Sunday

My 3 Year Old Reads Tolkien


My 3 year old adores JRR Tolkien. No really, she does! Most especially when Daddy reads "Mr. Bliss" to her.

Wandering around the stacks at the library (my favorite pastime) I noticed Claire swipe a book from one of the low shelves. As I was turning to unleash my stern voice, I realized she had picked up a children's book by JRR Tolkien! 

That's right, the guy who penned epic adventures of hobbits, wizards and one ring to rule them all, both wrote AND illustrated a children's book. The fact that Tolkien wrote this for his own children made the story that much more endearing. 

Mr. Bliss is the story of a man who wears tall, funny hats and while driving around in his new automobile has a series of silly mishaps. The illustrations are sweet and I love that Tolkein's handwritten version is preserved on the right-hand pages with a typeset translation on left. Mr. Bliss is a wordy read, but very fun.

Who knew we could find such a great children's book tucked right in between The Hobbit and Lord of The Rings! My husband and I really enjoyed reading this with Claire. What a great find!

Have any children's books taken you by surprise lately?


2 comments:

  1. I LOVE Mr. Bliss. I have held onto that book since childhood, but forgotten about it. I'll have to pull it out to read to the children when we finish redesigning our library. Almost ready!

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  2. Had no idea this existed! So excited now. Will definitely be buying this and reading to my little guy. Does your blog take part in Amazon Affiliates?

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