“Letters From Father Christmas”
by J.R.R. Tolkien, edited by Baillie Tolkien.
Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 1999, 111 pages, Grades 2-4.
Most historical figures kept a significant correspondence with friends and family. Handwritten letters comprised most of this correspondence. In today’s world, we send emails for the most part. But emails have no soul and frequently, little correct grammar. It gets even worse with text messages.
What is it about letters that make them so personal and important? First, they are frequently handwritten or typed. This means that the author has put some thought and effort into the letter. Second, they are frequently filled with personal feelings and descriptions of events. After reading a letter, the recipient knows something about the sender. There is a connection that is often lacking in electronic correspondence.
J.R.R. Tolkien was a man of literature and of letter writing. From 1920-1943, Tolkien wrote letters to his children each Christmas. In them he explains that he lives on the North Pole. His real name is Father Christmas and his trusty helper is Polar Bear. Baillie Tolkien has gathered many of these letters and drawings in the book “Letters From Father Christmas.”
The letters begin in 1920. Father Christmas tells his children about all the work being done at the North Pole. He and his elf helpers have been making toys and presents for children all around the world. Father Christmas tells the children about the weather on the North Pole and the many clumsy accidents of Polar Bear.
Though Polar Bear means well, he continually breaks things or neglects his work because he is always trying to find food. This, of course, has made him very fat. With many of the letters, Father Christmas includes a drawing of the events around that year’s Christmas. The drawings are fantastical and original.
The presents are often in danger from attacks of Goblins. Father Christmas and Polar Bear must defend all the toys and presents of the children. As the years go by, more and more letters are sent to the Tolkien children by Father Christmas. The letters have an intimacy because Father Christmas knows the ups and downs of the children. Finally, in 1943, the letters end. The letters written during the war years are more solemn and less playful than those of previous years.
Since Tolkien wrote these letters for his children, readers may find them less appealing. The activities going on in the Tolkien home concern themselves. The pictures drawn by Father Christmas can be enjoyed and appreciated by everyone. They are fun and appealing and young children can easily identify with the characters in the artwork. In many ways, they are the best part of the book.
If you have read “The Lord of the Rings,” you will see similarities with the figures in the book. Only a genius like Tolkien could create such imaginative drawings. So if you are looking for a fun book to share with your younger members in the family, I recommend “Letters From Father Christmas.” Though the letters may lag at times, the art is always delightful to see. Enjoy!
