“Moreover it is doom that the Firstborn shall come in the darkness, and shall look first upon the stars... Long they dwelt in their first home by the water under stars, and they walked the Earth in wonder." - Of the Coming of the Elves and the Captivity of Melkor
"...and Yavanna returned to Aulë; and he was in his smithy, pouring molten metal into a mould. 'Eru is bountiful,' she said. 'Now let thy children beware! For there shall walk a power in the forests whose wrath they will arouse at their peril.' 'Nonetheless they will have need of wood,' said Aulë, and he went on with his smith-work. “ - Of Aulë and Yavanna
“But to the Atani I will give a new gift.’ Therefore he willed that the hearts of Men should seek beyond the world and should find no rest therein; but they should have a virtue to shape their life, amid the powers and chances of the world, beyond the Music of the Ainur, which is as fate to all things else;” - Of the Beginning of Days
Valaquenta begins with a short summary of Ainulindalë. It then goes on to introduce the Lords and the Queens of the Valar, giving a bit of background information on each of them and explaining how they relate to one another.
Next, we are introduced to the Maiar, spirits similar to the Valar but of a less degree. The last section is titled 'Of the Enemies' and explains a bit more about the cruelty of Melkor as well as introducing his servant Sauron.
It is in this chapter that we see the creation of the world through the music of Eru Ilúvatar and the Ainur, the beginning of the unrest of Melkor, the descent of the Valar into the world, and the first battle of the Valar against Melkor.
The Waldman letter is a letter written to Milton Waldman, an editor and advisor to publishers in London, who had expressed and interest in The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion after the widespread success of The Hobbit. For context, The Hobbit was published in 1937, this letter was written in 1951, and The Fellowship of the Ring would not be published until 1954.
Hello, friends! The Tea with Tolkien community is excited to announce our next book club: a read-along of The Silmarillion, beginning in January! You can find the schedule below.
There are many ways to participate in this free, virtual Book Club! The easiest way to join is signing up with your email address — from there we’ll send a link to our private discord server directly to your inbox, and you’ll also receive weekly emails once the book club begins. I’ll be posting about the book club on social media so if you’d like to join the discussions on twitter or Instagram, look for the hashtag #teawithtolkienbookclub.
Friday’s dinner included: “Yavanna’s Garden Salad” (similar to this recipe), a meat and cheese board, pumpkin muffins, dinner rolls + honey butter, “man flesh” (beef jerky), Lembas, mini shepherd’s pies, stuffed mushrooms, and an autumnal veggie soup (not pictured). And cake!
While this year’s Hobbit Party may have been a bit different than in years passed, it was truly the highlight of our whole year. I’m so thankful for the friends who were able to visit throughout our party weekend, especially those who helped me pull everything together and keep everything running smoothly!
When we moved into our home last year, this pueblo-style playhouse had been built into the basement by the previous owners. I immediately knew I wanted to turn it into a Hobbit Hole for our children (and let’s be honest, myself), but it took me a while to come up with a good plan and find the time to get started.
This little hobbit party game was inspired by Bilbo Baggins’ famous question from Riddles in the Dark: “What have I got in my pocket?” Of course, while this was not a true riddle and Bilbo certainly hadn’t meant it to be one, it won the game for him and he escaped with Gollum’s ring. For this fun little game, participants will take turns choosing a “pocket” box — whoever finds the pocket containing Gollum’s ring first wins!
While The Silmarillion, The Hobbit, and The Lord of the Rings stand out as his most influential works, there is so much more to Tolkien than hobbits, dwarves, and elves! His lesser-known shorter works, including letters, essays, poetry, and short stories, offer a unique glimpse into the way he understood myth, faith, literature, and life. Many of these can be read over the course of an afternoon, and all are thoroughly delightful. If you’re interested in reading more by Tolkien, but don’t have the time to settle into The Lord of the Rings — consider picking up one of these.
