Letters From Father Christmas- J.R.R. Tolkien

For over 20 years, J.R.R. Tolkien would bring magic to his children's holidays by sending them letters from Father Christmas; the name children bestow Santa Claus in England. But these just weren't any old letters from St. Nick. These missives were epic adventures filled with interesting characters, weather reports from the North Pole, and battles with goblins who are obsessed with Santa's inventory of toy trains of all things.

The first letter was sent to eldest son John in 1920. According to a recent graphic novel biography I read about the friendship of Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, this was a fallow period for the eventual creator of The Lord of the Rings series of books. Experts say that Tolkien expressed frustration at not being able to write a great mythos for the United Kingdom. But I would have to disagree with this assessment. In my opinion, these letters were the author exercising through the creative process to create what would eventually become 1937's The Hobbit, laying the foundations of Middle Earth. 

The maps, the elvish language and the willowy font Tolkien created for his works involving Middle Earth all take shape here. There's even a very large message written in the alphabet of the goblins, along with a cipher. I'm making it one of my holiday goals to decode it. 

So much reads like a Christmas version of The Lord of the Rings. The runes ans carvings of past humans described in those caverns. The underground lairs of the goblins. The different races of elves that help Santa and how to distinguish among them. The battles between Father Christmas and goblins. The weapons. The gigantic horn that you blow to summon defenders of the North Pole from great distances. The only thing missing is one ring to rule them all...

And we've got the war. The Lord of the Rings was a way that Tolkien would process his way through his trauma that he experienced as an officer during the first World War. The last few years of letters reflect those horrible memories returning with Hitler's constant aerial bombardments of the United Kingdom. Father Christmas bemoans the upheaval of families and the difficulty in securing certain gifts for the Tolkien children. In reality it's the voice of an earthly father worried about his sons who have gone to war and not being able to adequately provide for those who still live at home. 

This is a must for any Tolkien fan who not only loves Christmas but wants to witness the formation of Middle Earth. I think you even see some of the Inspiration for The Chronicles of Narnia, because isn't Father Christmas a character in those? Not sure. But I know that talking animals sure play a part in those works and this collection of yule tide correspondence sure has plenty of those.

Collected and published posthumously, this was a brilliant read that fittingly ends; albeit with a very bittersweet goodbye from Father Christmas. So you might shed a tear or two towards the end. But not before being taken to a magical world of myth, merriment and laughs.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

The Mythmakers: The Remarkable Fellowship of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien

I found this 2024 work in the graphic novel new release section of my local library. Though I am not really sure that you could classify this book as a graphic novel. It's more of a hybrid graphic novel/prose non-fiction biography. I'd say a good 50% of this book is prose. Plus the dialogue is very wordy. But I think that's to be expected as the subjects of this book by John Hendrix were both academics and philosophers.

C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien were the 20th century's most distinguished fantasy writers. Lewis wrote dozens of works in many genres, including early science fiction, children's literature and Christian theology. Tolkien was a perfectionist with anxiety and writer's block. But he managed to create an entire universe with his 4 volumes of completed stories set on Middle Earth. 

For a good period of time, the two were the best of friends and if it wasn't for the other encouraging their mates on, we wouldn't have Aslan, Frodo, the White Witch or Gandalf the Grey. They were each other's biggest fans and harshest critics. But as iron sharpens iron, Lewis and Tolkien refined each other into becoming 2 universally beloved authors. Unfortunately, as happens with many friendships, the two men grew apart. Yet, the respect and love the two had for each other was unwavering.

I had a difficult time getting through the first chapter. It wasn't about the history of Lewis or Tolkien. Instead, it was more of an introduction of what made a story either a myth, a legend, or a fairy tale. While I learned how a fairy tale could be as such without the inclusion of a fairy, I was very lost in this opener. Plus, I didn't like how close to calling The Bible a fairy tale or myth the author got and he's supposed to be a Christian author and illustrator!

Our narrators are a Wizard in full garb along with a pointed hat and a Lion dressed in rather a shabby looking blazer. I took me a while to figure out that the Wizard personified Tolkien, who was essentially one of the first cosplayers, and that the Lion in a shabby flannel coat was Lewis, as a lion is the main heroic character in The Chronicles of Narnia, and Lewis wasn't known to be a very flashy dresser 

While the opening chapter was a bit of a chore to get through, the rest of the book was not. It was a fascinating history of the two authors, growing up at the turn of the century, during an industrial boom, experiencing the horror of World War I and then witnessing the sun set on the British Empire after the devastation of the second World War. I even felt that the trio of appendices were really good. They felt more geared for the lay person as opposed to the introductory chapter which was too academic for my tastes.

While I wasn't too keen on John Hendrix in how he kept comparing Jesus to the great stories of myth and legend, I would not mind having him act as my guide through history. I see that Hendrix wrote a graphic novel about Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a pastor who became a spy and potential assassin of Adolf Hitler. I've been wanting to read a biography of this complex figure in World War II history and this seems up my alley.

So as much of an issue I might have had with some parts of this work, I think it speaks volumes that I am willing to give John Hendrix another try. 

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

The 25 Baubles of Pop Culture! Advent 2022 Day 14

We travel to Middle Earth to see how the Hobbits decorate their holiday trees. 

First up is this acrylic ornament available at Wal-Mart of all places. It pays tribute to the 5 books author JRR Tolkien wrote about the chronicles of Middle Earth- The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy and The Silmarillion. 

From Hallmark, there really aren't that many ornaments to choose from. But that's okay as I already had the one I wanted to pick in my head prior to this post. From just this year, I selected this resin ornament of Gollum, the Hobbit-like creature that kinda started all this mess. True, I would have liked it if Gollum was holding the One Ring. But this is a really awesome representation of Andy Serkis' amazing take on the character from the Peter Jackson film series. 

On the handmade unlicensed front, I selected 2 ornaments. First up is the pair of wooden ornaments that double as gift tags. From Etsy, these engraved ornaments kinda remind me of those old timey travel posters. Only instead of going to Aruba and Egypt, places like the West Gate of Moria and Lothlorien are advertised.

Also found on Etsy was this brilliant ornament that pays homage to the great Sir Ian McKellen's role of Gandalf. Based on Gandalf's epic battle with the Balrog, instead of saying to the demon 'You Shall Not Pass!', the wizard proclaims to all that when it comes to the gifts under the tree- YOU SHALL NOT PEEK!

And now on to the DIY ornament, which I am having a lot of fun researching in the posts. A Hobbit Hole is where characters such as Frodo Baggins and his friend Sam live. To create a festive Hobbit Hole ornament, here's what you do:

1. Take a round flat wooden disc craft store ornament and paint it green. 
2. Next, hot glue a small vine wreath that the painted disc will fit inside.
3. Then hot glue some moss, holly, or mistletoe (which I believe is mentioned in one of the books) and some small flowers onto the wreath.
4. Hot glue a round metal bead in the middle of the disc to represent the door knob, adore with a twine string as a place holder and you've made your own LOTR ornament!