Ecstatic Beyond All Measure.

My dad has just returned from the UK; huzzah! Before he left, I asked him to go and look for a book for me.

It's a sketchbook by Alan Lee - the one that contains all his conceptual drawings used in the Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

Now here's the catch: this book is almost sold-out the world over. It's almost impossible to find. Exceedingly rare, if you will.

I was hoping I would pose a chance of acquiring the book from London - I mean London's all about books, right?

My mum told me my dad went from huge bookstores such as Foyles to small, dusty antique libraries.

When he got back, sitting in his huge luggage bag, was the book lying among his shirts. He got me a shirt too, a long-sleeved blue striped one. I thought it was to be meant for business involving work, but he insisted I wear it to outings and parties and the such. Thanks, dad. (:

Well anyway. Apparently, this is the only copy in the whole of London - whole, mind you.

As soon as I flipped open the hard cover, I immediately fell in love with the book. Alan Lee's artwork has a certain beauty and lyricism about it. His art has definitely captured and evoked the feeling I think J.R.R Tolkien had hoped to capture with his books.

If you remember watching the credits of The Return of King, you can see some of his art. His drawings of each of the actors were displayed as their names flashed across the screen. Some of his conceptual ones were shown as well.

















_{It's for you.}