Over the course of many years, he wrote and illustrated detailed, whimsical letters from Father Christmas, populated with a clumsy polar bear, elves and goblins. But Tolkien was also the proud dad of four kids - and he didn't just read 'Hobbit' to them at bedtime. Tolkien was best known for his epic fantasy 'Lord of the Rings' and his studies in myth and language. The first paperback edition was published by Unwin Paperbacks in 1978 It was also publishedīy Methuen in 1976 in Canada and by Book Club Associates as a book club Houghton Mifflin in the same year on 19 october. © The Tolkien Trust 2012 Cave drawings, 1932.Originally published by Allen and Unwin on 2 september of 1976 and by © The Tolkien Estate Ltd 1976 First page from Father Christmas letter, 1932. Atlas Obscura has some images of the letters, which will be on view from June 1 through to October 28, 2018. Next year, you will be able to see these letters at Oxford’s Bodleiean Libraries exhibition Tolkien: The Maker of Middle-Earth, along with a trove of other Tolkien artifacts.

They were presented to his children in envelopes with North Pole postage stamps-two kisses per letter-and later Tolkien persuaded the postman to include them in his mail deliveries. As with The Hobbit, which Tolkien wrote and published in this period, the letters contain entire worlds, with invented languages and histories, alongside detailed illustrations.Įven the methods of delivery for the letters were as authentic as possible. What follows is a tale of a beloved polar bear, mysterious caves filled with goblins, and their heroic counterparts, the Red Gnomes. It all began with the funny noises underground … ” Drawing of the aurora borealis, 1926. First of all a Merry Christmas! But there have been lots of adventures you will want to hear about. The 1932 letter begins, “Dear Children, There is alot to tell you. What began as short, informative letters-“I am just now off to Oxford with a bundle of toys”-evolved into longer tales about life at the North Pole. His dome-shaped house glows from a wintery hillside, at the end of a staircase lit with lanterns.įor the next 23 years, every Christmas Eve, Tolkien wrote a letter to his four children from Father Christmas. A red-coated figure with a long white beard and a rosy red nose walks through the snow.

The accompanying picture that he drew is charmingly Tolkien-esque.

Christmas letters tolkien