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Mr. Pim
A novelized version of Milne's famous play, MR. PIM PASSES BY, adapted by the author.
315 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1919
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About the author
A.A. Milne
1,898 books3,758 followersAlan Alexander Milne (pronounced /ˈmɪln/) was an English author, best known for his books about the teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh and for various children's poems.
A. A. Milne was born in Kilburn, London, to parents Vince Milne and Sarah Marie Milne (née Heginbotham) and grew up at Henley House School, 6/7 Mortimer Road (now Crescent), Kilburn, a small public school run by his father. One of his teachers was H. G. Wells who taught there in 1889–90. Milne attended Westminster School and Trinity College, Cambridge, where he studied on a mathematics scholarship. While there, he edited and wrote for Granta, a student magazine. He collaborated with his brother Kenneth and their articles appeared over the initials AKM. Milne's work came to the attention of the leading British humour magazine Punch, where Milne was to become a contributor and later an assistant editor.
Milne joined the British Army in World War I and served as an officer in the Royal Warwickshire Regiment and later, after a debilitating illness, the Royal Corps of Signals. He was discharged on February 14, 1919.
After the war, he wrote a denunciation of war titled Peace with Honour (1934), which he retracted somewhat with 1940's War with Honour. During World War II, Milne was one of the most prominent critics of English writer P. G. Wodehouse, who was captured at his country home in France by the Nazis and imprisoned for a year. Wodehouse made radio broadcasts about his internment, which were broadcast from Berlin. Although the light-hearted broadcasts made fun of the Germans, Milne accused Wodehouse of committing an act of near treason by cooperating with his country's enemy. Wodehouse got some revenge on his former friend by creating fatuous parodies of the Christopher Robin poems in some of his later stories, and claiming that Milne "was probably jealous of all other writers.... But I loved his stuff."
He married Dorothy "Daphne" de Sélincourt in 1913, and their only son, Christopher Robin Milne, was born in 1920. In 1925, A. A. Milne bought a country home, Cotchford Farm, in Hartfield, East Sussex. During World War II, A. A. Milne was Captain of the Home Guard in Hartfield & Forest Row, insisting on being plain 'Mr. Milne' to the members of his platoon. He retired to the farm after a stroke and brain surgery in 1952 left him an invalid and by August 1953 "he seemed very old and disenchanted".
He was 74 years old when he passed away in 1956.
A. A. Milne was born in Kilburn, London, to parents Vince Milne and Sarah Marie Milne (née Heginbotham) and grew up at Henley House School, 6/7 Mortimer Road (now Crescent), Kilburn, a small public school run by his father. One of his teachers was H. G. Wells who taught there in 1889–90. Milne attended Westminster School and Trinity College, Cambridge, where he studied on a mathematics scholarship. While there, he edited and wrote for Granta, a student magazine. He collaborated with his brother Kenneth and their articles appeared over the initials AKM. Milne's work came to the attention of the leading British humour magazine Punch, where Milne was to become a contributor and later an assistant editor.
Milne joined the British Army in World War I and served as an officer in the Royal Warwickshire Regiment and later, after a debilitating illness, the Royal Corps of Signals. He was discharged on February 14, 1919.
After the war, he wrote a denunciation of war titled Peace with Honour (1934), which he retracted somewhat with 1940's War with Honour. During World War II, Milne was one of the most prominent critics of English writer P. G. Wodehouse, who was captured at his country home in France by the Nazis and imprisoned for a year. Wodehouse made radio broadcasts about his internment, which were broadcast from Berlin. Although the light-hearted broadcasts made fun of the Germans, Milne accused Wodehouse of committing an act of near treason by cooperating with his country's enemy. Wodehouse got some revenge on his former friend by creating fatuous parodies of the Christopher Robin poems in some of his later stories, and claiming that Milne "was probably jealous of all other writers.... But I loved his stuff."
He married Dorothy "Daphne" de Sélincourt in 1913, and their only son, Christopher Robin Milne, was born in 1920. In 1925, A. A. Milne bought a country home, Cotchford Farm, in Hartfield, East Sussex. During World War II, A. A. Milne was Captain of the Home Guard in Hartfield & Forest Row, insisting on being plain 'Mr. Milne' to the members of his platoon. He retired to the farm after a stroke and brain surgery in 1952 left him an invalid and by August 1953 "he seemed very old and disenchanted".
He was 74 years old when he passed away in 1956.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
March 28, 2021
Light comedy from the 1920's
George Madden is a fine, upstanding member of the Buckinghamshire county set, living with his wife, a paragon who he is very much in love with and his flighty ward Dinah, who wants to marry an artist. When Mr Pim calls in to Marden house to see George, he tells a story about a man who he met on the boat coming over from Australia; the man sounds suspiciously like Olivia's first husband who she believed to be dead, throwing George into a moral quandary.
I do think it's surprising and a bit of a shame that A.A. Milne is only really well known for his Winnie-the-Pooh books. His other ones are also a treat.
George Madden is a fine, upstanding member of the Buckinghamshire county set, living with his wife, a paragon who he is very much in love with and his flighty ward Dinah, who wants to marry an artist. When Mr Pim calls in to Marden house to see George, he tells a story about a man who he met on the boat coming over from Australia; the man sounds suspiciously like Olivia's first husband who she believed to be dead, throwing George into a moral quandary.
I do think it's surprising and a bit of a shame that A.A. Milne is only really well known for his Winnie-the-Pooh books. His other ones are also a treat.
December 11, 2018
I happened upon this book purely by accident. I love to walk/stroll down the aisles at my library looking for "old" books. You can tell them apart from the "new" books. Older books have old fashioned, cellophane covers on them with pretty designs or no covers at all. Their catalog number is written in a white pen as opposed to the typed labels. This is how I found this gem of a book!
Written by the same author who penned "Winnie the Pooh" in 1926, A. A. Miline, this book, "Mr. Pim Passes By", written in 1919, was originally a play, then a book, later a movie. The movie, described as "a slapstick comedy", is right on the mark!
This book was so entertainingly funny! The characters were "characters"! Every single one of them. Definitely had me laughing out loud!
Five BIG ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read for anyone/everyone who needs a good laugh and a smile! 🤣
Written by the same author who penned "Winnie the Pooh" in 1926, A. A. Miline, this book, "Mr. Pim Passes By", written in 1919, was originally a play, then a book, later a movie. The movie, described as "a slapstick comedy", is right on the mark!
This book was so entertainingly funny! The characters were "characters"! Every single one of them. Definitely had me laughing out loud!
Five BIG ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read for anyone/everyone who needs a good laugh and a smile! 🤣
June 3, 2019
This book found me on a day where I was feeling pretty down and stressed.
I had been meaning to read this and the two other A.A. Milne books I own for a while and the blurb on this really drew me in.
It was just what I needed! It made me smile and really cheered me up for the day.
A warm, funny, comedy of manners with a happy ending.
I had been meaning to read this and the two other A.A. Milne books I own for a while and the blurb on this really drew me in.
It was just what I needed! It made me smile and really cheered me up for the day.
A warm, funny, comedy of manners with a happy ending.
December 10, 2024
A ditty but utterly delightful comedy of social mores centring on an afternoon's unexpected visit disrupting two couples: one young, silly and in the making and one a little more prim, proper and somewhat more established but love, manners and British propriety conquers all. A read began sometime in the summer and finished on the train with a few wry smiles, warm chuckles. A 3.5 stars from the better known author of Winnie the Pooh.
November 20, 2014
A very entertaining play. It's easy to imagine it played out on stage and the plot is rather surprising. I would certainly recommend reading it as I enjoyed it very much.
November 13, 2016
Love comedy and Milnes
The comedy in three acts was brilliant, a story in fun yet could happen in reality even in our times.
The comedy in three acts was brilliant, a story in fun yet could happen in reality even in our times.
August 7, 2016
A charming little play. Just what you'd expect from the author of Winnie the Pooh.
March 28, 2017
I really enjoyed reading this play, as it made me smile and feel fuzzy just by virtue of it being so British. I could easily imagine the characters and the dialogue was very well-written.
January 9, 2020
I read this from the project Gutenberg copy, so it was like reading a play script. Fun!
June 11, 2020
Funny and light and very old fashioned comedy, with a little romance thrown in.
August 27, 2022
A charming comedy of manners!
October 15, 2023
"Mr. Pim Passes By" by A.A. Milne is a charming and light-hearted comedy that offers a delightful escape into the world of English manners and social nuances. The story revolves around unexpected visitors and their impact on the lives of a married couple. Milne's witty dialogue and clever character interactions make for an entertaining read. While the plot is simple, the humor and wit shine through, and the characters are endearing. It's a quick, enjoyable read, perfect for those seeking a touch of humor and British eccentricity in their literature. A classic that stands the test of time.
July 25, 2020
An engaging book, its charm brought about not by the story itself, but how the story is told. I was completely unfamiliar with the Milne play, MR PIM PASES BY (famous though it is), and so I can't tell how this novelized version differs from it. There is certainly a good deal of narrative that couldn't be in a play, and the scenes don't unfold strictly chronologically, but I assume the basic storyline and much of the dialogue is directly from the stage version.
January 25, 2011
It has been a long time since I've read many plays, but I picked this up because it was written by Milne, better known for his Winnie the Pooh stories. It was somewhat amusing; I could picture Castle Craig Players putting it on. I think it was written about 1920.
February 24, 2014
This book made me really, really miss my high-school drama days. I want to put on a play. We can do this one! It has the most comprehensive stage directions I've ever seen, and the characters are utterly endearing. Who's with me?
August 12, 2010
Charming little book.
October 30, 2011
Silly. Not wild about comedy that relies on people manipulating each other passive aggressively for its humor. I can see where it was probably a typical drawing-room comedy of its time though.
June 26, 2015
Wow.
Why is this play not performed as much? Such good dialogue, such a good plot (goes from comic to tragic to marriage resolution.
Why is this play not performed as much? Such good dialogue, such a good plot (goes from comic to tragic to marriage resolution.
September 18, 2013
Wonderfully witty, good story with some depth.
April 15, 2017
A family of credulous idiots believe the random anecdote of a perfect stranger without bothering to check the truth of it. Kerfuffle ensues. I expect the whole is meant to come across as farcical and frothy but in many places it's just silly. There is an underlying cleverness, however, and that's dragging it up from one star for me, but mostly I was just glad it was over quickly.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews