Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
Letters from Father Christmas  By  cover art

Letters from Father Christmas

By: J. R. R. Tolkien
Narrated by: Derek Jacobi, John Moffatt, Christian Rodska
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $13.06

Buy for $13.06

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

Can you imagine writing to Father Christmas and actually getting a reply?

Every year, the children of J.R.R. Tolkien would write to Father Christmas, and the letters they received told wonderful stories of his adventures at the North Pole.

These humorous tales are brought to life by Derek Jacobi as Father Christmas, John Moffatt as Polar Bear, and Christian Rodska as Ilbereth the Elf, complete with specially composed music.

©1997, 200 4 (P)1997 HarperCollins UK

Featured Article: Galadriel—A Lord of the Rings Character Guide


Galadriel is one of the most significant characters both in J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy and the wide history of Middle-earth more generally. If you've listened to The Lord of the Rings or seen any of the film adaptations, then you're likely well aware of who Galadriel is. But what, exactly, makes her so important? What is her history? This character guide is here to answer all of your questions about the powerful Elf Galadriel, the Lady of Lórien.

Continue Your Journey Through Middle earth

Continue Your Journey
Through Middle-earth

What listeners say about Letters from Father Christmas

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,308
  • 4 Stars
    350
  • 3 Stars
    140
  • 2 Stars
    38
  • 1 Stars
    35
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,364
  • 4 Stars
    177
  • 3 Stars
    66
  • 2 Stars
    20
  • 1 Stars
    14
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,151
  • 4 Stars
    297
  • 3 Stars
    133
  • 2 Stars
    28
  • 1 Stars
    22

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Ridiculously enchanting

JRR can’t help himself from turning what could have just been a simple letter exchange about presents into an explosion of creative world building about the North Pole. I only wish there was more to know about his Father Christmas, the North Polar Bear and the goblin horde.

The cast reading captures the spirit perfectly. This is easily a new staple in my holiday listening.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

It’s not synthesized music!

It’s recorders and wooden blocks... and yes, there’s a lot of it, but if one thinks of it as marking the passage of time, it’s all right.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Letters from Father Christmas

What a wonderful and charming story! I enjoyed it tremendously and would highly recommend it!!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A Christmas delight!

This heart warming and whimsical exchange between "Father Christmas" and the family of Tolkien over several years will be a Christmas tradition for me moving forward.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful, Charming and Delightful!

This lovely book kept me entertained and stress free this Christmas. Well, of course it’s J. R. R. Tolkien! Never heard it before and I loved it. I can’t wait to hear it again next year and I’m 56 :) Things have been tough and this helped me feel the magic of Christmas as a child and every age in between. I wish I could thank the amazing man who put pen to paper but I guess I can everyone on Audible know it’s fantastic...

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Almost perfect

I remember being enchanted by these letters when first I read them many years ago. What a labor of love they clearly were, in which Tolkien brings his storytelling skills right into his family and makes a magical time for his children some even more precious.
I was very excited to find the Letters in Audible's collection with Derek Jacobi reading them. All in all, that excitement was justified. Mr. Jacobi's Father Christmas is superb as expected, and the ancillary parts of Polar Bear and the elf are well read as well.
My biggest problem with the performance is the production itself; with all the repetitive and meaningless musical interludes, which, for me, interfere with the magic of the text and the reading. There is some serious lily-gilding going on here, and I regret the production decisions that get in the way of enjoying the text and the performance of that text for themselves.
Your mileage may vary, and I'm still heartily recommending this work.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Di
  • 12-28-19

nice listen for children

nice for kids to listen to while traveling in car
things to talk about and Tolkien fans will recognize some elements.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Short and Enjoyable!

If only it was longer. This collection of letters from father Christmas to Tolkien's children is simply delightful. Even as an adult I chuckled and listened intently for the stories told through letters from the north pole.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Letters from Father Christmas

Was much better than I expected. It wasn't a deep plotted story That I needed to concentrate to follow. I found it very enjoyable to listen to yet a great bedtime story I could come back to and hear something new.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A delightful way to spend Boxing Day

What an adorable collection of letters, artfully narrated. I must now find the book in print so I may see all of the drawings described.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!