In lieu of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey hitting theatres this past December I decided to reread some of my favourite Tolkien stories.
The Father Christmas Letters were written by Tolkien to his sons either under the identity of the jolly old man himself, his right-hand elf Ilbereth, or his handy assistant the North Polar Bear. Fill with mishaps and mischievous goblins they are quite amusing and inspire me to write similar letters if I ever have children (in the far far future).
Obviously I had to reread The Hobbit. If you are like me you feel the compulsive urge to read the book that a movie/television show/play/musical is based on prior to seeing it itself. There's not much I can say about The Hobbit that hasn't already be said, but I will say this: I love that it was written with a target audience of children around the age of ten. This amuses me to no end, mainly because many adults find it a difficult read. I guess this may be a reflection on the changes in the English language over the years.
I also gave a go at Farmer Giles of Ham and The Adventures of Tom Bombadil. The former being a short story of the historical nature, based in the distant past with many imaginative qualities. The latter being in verse and highly informative on bits and bobs of Middle Earth starring a character that those who have read The Lord of the Rings will be familiar with.
Right now I am currently reading Sir Gawain & The Green Knight, Pearl, and Sir Orfeo. These are medieval English poems translated Tolkien and edited by his son Christopher to be published posthumously. So far I have only finished Sir Gawain & The Green Knight which was delightful. Filled with Arthur and his knights of the round table.
JRR Tolkien
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