Off the Bookshelf: LETTERS FROM FATHER CHRISTMAS, by J.R.R. Tolkein

 

For more than 20 years, J.R.R. Tolkein wrote and illustrated letters for his children, sent from Father Christmas. 

This is another side of the creator of Middle Earth, the whimsical side, telling stories about the antics of mischievous polar bears and gnomes and evil goblins trying to take over the North Pole, and disasters interfering with the delivery of Christmas presents.

This is a glimpse into the lives of the Tolkein family as the children grow up and no longer write letters to Father Christmas. As WWII interferes with obtaining supplies to make presents, and then difficulties finding the children to deliver those presents. There were several moments that threatened tears, seeing the changes, as one by one the children's names vanished from the greeting at the beginning of the letter.

What fun, having a father like Tolkein, who drew fun pictures to illustrate the adventures and disasters, and make up an "Arktic" alphabet for the North Polar Bear to write in, and then a goblin alphabet, and the Polar Bear mis-spelling words, and writing interjections in Father Christmas's letters, sometimes disputing what he said, and other times criticizing the poems he wrote. The labor of love that went into these letters is inspiring.

Reading this book and enjoying the illustrations should become a regular family holiday tradition.

Off the Bookshelf: 3-MINUTE J.R.R. TOLKEIN, by Gary Raymond

Cool concept book.

The subtitle is: "An unauthorized biography of the world's most revered fantasy writer."

How can you get the biography of a man who has had such an impact on fantasy writing and movie-making, in 3 minutes? Easy -- when the pieces are small, so each bite takes 3 minutes at a time to take in.

3 chapters: Life. Works. Influence.
Each chapter is broken down into small pieces that only take up a few paragraphs of text, accompanied by lots of photographs, maps, artwork, links to other sections in the book.

I recommend just paging through the book the first time through. Enjoy the pictures and the captions and references to other areas, other books, quotes from people. Then go through it again, studying the sections that catch your attention. Then sit down and read through leisurely, pulling it all together.

A lovely tribute to a great, influential man, and a small peek into his life and mind and the things that shaped him -- and shaped one of the most incredible worlds and works of fantasy of our time.

Off the Bookshelf: A HOBBIT, A WARDROBE AND A GREAT WAR, by Joseph Loconte

Writing books, by/about writers, about the process of writing -- specifically, their process of writing, how they became writers, the things that shaped them and their viewpoint -- I find fascinating and educational. Anyone interested in becoming a writer or refining their own process and "voice" should try to find books on the process by or about their favorite writers. Such insights will help them understand a little more clearly what goes on in their own heads.

This book, as you can tell from the title, is about C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien -- and the "great war" refers to WWI. Specifically, how the war changed the world's attitudes and philosophies, and how their experiences in the war helped to shape these two writers' viewpoints and attitudes and values. I find it interesting and encouraging that they basically turned away from the pessimistic, humanistic trends of their day, in reaction to the devastation, cruelty, disillusionment and hypocrisy of WWI, the justification for the brutality and slaughter -- and they held to higher ideals and hope in their writing.

The two were friends, meeting in the academic community around Oxford years after the war. They supported each other's literary endeavors and helped shape each other's mindset, and later credited each other for their successes. This book is a keeper, not just because I adore Lewis and Tolkien, but for all the insights and growth and encouragement included in this little-known chapter in the story of their friendship and writing.

Read it. Re-read it. Loan it to your Hobbit and Free Narnian friends. They'll thank you for it.

Off the Bookshelf: NO DAWN FOR MEN, by James LePore and Carlos Davis

Sometimes you read a book blurb and your immediate reaction is WHATTTTT??????

Part of you immediately insists, "No way." And another part says, "I gotta read this. It's just too ..." And you can't finish that statement because you're not sure what it's "too" of ...

NO DAWN FOR MEN takes J.R.R. Tolkein (Hobbit, LOTR) and Ian Fleming (Bond, James Bond) and tosses them into pre-WWII Nazi Germany for a little Indiana Jonesing ....

When I mentioned it on my Speculative group on Facebook, one person's reaction was to picture Gandalf walking into the Prancing Pony and asking for a vodka martini, shaken, not stirred. Or Gollum doing a Goldfinger speech.

Bottom line: FUN read. Very clever. A few spots where you want to say, "Okay, so that's where the author got the idea" for that character/event/detail in one or another of their famous books. Then a moment later you say, "Uh, wait a minute, that never happened!" I don't want to give anything away, but there's a search for a dangerous item that Hitler wants, that has to be destroyed, and the person carrying it is worn down by the burden, and a beautiful girl, and daredevils and nasty villains and ... READ IT.

I really, really hope the authors weren't playing with us, and I wasn't reading too much into a casual line, and there will be another adventure of Prof. Tolkein and Mr. Fleming.