2015 Tolkien Giveaway Winners!

Thank you again to all the prize donors -- without you, this party would be much less fun.

And congratulations to this year's winners!  By now, you should have received an email from me at the address you provided, asking for shipping address info and so on.

Thank you to everyone who participated this year!

US-Only

Grace -- The Hobbit Book Cover mug from Caesar's Forum 

Olivia -- Gandalf Quote bookmark from Elf Script 

Rachelle J. -- Bag End bookmark from The Fig and Thimble 

Jacqueline -- Winner's choice of any ONE Tolkien-related ornament from Holly and Her Hobbies 

Edith -- Arwen Evenstar iron-on patch from Lynellen 

Lois J. -- Winner's choice of any ONE item up to $35 with the "Food, Cheer, and Song" logo from Pie Towel 

Heidi P. -- 1.5-cup pottery bowl "for herbs and stewed rabbit" from The Ring and the Lion 

Carissa -- Winner's choice of ONE Tolkien candle holder from Vieve La Rein


Worldwide

Bzee -- Dragon Charm thong bookmark from Book Niche

Hannah W. -- "Food and cheer and song" print -- digital download from A Crescendence 

Grace -- Winner's choice of any ONE Tolkien-related digital download from Elemental Digital

Patricia T. -- "Not all those who wander are lost" print digital download from Ilze Lucero Designs

Ayesha H. -- Complete set of 22 Hobbit stickers from Lonely Full Moon

Morgan M. -- Hobbit Bingo game -- digital download from Wormwood Apothecary

Jacqueline -- Set of 4 Hobbit movie-related buttons donated by me

See you next year!

Answers to LOTR Characters Word Search

Just in case you got stuck, here's the solution to the word search:

Answers to the Middle Earth Verse Quiz

Here are the answers to the Middle Earth Verse Quiz!  And below are everyone's scores.  Thanks for playing!

1. c.  Woodland Elves

Down the swift dark stream you go

Back to lands you once did know!

Leave the halls and caverns deep,

Leave the northern mountains steep,

Where the forest wide and dim

Stoops in shadow grey and grim!

2. a.  Aragorn

The leaves were long, the grass was green,

     The hemlock-umbels tall and fair,

And in the glade a light was seen

     Of stars in shadow shimmering.

Tinuviel was dancing there

     To music of a pipe unseen,

And light of stars was in her hair,

     And in her raiment glimmering.

3. b.  Boromir

Seek for the Sword that was broken:

     In Imladris it dwells;

There shall be counsels taken

     Stronger than Morgul-spells.

There shall be shown a token

     That Doom is near at hand,

For Isildur’s Bane shall waken,

     And the Halfling forth shall stand.

4. b.  Bilbo

When winter first begins to bite

     and stones crack in the frosty night,

when pools are black and trees are bare,

     ‘tis evil in the Wild to fare.

5. c.  Sam

The finest rockets ever seen:

they burst in stars of blue and green,

or after thunder golden showers

came falling like a rain of flowers.

6. c.  Gandalf

Tall ships and tall kings

     Three times three,

What brought they from the foundered land

     Over the flowing sea?

Seven stars and seven stones

     And one white tree.

7. a.  Eomer

Out of doubt, out of dark to the day’s rising

I came singing in the sun, sword unsheathing.

To hope’s end I rode and to heart’s breaking:

Now for wrath, now for ruin and a red nightfall!

SCORES:

Carissa -- 7
Erudessa Aranduriel -- 7
Olivia -- 7
Edith -- 6
Manette -- 6
Jacqueline -- 4
Joseph -- 3
Morgan Mickschl -- 3
Natalie -- 3
Hannah (Miss Daydreamer) -- 2
Nicrap -- 2

Answers to Middle Earth Locations Quiz

Here are the answers for the locations quiz!  Scores are below.

1.  The Argonath on the Rivier Anduin

2.  The Doors of Durin, entrance to Moria

3.  Rivendell (Imladris)

4.  Minas Tirith in Gondor

5.  Mount Doom in Mordor

6.  Meduseld at Edoras, in Rohan

7.  Bag End in Hobbiton, in the Shire

8.  Dale

9.  Laketown (Esgaroth)

10.  Orthanc at Isengard

I accepted variations on most of those (Orthanc or Isengard, or either Edoras or Meduseld, for instance), but if you just put "Gondor" or "Rohan" or "Mordor," I felt like that was too general and didn't give you the point.  Does that make sense?  

SCORES:

Carissa -- 10
Edith -- 10
Erudessa Aranduriel -- 10
Isaac Benjamin -- 10
Manette -- 10
Reyna Nicole -- 10
Sarah -- 10
Bzee -- 9
Lois J. -- 9
Lynn M. -- 9
Olivia -- 9
Jacqueline -- 8
Morgan Mickschl -- 7

Answers to "Lord of the Rings Food Quiz"

Here are the answers to the food quiz, including which chapter they take place in.  Scores are below!  I thought this was an incredibly hard game, but look!  Quite a few people did very well indeed.

1.  Gimli (The Fellowship of the Ring, "Farewell to Lorien")

2.  Frodo, Sam, Pippin, Gildor, and other High Elves (The Fellowship of the Ring, "Three is Company")

3.  Merry, Pippin, Legolas, Gimli, and Aragorn (The Two Towers, "Flotsam and Jetsam")

4.  Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin (The Fellowship of the Ring, "At the Sign of the Prancing Pony")

5.  Frodo, Sam, and Faramir (The Two Towers, "The Window on the West")

6.  Frodo, Sam, Pippin, and Farmer Maggot, and Mrs. Maggot (The Fellowship of the Ring, "A Short Cut to Mushrooms")

7.  Merry, Pippin, and Treebeard (The Two Towers, "Treebeard")

8.  Pippin and Beregond (The Return of the King, "Minas Tirith")

9.  Frodo, Sam, Pippin, Merry, Tom Bombadil, and Goldberry (The Fellowship of the Ring, "In the House of Tom Bombadil")

10.  Pippin, Gandalf, and Denethor (The Return of the King, "Minas Tirith")

SCORES:  
(Possible High Score of 46)

Edith -- 46
Erudessa Aranduriel -- 46
Lynn M. -- 42
Sarah -- 41
Patricia T. -- 33
Isaac Benjamin -- 26
James the Movie Reviewer -- 19
RM Lutz -- 14
Laura Y. -- 12
Jacqueline -- 5

Don't forget to download your free Hobbit cookbook from the link included in the quiz post if you haven't yet!  Thanks again to Sarah Rees for sharing it with all of us.

Books-Only LOTR Characters Word Search

Our last game this year is a word search, which I created here.  I've gotten all fancy this year and figured out how to share it as a PDF file so you can easily print it.  Just click here or on the image above to access your copy!  You'll be searching for ten characters who didn't make it into Peter Jackson's movies, so I call them "books-only" people.  

Remember, today is the last day you can enter the giveaways!  They end at midnight EST.  I'll be drawing the winners tomorrow, and posting the answers to all the quizzes.  Thanks so much to everyone who has participated -- you've made this my most fun Tolkien Blog Party yet!

Middle Earth Verse Quiz

Time for another quiz!  The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit are filled with poetry and songs.  Here's your chance to see how well you know your Middle Earth Verse!  Below are ten seven selections from those two works, and I've made it easier on you by giving you multiple-choice answers on who recited these.  

Note that this is about who recited these, not who wrote them.  In same cases, I've provided the whole thing here, but sometimes I just took the first stanza or first few lines to save room.

I'll post the answers on Sunday, along with everyone's scores.  Good luck!

1. 

Down the swift dark stream you go

Back to lands you once did know!

Leave the halls and caverns deep,

Leave the northern mountains steep,

Where the forest wide and dim

Stoops in shadow grey and grim!

a.  Lorien Elves
b.  Rivendell Elves
c.  Woodland Elves

2.

The leaves were long, the grass was green,

     The hemlock-umbels tall and fair,

And in the glade a light was seen

     Of stars in shadow shimmering.

Tinuviel was dancing there

     To music of a pipe unseen,

And light of stars was in her hair,

     And in her raiment glimmering.

a.  Aragorn
b.  Bilbo
c.  Elrond

3.

Seek for the Sword that was broken:

     In Imladris it dwells;

There shall be counsels taken

     Stronger than Morgul-spells.

There shall be shown a token

     That Doom is near at hand,

For Isildur’s Bane shall waken,

     And the Halfling forth shall stand.

a.  Aragorn
b.  Boromir
c.  Gandalf

4.

When winter first begins to bite

     and stones crack in the frosty night,

when pools are black and trees are bare,

     ‘tis evil in the Wild to fare.

a.  Aragorn
b.  Bilbo
c.  Elrond

5.

The finest rockets ever seen:

they burst in stars of blue and green,

or after thunder golden showers

came falling like a rain of flowers.

a.  Frodo
b.  Merry
c.  Sam

6. 

Tall ships and tall kings

     Three times three,

What brought they from the foundered land

     Over the flowing sea?

Seven stars and seven stones

     And one white tree.

a.  Aragorn
b.  Boromir
c.  Gandalf

7.

Out of doubt, out of dark to the day’s rising

I came singing in the sun, sword unsheathing.

To hope’s end I rode and to heart’s breaking:

Now for wrath, now for ruin and a red nightfall!

a.  Eomer
b.  Eowyn
c.  Theoden

Consulting the books is cheating!  Just reminding you...

"An Unexpected Cookbook" by Chris-Rachael Oseland

I'm taking a break from the party games to review this splendid cookbook.  You can take this opportunity to "fill in the cracks" with any leftovers from your own Tolkien celebrations.

I bought it a few months ago and have really been enjoying trying out new recipes from it.  That is, after I finished reading the whole thing, cover to cover.  It's a charming read, both humorous and full of interesting historical tidbits.  Oseland clearly knows her Tolkien, and also her classic English cookery.  She strives to provide foods that are mentioned in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, but also that Tolkien would have eaten when he was young, the sort of food he thought Hobbits would have.  She sticks to ingredients Hobbits could have access to, with no New World foods except potatoes, which Tolkien specifically wanted to be part of Shire cooking.

I learned so much from this book!  For instance, it taught me the difference between high tea and low tea, which I've always wondered about.  Oseland says,

"...in Tolkien's day, there was a social distinction between high tea and low tea.  High tea was more like a working man's early supper complete with plenty of cold cuts, hearty breads, and filling chunks of cheese with whatever sweets the family could afford on the side.  Its name came from being eaten around a high table, as often as not, the only table the family owned. 

Low tea, on the other hand, was an aristocratic snack time of dainty pastries and tiny pieces of cake served in the parlor, arranged on a low table -- hence the name" (p. 76).

What do you know?  I always thought high tea was the fancy one!  Now I know better.

Oseland also includes vegan variations of many recipes, and an appendix lists which recipes are or can be changed to be gluten free (18!), Paleo/primal (12!), vegan (21!!), and vegetarian (40!!!).  

So far, I have tried five recipes:  lemon and pepper baked fish (yummy), hot buttered scones (so good, I've made them twice), rosemary skillet peas (Cowboy loved them, I liked them, the kids hated them), mushroom soup (delicious), and lavender and lemon bread (addictive).  I hope that eventually, I will have tried every single recipe in this book, because they all look so tasty!

My one quibble with this cookbook is that there is no alphabetical index of recipes.  I'm going to have to make one myself, I guess.  But it's a small matter -- the wonderful recipes and laughter-inducing text more than make up for it!

Middle Earth Locations Quiz

So this is kind of an easy game this year.  Ten locations as seen in Peter Jackson's six films, and you just have to name them!  Leave your answers in the comments, and I'll post the answers and scores on Monday.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

"Lord of the Rings" Food Quiz and a Gift for You

Tolkien talks about eating and drinking a lot, but he doesn't often describe what's being consumed.  But I found ten times in The Lord of the Rings where he did describe food or drink.  (I'm leaving out The Hobbit so this doesn't get too complicated.)  

Your job is to figure out who was eating or drinking what he described and leave a comment with your guesses.  I've told you in parentheses how many named characters are eating or drinking in the scene.  You get 1 point for each correct character name and 1 bonus point if you can name which of the three books it is in.  Possible high score of 46!  

I'll post the answers and scores on Monday.  And be sure to read all the way to the end for a free gift from one of our giveaway sponsors!


1.  The food was mostly in the form of very thin cakes, made of a meal that was baked a light brown on the outside, and inside was the colour of cream.  (1)

2.  ...there was bread, surpassing the savour of a fair white loaf to one who is starving; and fruits sweet as wildberries and richer than the tended fruits of gardens; he drained a cup that was filled with a fragrant draught, cool as a clear fountain, golden as a summer afternoon. (4)

3.  "...this is first-rate salted pork.  Or I can cut you some rashers of bacon and broil them, if you like.  I am sorry there is no green stuff:  the deliveries have been rather interrupted in the last few days!  I cannot offer you anything to follow but butter and honey for your bread." (5)

4.  There was hot soup, cold meats, a blackberry tart, new loaves, slabs of butter, and half a ripe cheese... (4)

5.  ...to drink pale yellow wine, cool and fragrant, and eat bread and butter, and salted meats, and dried fruits, and good red cheese, with clean hands and clean knives and plates. (3)

6.  There was beer in plenty, and a mighty dish of mushrooms and bacon... (5)

7.  The drink was like water... and yet there was some scent or savour in it which they could not describe:  it was faint, but it reminded them of the smell of a distant wood borne from afar by a cool breeze at night. (3)

8.  They got there bread, and butter, and cheese and apples:  the last of the winter store, wrinkled but sound and sweet; and a leather flagon of new-drawn ale, and wooden platters and cups. (2)

9.  The drink in their drinking-bowls seemed to be clear cold water, yet it went to their hearts like wine and set free their voices. (6)

10.  Then men came bearing a chair and a low stool, and one brought a salver with a silver flagon and cups, and white cakes. (3)


(Yes, this is a hard game.  Tomorrow's will be really easy, though!)

Now for that gift I mentioned.  It's from Sarah Rees, who runs the wonderful Etsy shop The Ring and the Lion and has donated a prize to this party every year.  This year she is also giving away PDF copies of Recipes from the Shire, a collection of recipes she has adapted or created to reflect food you would eat if you were a hobbit.  Click here for the downloadable PDF, which she is giving to this party's participants for free!  Thank you so much, Sarah -- you are an awesome Tolkien fan and lovely friend!

The 2015 Tolkien Party Giveaways!

Here they are! The giveaways! There are two of them, one for US mailing addresses only, and one for everyone all over the world.  Please note that US residents may enter both if they so desire.  

The main way to gain entries is to participate in the party, in other words, to copy the questions I posted (here) and answer them on your own blog, then add your post's link to the Mister Linky widget at the bottom of the official party kick-off post. But that isn't required!  You can also earn entries by participating in blog games throughout the week, and by visiting the Etsy shops that are donating prizes.

You will notice that a lot of the entry options ask you to leave a comment on this post containing certain information, like what your favorite item is from a particular shop. You Do Not Have To Leave Me 90 Comments! One comment with all that info from all those entries is fine. If you have an Etsy or Red Bubble account yourself, actually "favoriting" your favorite item in those donor shops would be really nice of you, as a way to thank them for their generous support of the fun we're having, but it's not required.

I should also note that, with the exception of the Hobbit movie buttons, these are not being sent to the winners by me. They're being sent by the donors. The winners will give me their mailing address and I'll give it to the donors. I promise that I will then discard those addresses, and you'll never get junk mail from me at your mailing address or your email address.  But that's why there is a US-only giveaway -- the donors are footing this bill themselves, out of the goodness of their hearts, and so they get to choose how far they are willing to ship things.

This giveaway runs through the end of Sunday, September 27.  I will draw the winners on Monday, September 28 and post the names of the winners that day, as well a notify them by email.

PLEASE make sure your information for the giveaway widgets includes your current email address so that if you win a prize, you'll get the email informing you that you won! If you don't reply to my email by Monday, Oct. 5, I will choose another winner and award your prize to them instead.

Here we go!

US Only

The Hobbit Book Cover mug from Caesar's Forum

Gandalf Quote bookmark from Elf Script

Bag End bookmark from The Fig and Thimble

Winner's choice of any ONE Tolkien-related ornament 
from Holly and Her Hobbies

Arwen Evenstar iron-on patch from Lynellen

Winner's choice of any ONE item up to $35
with the "Food, Cheer, and Song" logo from Pie Towel

1.5-cup pottery bowl "for herbs and stewed rabbit" from The Ring and the Lion

Winner's choice of ONE Tolkien candle holder from Vieve La Rein

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Worldwide

Dragon Charm thong bookmark from Book Niche

"Food and cheer and song" print -- digital download from A Crescendence 

Winner's choice of any ONE Tolkien-related digital download
from Elemental Digital

"Not all those who wander are lost" print digital download
from Ilze Lucero Designs

Complete set of 22 Hobbit stickers from Lonely Full Moon

Hobbit Bingo game -- digital download from Wormwood Apothecary

Set of 4 Hobbit movie-related buttons donated by me

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Tolkien Blog Party of Special Magnificence -- 2015

Happy birthday, Bilbo and Frodo!  And Happy Tolkien Week to all my fellow fans!

Here are the questions for you to copy onto your own blog or website any time this week.  Answer them there, add a nice button or banner, add your post to the linky thingie here, and then join me in toasting the birthday boys.  Some of these are repeat questions from past parties, and some are new -- if you want to repeat your answers from a previous year for some of them, you may.

1.  What draws you to Tolkien's stories?  (The characters, the quests, the themes, the worlds, etc.)

2.  What was the first Middle Earth book you read and/or movie you saw?  What did you think of it?

3.  Name three of your favorite characters and tell us why you like them.

4.  Are there any secondary characters you think deserve more attention?

5.  What Middle Earth character do you relate to the most?

6.  If you could ask Professor Tolkien one Middle Earth-related question, what would you like to ask him?

7.  Are there any pieces of Middle Earth merchandise you would particularly like to own, but don't?

8.  What battle would you absolutely not want to be part of?

9.  Would you rather eat a meal at Rivendell or Bag End?

10.  List up to ten of your favorite lines/quotes from the books or movies.

Once you're finished, add a link to your post to the linky widget here, and then follow the links to read other people's posts and celebrate with them!  And go enter the giveaways!  There will be more fun all week long, so please check back or follow this blog if you don't want to miss anything.


Feel free to add any of these buttons or banners to your post, and click here to find even more if you want more options.

Please remember to link back here so that your readers can come join the revelry as well!