Reviews

Letters from Father Christmas by J.R.R. Tolkien

jeannamarie's review against another edition

5.0

Tolkien is a masterful genius.

What a sweet way to chronically record Christmas through the lives of his children. I mean, I would have been SO excited to get these letters as a kid (and as an adult), but also these letters are real. He mingles fantasy and reality so well. You get a sense of the time period and what happened through out the year.

Such a special thing for his future family (and us readers) to witness.

esai's review against another edition

funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

readerette's review against another edition

funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Fun little Christmas-adjacent stories told in letters. Picking this up closer to Christmas might make it more fun. Maybe it's nice to read on sort of an Advent calendar-type schedule rather than all at once, since it's maybe to  much for young readers to get into on their own and too long to read in one go at bedtime. I don't know that I can recommend the audiobook; the interstitial music is mostly just annoying and since it's in an epistolary format, looking at that on the page might be a little more engaging. 

megansgc's review against another edition

4.0

What a lovely way for a father to share his gifts with his children. Delightful tales of Santa’s life at the North pole and his helper PB. Beautiful drawings and letters (which are themselves works of art) for Tolkien’s children.

jbmorgan86's review against another edition

3.0

From Christmas 1920 to Christmas 1943, J.R.R. Tolkien wrote letters and drew illustrations from “Father Christmas” to his four children. As he children matured, so did the letters. At the start of the collection, the letters are mere updates about the North Pole and the disasters caused by Father Christmas’ assistant, the North Polar Bear. By the end of the collection, the letters aren’t contain stories of epic battles between the goblins and Father Christmas and his allies (North Polar Bear, the red elves, and the red gnomes).

Some of the stories are fun. Some are somewhat dull. The illustrations are fantastic. References to the Hobbit and WWII were notable.

shoggoth_roof's review against another edition

4.0

Me parece muy tierno que Tolkien escribiese todos los años a sus hijos en nombre de Father Christmas. ¡Y qué historias se fue inventando para entretenerlos! Todas son divertidas, aunque acaben con un punto más guerrero.

También me parece destacable cómo menciona la guerra en varias de sus cartas, más hacia el final, hablando de que otros niños lo están pasando mal.

Una lectura muy agradable previa a Navidad.

izzyproudfoot's review against another edition

5.0

My little boy and I read this on the run up to Christmas. It's wonderfully charming and just the right amount of magical to give you all those Christmas tingles.

artyemis's review against another edition

4.0

Voglio un padre come Tolkien

catbooklover's review against another edition

funny hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

halcyon_rising's review against another edition

4.0

Wow, just imagine being a child of J.R.R. Tolkien and getting letters from friggin' SANTA each year, or multiple times a year. I hope they never found out that it was their dad helping Santa out! ;-)

Beautiful book, I'm glad I gave this one a go. You should, too.

Happy Reading!