verdiği için sevdiğim bi kitap oldu, illüstrasyon versiyonunu da buldum internetten çok tatlıymış çizimleri. Kitap olarak da okumayı isterdim.

Kimberly Burgess 

Considering how much I love J.R.R. Tolkien's stories, I shouldn't have been so surprised by how much I loved this story ♥️

Mary Horton

Reread December 2019:

Honestly, there's nothing I have to say here except:

1) the illustrations are precious
2) tOLKIEN
3) HE WROTE THIS
4) and it's Christmas themed
5) so like . . . go read it?

(yes, this is my fourth year in a row reading it & I will never stop)

/ / /

Reread December 2018:

This never fails to make me smile. My favorite Christmas read. :)

/ / /

Reread December 2017:

OKAY SO IT'S ADORABLE. And it's written by Tolkien.

That's all you need to know. ;)

/ / /

I loved this so much! *hugs book* It's definitely the best Christmas book I've read--and it will for sure be something I reread again at Christmastime. ^_^ Honestly, it reminds me so much of The Hobbit, purely because of the fun characters and humor. An instant Christmas favorite. <3

Grace O'Callaghan

This was just a quick and wholesome Christmas read.

The only other book I read by Tolkien was The Hobbit. I did enjoy it but I hope to read The Lord of the Rings next year. But if your wanting a way to get into Tolkien I’d highly suggest reading this to experience a fraction of what he does in his other books. I think it also really endears you to him as a person and shows him to be a thoughtful and caring father.

Even though he only does it through these letters, Tolkien really builds a world in the North Pole with the caves, bears and goblin wars.

The most difficult thing about this book was seeing his children grow up and stop writing to him. It was just so sad.

Overall a great read for this time of year, can’t wait for Tolkien next year.

Las Cartas de Papá Noel

Karla 

De ahora en adelante lo leeré para todas las navidades. Es hermoso ♥️ tierno y las ilustraciones exquisitas 🎄 tenía que ser el magnífico de Tolkien . reseña completaa https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkIpq...

Every December an envelope bearing a stamp from the North Pole would arrive for J.R.R.Tolkien's children. Inside would be a letter in strange spidery handwriting and a beautiful coloured drawing or some sketches. The letters were from Father Christmas.They told wonderful tales of life at the North Pole: how all the reindeer got loose and scattered presents all over the place; how the accident-prone Polar Bear climbed the North Pole and fell through the roof of Father Christmas's house into the dining-room; how he broke the Moon into four pieces and made the Man in it fall into the back garden; how there were wars with the troublesome horde of goblins who lived in the caves beneath the house!Sometimes the Polar Bear would scrawl a note, and sometimes Ilbereth the Elf would write in his elegant flowing script, adding yet more life and humour to the stories. No reader, young or old, can fail to be charmed by the inventiveness and 'authenticity' of Tolkien's Letters from Father Christmas.To mark ten years since the publication of the complete edition of Tolkien's LETTERS FROM FATHER CHRISTMAS in 1999, this new edition is the first time the letters have been available in B format.

Sara 

Nona G

What is Christmas without beautiful Christmas stories? No matter how old I get, fantasy will always be my comfort through life and I will always return to Tolkien, in some form or another. There is nothing more magical than his writings!

And what could be more magical than Tolkien's letters to his children, as they grew up? He is Father Christmas to them, but he is also Polar Bear and Ilbereth the elf, and tells them, year after year, stories about the North Pole and its inhabitants. The adventures are magical and humorous and include early descriptions of beings that will later be developed in the LOTR books.

These letters truly showcase Tolkien's genius when it comes to inventing magical worlds. We know the Middle Earth universe as being a complex one, with multiple races, languages and alphabets. Well, these letters are not different. While simpler - after all, they are written to his children -, he still takes time and effort to create different speech styles for each of the three main characters and even showcases Arktik and Elvish alphabets. The letters are accompanied by drawings of Father Christmas' and his friends' adventures.

This edition is just gorgeous, as it shows the pictures of the real letters, in Tolkien's handwriting, together with his drawings. To me, this book is perfection.

Dani

Es una ternura de libro. Realmente debe haber sido fantástico tener a Tolkien de pariente. :p

Dani C

Such a sweet and adorable tradition of Tolkien to have kept up with his children over the years! The letters are filled with adventure and cheer. The illustrations are delightful and beautiful. A must for the christmas season.

Manon van Heumen

Beth Bartholomew

A delightful account of Father Christmas’ adventures told through letters to Tolkien’s children. This felt truly magical and was a lovely book to read in the build up to Christmas, made me feel very festive!

Letters from Father Christmas

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