At the time of my father-in-law’s death in 1973, the letters had been assumed to be lost, so it was a great delight when the whole collection turned up among the vast volume of papers he had kept throughout his life. The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrún · The Fall of Arthur · The Story of Kullervo · The Lay of Aotrou and Itroun

The 1939 letter has Father Christmas making reference to the Second World War, [1] while some of the later letters feature Father Christmas' battles against Goblins which were subsequently interpreted as being a reflection of Tolkien's views on the German Menace. [2] Publication [ edit ] Can you imagine writing to Father Christmas and actually getting a reply? For more than twenty years, the children of J.R.R. Tolkien received letters from the North Pole - from Father Christmas himself! They told wonderful stories of mischief and disaster, adventures, and battles: how 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, and many others.

I think the author needs no introduction. But this little gem of a book proves that the man didn't "just" invent Middle-Earth, the place of epic fantasy. No, he was a man with a great imagination in general. Prior to publication, an exhibition of Tolkien's drawings was held at the Ashmolean Museum. These included works from The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Father Christmas Letters. [5] [6] The first edition was by Allen and Unwin on 2 September 1976, three years after Tolkien's death. The Houghton Mifflin edition was released later that year on 19 October. [7] It was the third work by Tolkien to be released posthumously, after a collection of poems and the Guide to the Names in The Lord of the Rings. [8] Edited by Baillie Tolkien, [9] the second wife of Christopher Tolkien, [1] it includes illustrations by Tolkien for nearly all the letters; however, it omitted several letters and drawings. [10] The Father Christmas Letters, also known as Letters from Father Christmas, are a collection of letters written and illustrated by J. R. R. Tolkien between 1920 and 1943 for his children, from Father Christmas. They were released posthumously by the Tolkien estate on 2 September 1976, the 3rd anniversary of Tolkien's death. They were edited by Baillie Tolkien, second wife of his youngest son, Christopher. The book was warmly received by critics, and it has been suggested that elements of the stories inspired parts of Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. Even though Christmas has become so commercial and not many kids know the true meaning of Christmas, I‘ve always loved the magic of believing in Santa Claus or St. Nicholas or Father Christmas or the other names he’s known as throughout the world. I got to wondering this year whether or not the young children in my life, my two youngest grandchildren and four of my great nephews still believed. Their mothers said they do. I hope so, for one more year at least. Para lectura en navidades es idóneo, y si los niños ya saben el secreto, hacelo en familia también es algo fantástico.

If you find that not many of the things you asked for have come, and not perhaps quite so many as sometimes, remember that this Christmas all over the world there are a terrible number of poor and starving people. Kudos, Mr. Tolkien, for another great piece. I may not be a fantasy nut, but this book was right up my alley! Every year J. R.R Tolkien's children received letters from Santa Claus and a polar bear, decorated with colorful pictures. Actually, the letter was from their father, Tolkien himself, to entertain their children. In these letters, Santa and a polar bear told great stories of their adventure and mischief, of battles with goblins and feasts with elves. Each illustration, stamp, and envelope, made personally by J.R.R Tolkien, are a fabulous work of art. It's a gripping tale of an adventure, which will appeal to children and even parents more.They were released posthumously by the Tolkien Estate on 2 September 1976, the 3rd anniversary of Tolkien's death. They were edited by Baillie Tolkien, second wife of his youngest son, Christopher.

J.R.R. TOLKIEN (1892-1973) is the creator of Middle-earth and author of such classic extraordinary works of fiction as 'The Hobbit', 'The Lord of the Rings', and 'The Silmarillion.' His books have been translated into more than fifty languages and have sold many millions of copies worldwide. Tolkien put a lot of work into these letters. Not only did he come up with a new story for his children pretty much every year, the envelopes are also handmade, and he drew the pictures and even designed the post stamps.Published to celebrate the first ever ‘letter from Father Christmas’ in 1920, this beautiful oversized edition of Tolkien’s famous illustrated letters from ‘Father Christmas’, includes a wealth of charming letters, pictures and decorated envelopes, and promises to be a festive feast for Tolkien fans of all ages. The Father Christmas Letters". The Tolkien Library. Archived from the original on 12 January 2013 . Retrieved 22 November 2012. Santa Letter Kit from the Desk of Santa for Brother and Sister, Nice List Certificate from Santa Envelope Editable Template Printable It’s been such a tough year I wanted to do something to reassure our little ones, to their restore their hope and reaffirm their belief in magic. Letter From Father Christmas

When I first started reading this I thought what a fantastic idea, one I wish I has thought of when my children were young. Soon though I was caught up in the letters, waiting for the further adventures of polar bear and the cubs, the goblins and the old Ancient bear as well as the happenings on the North Pole. We can tell as the children age and quit believing in Santa as well as insights to what is happening in the rest of the world. Loved the colored pictures too. The book was revised in 1999 and was retitled Letters from Father Christmas. In this edition all of the Father Christmas letters and artwork not appearing in the first edition were included. John Ronald Reuel Tolkien: writer, artist, scholar, linguist. Known to millions around the world as the author of The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien spent most of his life teaching at the University of Oxford where he was a distinguished academic in the fields of Old and Middle English and Old Norse. His creativity, confined to his spare time, found its outlet in fantasy works, stories for children, poetry, illustration and invented languages and alphabets. The first letter is from 1920, the last one from 1943 (that ones written during the war were especially touching). All of them are charming and full of warmth and kindness. a b c d Willard, Nancy (5 December 1976). "Christmas Letters". The New York Times . Retrieved 22 November 2012.

Tolkien’s most popular works, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings are set in Middle-earth, an imagined world with strangely familiar settings inhabited by ancient and extraordinary peoples. Through this secondary world Tolkien writes perceptively of universal human concerns – love and loss, courage and betrayal, humility and pride – giving his books a wide and enduring appeal. Wow, Tolkien's children received letters from Santa from 1920 to 1943, until his youngest daughter was 14. In this collection of letters, Santa shares his adventure at the North Pole with goblins, elves, gnomes, and polar bears. I can't imagine how thrilled his children must have been to get these every year. I would recommend a print copy, since the pictures in this are wonderful, but if you have an iPad, you won’t miss out on the lovely colours this offers. The letters my child received (and wrote in reply) incorporated some of the characters and plot from Tolkien (the North Polar Bear, for instance), but added new characters (especially Windley, a naughty girl elf). As with Tolkien's children, the exchanges continued a little after the real author was known, but it remained a wonderful imaginative stimulus and a shared semi-secret world.