A complete collection of all the stories and poems from Winnie the Pooh, The House at Pooh Corner, When we were Very Young, and Now we are Six with the accompanying illustrations from E.H. Shepard.
Alan 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".
Throughout reading this beautiful book, I was also enjoyed reminiscing, thinking back to my childhood, remembering those wonderful, carefree days, when all I was concerned about was which penny sweets I should buy with my pocket money. Those were good days. They were the days when I was first introduced to Winnie The Pooh. Yes, he was referred to as a "silly old bear" countless times by Christopher Robin, but he was also "My, silly old bear" as I own a rather huge, soft toy of Winnie The Pooh, and he takes pride of place, sitting on my bed. The moment I spotted this complete collection, and at the time, it was actually on sale, I just had to have it. No questions asked, I just bought it. This hardback is really something special. It is something I am going to treasure forever, like I will with all my books. Contained in this treasury, are all the stories and adventures of Pooh and his dear friends, plus two volumes of poems. I'll admit, I didn't care for all of the poetry in here, but that is normally the case with me anyway. I much rather preferred the stories. The illustrations are beautiful, and yes, the stories are quite sad when you really sit and think about it, and there is such a lot that children and adults can take away and learn from A.A. Milne's writing, and his quotes, if only we all could see it.
I bet if he had called it Whiney the Pooh it wouldn't be so popular...
Aw look, out of fucking honey again, why does this always happen to meeee.... and my dealer's been arrested....and they stopped my benefits payments again ...
Pooh was getting rather tired of everyone ganging up on him, and he wondered if there was some way he could grab just a couple more votes. He suddenly thought of his old friend Vikki Blows. Now if he inserted the picture here...
"Oh, help!" said Pooh, as a half-dozen angry comments appeared on his screen.
"If only I hadn't--" he said, as a dozen even more angry messages turned up in his inbox.
"You see, what I meant to do," he explained, as several people unliked his review, "what I meant to do--"
"Of course, it was rather--" he admitted, as they all simultaneously unfriended him.
"It all comes, I suppose," he decided, as the system administrators closed down his account, "it all comes of liking votes so much. Oh, help!"
"But who won?" asked Christopher Robin.
"Pooh did, of course!" I replied. "That silly old Heart of Darkness wasn't even in the story, so Pooh won by default."
"I thought so too," said Christopher Robin. "I just wanted to be sure."
It was a most enjoyable picnic. Pooh was just finishing the last bit of honey and licking around the edge of the pot in a Contented Way, when he suddenly realised that he was sitting on something. Something damp and squishy. Something...
"Oh bother!!" said Pooh. "Drat and bother and double bother!!! I've sat on two of Rabbit's Friends and Relations! Oh, what will Christopher Robin say!"
Christopher Robin came over and examined the two former mice.
"Pooh," he said gravely, "these are not Friends and Relations. They are Deadly Killer Mice From Outer Space. You are the Best Bear In The World, and you have Saved The Hundred Acre Wood."
And Pooh had never felt so proud and happy in all his life.
Unashamed to admit I was crying over a fictional donkey toy’s birthday gifts. If you’ve never read these stories cover to cover, do yourself a favor and get yourself as cozy as possible and crack it open. 4.5/5
Full review on youtube and instagram @bookbowlchallenge
Wind in the Willows and Winnie the Pooh, Two in One Back in the 70s when I learned the term “depravation of environment” at college, I had decided that I had had experienced this greatly in my childhood for I had not read many children’s books outside of Disney’s, which, by the way, were nothing to brag about. So I went to Hinks Department store in Berkeley and came home with “The Wind in the Willows.” I was going to collect and read all the best children’s books.
My friend Bob on Goodreads was reading “Winnie the Pooh” so I decided to do the same, but I wanted to start with this one. Well, It was not interesting. Who wants to read about an ugly mole or a river rat? I suppose the author is trying to make kids like them.
Well, first off, the mole in this story comes above ground and loves seeing nature. Well, let’s not begin by lying to kids. Moles rarely come above ground and they can only see black and white, and I don’t mean like, black and white TV. I mean that they see light and dark, as in, dark underground, light above ground. And the more I read, the more bored I became. The End. I put the book down and went on to another, “Winnie the Pooh.”
Now this book was cute. The author is or was, ingenious. I can handle the animals and even like their way of talking, although I admit, the reader of the first book was great, and I felt like I have heard her voice before and saw her as someone’s aunt, an actress with the bulging eyes who always wore her hair in a bun. The narrator of this book, a man, was just as good. And the stories were better; they were fun.
We have a bear named “Pooh,” a bird named “Christopher Robin, an Owl and a piglet. I don’t recall the owl’s name, but maybe the pig was “Piglet.”
While I hate animals talking; this time it didn’t matter. The bear wanted to reach the honey in a tall tree, maybe a pine. Instead of climbing, he floated up there in a balloon. Ah, come on. Bears can climb. Still, it was cute. Then he had to figure out how to get down. That was tricky. Maybe these two books hadn’t been written when I was a kid. I would have loved this one.
Another story has Pooh and Company desiring to find the North Pole, wherever it is. All they knew was that there was a pole marking the spot. They pack provisions, that is, food, and then decide to eat it all at once so they wouldn’t have to carry it. Great idea. But what does the pole at North Pole look like? I can tell you: It is red and white striped, much like a Barber pole. Well, I don’t know if they have barber poles anymore except in old timey movies. I wish that we still had them, but I wish a lot of things that I don’t get. One thing that did disappear, thankfully, is the barber shop quartets. I dislike group singing. Give me a country music duet between a man and a woman and I am all ears. And heaven forbid, do not give me Opera.
So, if you had a bad childhood like I had, you owe it to yourself to begin reading all those books you missed. If anyone thinks I should give “The “Wind in the Willow” another try, let me know. If anyone has any other ideas for me to read so I won’t feel so deprived, let me know. I am all ears.
Hush Hush! Whisper who dares! Christopher Robin is saying his prayers. God bless Mummy. I know that's right. Ooh wasn't it funny at teatime tonight?
There was Tigger and Owl and Kanga and Roo And Jozef Korzeniowski and Piglet and Pooh And wasn't Joe greedy? Straight from the sea He wolfed down the cake and left none for me.
And Owl kept on winking and shaking his head But nodded and beamed when I only took bread Then Joe fell to the floor, clutching his tum And I got so frightened I called for my Mum
But God bless Rabbit and God bless Pooh For whisking the crumbs away and the plate too And Joe looked so ill, and his face was so white And the doctor says that he won't last the night
Oh! Thank you, God, for a lovely day. And what was the other I had to say? I said "Bless Rabbit," so what can it be? Oh! Now I remember it. God bless Me.
Hush Hush! Whisper who dares! Christopher Robin is saying his prayers.
(Note: No animals were injured during the making of this review)
I got to rediscover the 100 Acre Wood with my youngest sister. <3 Here's what we thought...
Our Review We love it! It was the little sister’s first time hearing a lot of the stories. We like the relationship of Pooh and Christopher Robin and all the others and all the others. It was funny how all the animals sign their names because they can’t spell. We’ve played Pooh sticks before. Eeyore was actually really funny like how sarcastic he was. We cried at the end.
My Review To tell the truth, I want to be Winnie-the-Pooh when I grow up. For a bear of very little brain, he’s got a lot of heart. He’s loyal, adorably honest, and a good friend to everyone. In fact, of all the characters, he’s probably the least remarkable or unusual; but his blundering, good-natured contentedness is what makes the story (with a little help from the delightful others, mainly Piglet and Eeyore). As an artist myself, I enjoyed Pooh Bear’s poetry and how he claimed you don’t make poetry it “just comes”. And the literary quality! Oh, I loved every minute. :D
This time around though, it wasn’t just a cute children’s story I was sharing with my youngest sister. It wasn’t just an old classic to make this author’s heart happy. It was a story that reminded me of God’s love for me. As I thought about Pooh’s ordinary-ness and his relationship to Christopher Robin, it was as if I were accidentally reading an allegory. Who does Pooh bring all his troubles to? Who fondly says “silly old bear” then helps him out? Who loves him as a friend?
It may seem like a stretch, but it was often on my mind as the story progressed. Here’s when I started crying…
“What do you like doing best in the world, Pooh?” “Well,” said Pooh, “what I like best—” and then he had to stop and think. Because although Eating Honey was a very good thing to do, there was a moment just before you began to eat it which was better than when you were, but he didn’t know what it was called. And then he thought that being with Christopher Robin was a very good thing to do, and having Piglet near was a very friendly thing to have; and so, when he had thought it all out, he said, “What I like best in the world is Me and Piglet going to see You, and You saying ‘What about a little something?’ and Me saying, ‘Well, I shouldn’t mind a little something, should you, Piglet’, and it being a hummy sort of day outside, and birds singing.”
I think I will definitely have to re-read this book in the near future. And if you haven’t, it’s time you meet my friend Edward Bear. ;)
I will always return to childrens' books. Fills me up with nostalgia of that time when you remember how everything was more simple and how you were carefree and young.
Winne the Pooh is certanly one of the most beloved characters in all of childrens' books and cartoons. I adored him when I was little, I still have a stuffed toy of Eyeore at home(He was my favorite one along with Pooh) but I never got to read a book about him until now and I am glad I finnaly got to it because it was so precious.
There are a lot of deeper analysis circling around the book but for now, I'd like to put that on hold and enjoy the simple and pure feelings that this book has awoken inside of me. Pretty much a 4 or 5 star read, time will tell which one is more fitting to the book for me. And now off I go to some other, bearless book.
"What could be the matter, Pooh," Asked Christopher Robin. "Haven't you counted all the bees in the hive and chased all the clouds in the sky?"
"Don't quote silly Kenny Loggins songs to me. There's a bigger problem."
"Like?..."
"Well. Mr. Robin. I'm supposed to fight Hamlet in the Death match semi-final. I was expecting to go mano a bearo with him. But all of a sudden these other Characters are showing up and messing up my plans. It's a sock puppet orgy."
Robin looked a little embarrassed and wondered if the bear was peeking in his window last night, But he continued on.
"Why, Pooh. You must look at the positive. Don't you have lots of honey."
"Yes"
"And you have your friends."
"Well, yeah but..."
It was that time Tigger, Piglet, and Eyore showed up.
Piglet grinned. "That Tolstoy was a wimp. Never worry about Vegans. One look at me and he crumbled."
Eyore never looked happy but he was a little less unhappy than usual. "I just gave Alex one kick. He'll be singing Beethoven's Ninth one octave higher for a while."
Tigger was the happiest of all. "Wow! That Hamlet was tasty. I haven't had a better meal since my gig with Siegfried and Roy."
"See, Pooh? Everyone needs friend. Now you can rest up for the final."
And Pooh was happy. The Hundred Acre Wood was a nice place again.
For CELEBRITY DEATH MATCH PURPOSES ONLY: The Complete Tales and Poems of Winnie-the-Pooh versus Hamlet
Scene: Christopher Robin is reading a book. He sighs and throws it down irritably.
Pooh: Why Goodfellow Robin, does that book displease you?
Christopher Robin: ‘Tis a tedious tome about a prince Troubled by his father’s death. Unnatural Or so it seemed, and he, umanned by it Feigned a double nature to seek revenge.
Pooh: Most tedious tome indeed, Goodfellow Robin. Mayhap some hunny might sweeten its tone?
Christopher Robin: Alas, my tutor hath required me To learn my lessons from this book. And he Will not brook a change of tune to ‘nuther More pleasant to eyes and ears. Childish things He calls them, ill-befitting one as I Who though but eight be half-adult in years. Most out of tune will I sing, counsels he Unless an adult I learn to be.
Pooh: So he seeks to adulterate you? It seems a most unnatural thing to desire. Surely a child must be but a child, for what else can he be? Ay, there’s the rub, to be a child or not to be. Come sweet Robin, we go to gather honey and thusly feign to be a bee.
Christopher Robin tosses out the book, and goes off to Hundred Acre Wood.
i truly believe that people need to read children's books more often. i read far too many sad and gut-wrenching books in 2021 and frankly, i simply cannot do it anymore. this was so light and refreshing and just JOYFUL. we need more joy in this world, and personally, i find that you can get just that with a friend like winnie-the-pooh.
he reminds me to be simple. to be okay with slow days. to focus on living a simple and quiet life. to simply be.
that is what i want to do in 2022 - learn to be simple. quiet. carefree. kind. to enjoy coffee on a saturday morning, just coffee - nothing else, and remind myself that life is best when you focus on the small. the simple.
I LOVE this book! It's a beautiful full-color collection of stories around Winnie-the-Pooh including additional poems. It's a rather big book, heavy with an additional protective case. Highly recommended not only for Winnie-the-Pooh fans but also for book collectors!
For the Celebrity Death Match Review Tournament, Heart of Darkness (25) versus The Complete Tales and Poems of Winnie-the-Pooh (24)
After the meal was over, we retired on deck, just at that time when evening succumbs to night, and listened while Marlow spoke of the time he abandoned the wholesome adventures of the salt seas for the convoluted mysteries of the river. As he filled his pipe, I noticed the shake of his hands and looked on his countenance anew. I had never beheld such a visage before, nor since - one which had stared into some dark abyss and emerged alive, yet shaken, defeated to the core.
"I embarked at the behest of the Company," he began, "travelling upriver to seek out one in their employ, about whom disturbing reports had begun to be heard. Remember," he said pointedly, fixing us with hollow eyes, "how little explored that region was then. Now, there is, at least, that one map, crudely drawn from memory by that man - Robbins? Robin, maybe? - who spent some years there. We embarked blindly, steaming upriver, the broad expanse at river's mouth giving way inexorably, twisting, narrowing, steadily encroached by trees until we were groping our way through a green, grasping tunnel.
For weeks, we spied no native denizens, only glimpsed the occasional rustling of leaves. Several of our number fell to disease, others to despair, but I pushed on, driven to see this benighted voyage to its conclusion. This obsession allowed for no sense of my own personal danger, until, by my calculations almost at my destination, I rounded a bend in the river and beheld a crude structure stretching from one bank to the other, crowded with those same natives who had previously kept themselves scarce. Grotesque, they were, ears elongated and upright or ponderously drooping. Some appeared to have tails, and all were brandishing sticks, which they flung at us, leaving us scrambling for cover. We passed under the bridge, if such was its engineered intent, yet still they flung their sticks, and we heard their mad howls as we steamed onwards, 'Mine's in the lead!' 'No mine!' 'Mine was first!' "
Marlow paused and took a deep, shuddering breath before continuing. "I arrived at last at my mission's end. I spied a lone native inhabitant sitting on a stump under a tree, eating God-alone-knew-what. I approached, apprehensive, moving slowly up the path. Still he sat, covered in shabby, threadbare fur. As I reached him, he turned his black, glassy, soulless eyes up to me and rumbled,
What can I say about the Pooh-bear and company that has not been said before? Hmm…That they are Republicans? Marxists? Surfing Sufis? That they emanate from Namibia? Tobago? Sri Lanka? Tijuana? Managua? Rotterdam. Possibly the Forest is really Bacteria, Fungi, in a Petri dish? That he and his friends are symbolic for Minimalism, Wind, Time, Flatulence, Touchdowns, Ben and Jerry’s? Maybe Forest Bedouins in search of…Tents? Water? Malbec? Velasquez Paintings? Contact Lenses? And this Honey business. Is it really true that Bears like Honey? Or will they eat anything? Or only honeyed viands. Like Baklava. Or Taiglach? Halvah? Or anything unseasoned and unsweetened that is smaller than they are? I am sure, like ‘The Old Man and the Sea’ and ‘Moby Dick,’ there is much that I am unaware of, that they are intentionally allegorical or metaphorical of something, smaller minds like mine cannot decipher? That in real life they are Students at Eton. Janitors from the Japanese Union on Cleanliness? Antecedents of the Sadducees? Member of the Crimean Crew Team? Tennessean’s with Teeth? Avocado Advocates? The Denver Federal Reserve Bank Members? Knights of Columbus? I don’t know. And the Polite Speak? Not where I live. My suspicion is that they may be anagrams, a code for atomic fusion or an Oppenheimer Secret. Or perhaps if the words are read backwards, it will say “Paul is Dead,” or “Kannabis Kills.” To conclude this review, I understand now why my previous ones are generally one sentence long. Too much of a Bad thing is Worse. Or without the Irony, Less is Less. A delightful story. Four Michelin Stars.
We were washing up after tea. Well to be more precise, the crockery was making its own way to the suds in the sink, flying through the air with just the slightest little nose wiggle from Mary.
Mary: I have a Halloween face for my bout with fatso, do you like it?
Bettie: haha, that'll scare Team Pooh. Seriously though Mary, how DO you rate your chances against Christopher et al, they have a lot going for them in the 'aaaaaaaaw' department.
Mary: I have a little something up my sleeve.
*MP gives that rigid backed and arms folded little smirk*
Bettie: As we are alone, I'll tell you something that has always made me smirk. When I was a little girl the name for down there was always known as a Mary, so when I heard Bert sing Jolly Holiday I couldn't stop laughing.
*MP clears her throat and brushes away some non-existent lint from the front of her jacket. And was that a slight blush?*
Mary: Well my plan is as follows, are you listening!? On my way here I found this:
I've always loved these stories and poems. When I first moved out on my own, I decorated my apartment with pictures and quotes collected from them. I feel like these sweet characters have been with me my whole life, reminding me of how things look "now we are six."
A lovely coincidence happened to me recently while reading these stories again. I was also reading the diary of Helene Berr, a Jewish woman who lived in Paris during the Nazi occupation. She was a student of English literature at the Sorbonne during the war. She describes how she read Winnie the Pooh for the first time, and was telling her friends and family about how marvelous it was, but they couldn't understand why she kept talking about a children's story in this way, as if it held something deep for grownups. She felt shy about talking about it all the time. This is very powerful to me because it shows how art can connect people. I am connected with Helene in a very real way. Her story touches me and I share a connection with her.
I think if we all remembered to look at things with the eyes of a six year old from time to time, we would find a better, simpler way to connect with each other.
There is very little you can say about this classic book which I suspect has not already been said. Yes I thoroughly enjoyed it being brought up on classics stories of Winnie the Pooh (along with Thomas the Tank Engine and a fair few others).
This book is a great collectors hard back edition containing many of the famous stories which Disney turned in to cartoons and now are synonymous with the character.
This is a great book to cleanse your reading pallet especially after being immersed in something a little more challenging or heavy. No it will not test and challenge your reading but it will leave you with a cosy feeling of nostalgia (okay it did for me) and childhood.
Like many books of this type that may not be for all bit I think not only are these stories part of my childhood then also help to remind me that reading has neither boundaries nor requirements if you enjoy a good story it should be available to all
Li este livro para o projeto do DisneyInUs, que consiste em ver um filme da Disney por mês e ler o conto/livro que lhe deu origem. Os filmes são escolhidos à sorte e no mês de Agosto calhou ver o Winnie the Pooh. O livro que deu origem a esse filme foi o Winnie the Pooh de A. A. Milne. Para saberem o que achei do livro e do filme podem dar uma espreitadela ao vídeo que fiz a falar de ambos e a tecer algumas comparações entre os dois: https://youtu.be/61imh8GdS5E
I just saw the movie Christopher Robin, and I'm not exactly sure why but it was a hug for my soul. I'd never read the original Pooh stories before. Turns out they are just delightful and full of quiet, humorous turns of phrase.
A wonderful collection of stories and poems, every single one filled with abundant joy and hilarity. I found every page enticing and witty. This is seriously a wonderful classic that every single person needs in their life. Pooh, Eeyore, Piglet, Roo, Tigger, Kanga, Owl, Rabbit, we’re just wonderful characters. Hilarious and lovable, these characters exhibit great morals such as caring for friends, being brave, etc etc. Anywho, happy reading!
I'm not sure how I made it to 55 years old without reading the Tales of Winnie the Pooh. I never read them to my children or in my childhood. I watched enough Disney movies to have a basic understanding of Pooh and his friends but that is not enough. Reading the stories with the original illustrations was heavenly. Read these to your kids, grandkids, or to yourself. You won't be sorry.
The poems by A.A. Milne read a bit like nursery rhymes and were enjoyable.
I do believe A.A. Milne’s, ‘The Complete Tales & Poems of Winnie-the-Pooh’ is one of the very best children’s classics of all time. Who could not resist wanting to live in the Hundred Acre Wood surrounded by such lovable friends. Pooh’s world is what I wish for each & every child, when they close their eyes and enter the world of dreams 🌙💫🎈
Gorgeous collection of must have Winnie the Pooh stories & poems. Something that children will always treasure I'm sure! Really beautifully presented and just a wonderful addition to our children's library
Llevo enamorada de estos personajes desde pequeña y siempre quise leer todos los cuentos y poemas. No me ha decepcionado, me han parecido cuentos y poemas super tiernos que todo el mundo debería leer al menos una vez. Además esta edición es una joya.