{"id":1238,"date":"2009-02-20T00:04:39","date_gmt":"2009-02-20T04:04:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mookseandgripes.com\/reviews\/?p=1238"},"modified":"2017-11-03T15:17:37","modified_gmt":"2017-11-03T19:17:37","slug":"aa-milnes-the-complete-tales-of-winnie-the-pooh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mookseandgripes.com\/reviews\/2009\/02\/20\/aa-milnes-the-complete-tales-of-winnie-the-pooh\/","title":{"rendered":"A.A. Milne: The Complete Tales of Winnie-the-Pooh<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The Complete Tales of Winnie-the-Pooh<\/strong><\/em> <\/span>
\nby A.A. Milne (1926 & 1928) <\/span>
\nDutton (1994) <\/span>
\n344 pp<\/span><\/p>\n

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\"winnie-the-pooh\"<\/p>\n

[fusion_dropcap boxed=”no” boxed_radius=”” class=”” id=”” color=”#003366″]N[\/fusion_dropcap]ever one to shirk a worthy challenge, I decided to venture outside the usual scope of this blog and review a children’s book, one whose characters are so ubiquitous that it might seem a bit redundant — but I certainly don’t believe that.\u00a0The other day Kevin from Canada had an interesting post <\/a>on creating a reading legacy.\u00a0There Kevin puts two dovegreyreader<\/a> posts together: one on the inner child and one on the outer beauty of books.\u00a0It came up that I’m a big fan of Winnie-the-Pooh and that Kevin has some story from the sixties that involves Pooh (he’s promised to share).\u00a0Biased since Pooh himself is Canadian (I learned!) Kevin suggested I review Winnie-the-Pooh here.\u00a0Happily.<\/p>\n

After our marriage but some time before our first son was born, my wife gifted me A.A. Milne’s The Complete Tales of Winnie-the-Pooh<\/em>,\u00a0which compiles the\u00a0two Winnie-the-Pooh books: Winnie-the-Pooh<\/em> (1926) and The House at Pooh Corner<\/em> (1928).<\/p>\n

This particular edition is beatiful.\u00a0Hardcover, complete with a ribbon marker, full color original illustrations by Ernest H. Shepard (which is a must, as fun as Disney’s permutations are) —\u00a0it really is a great addition to a home library, espeically one intended to be passed on to the next generation.<\/p>\n

In 2006, when Winnie-the-Pooh turned 80, each book was published in another beautiful edition to celebrate, tempting my wife and I to invest more money not just in our library but in Winnie-the-Pooh.\u00a0These, also hardback, sport a die-cut window in the dust jacket, revealing the art on the cover.<\/p>\n

\"winnie-the-pooh-80\"<\/p>\n

I don’t have these two editions\u00a0yet<\/em>, but we have two sons . . . why not two editions of Winnie-the-Pooh?\u00a0And what am I going to do when they leave?\u00a0Maybe a beautiful 100 year edition will be available then.<\/p>\n

Though after they’ve grown up, after they\u00a0leave, I might never be able to read the last few stories again.\u00a0It’s hard enough even while they’re young.<\/p>\n

Both Winnie-the-Pooh<\/em> and The House at Pooh Corner <\/em>contain ten stories (perfect for one-a-night or even one-half-a-night routines). Included are some\u00a0classics, made popular by Disney: “In Which<\/em> Pooh Goes Visiting and Gets Into a Tight Place,” “In Which<\/em> Eeyore Loses a Tail and Pooh Finds One,” “In Which<\/em> A House Is Built at Pooh Corner for Eeyore,” and my favorite “In Which <\/em>Christopher Robin and Pooh Come to an Enchanted Place, and We Leave Them There.”<\/p>\n

Even though these are children’s stories, they\u00a0fit all of my criteria for any great book.\u00a0First, I am fascinated by style.\u00a0 As a child, I didn’t pay attention to Milne’s technique, but reading it again recently I have several times reread sentences.\u00a0Milne knew what he was doing, and he\u00a0obviously\u00a0took this work very seriously, knowing that even though it was ostensibly\u00a0for children it could also communicate to adults in profound ways.\u00a0To do this, Milne adopts a very simple-sounding prose style, but digging into the construction, Milne’s diction and syntax are far from natural.\u00a0Yet it flows, and it is perfect.\u00a0Furthermore, Milne somehow creates a range of distinct voices for all of the characters, and reading them interact with each other is much of the fun.\u00a0For example, Winnie-the-Pooh’s roundabout, humble, self-doubting without being\u00a0self-depracating\u00a0way of speaking is inimitable.\u00a0We get a sense of this in the introductory paragraph:<\/p>\n

Here is Edward Bear, coming downstairs now, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head, behind Christopher Robin.\u00a0It is, as far as he knows, the only way of coming downstairs, but sometimes he feels that there really is another way, if only he could stop bumping for a moment and think of it.\u00a0And then he feels that perhaps there isn’t.\u00a0Anyhow, here he is at the bottom, and ready to be introduced to you.\u00a0Winnie-the-Pooh.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

As I’m sure you know, Milne’s characters are each unique and skillfully drawn out over the short stories as they interact.\u00a0My favorite relationship in the book, the one\u00a0that resonated\u00a0the most, is between Pooh and Piglet.\u00a0Through these two characters Milne shows what it is like to truly love someone exactly as they are.\u00a0There is confidence in the relationship and joy in mere presence, and in simple sentences Milne portrays a full set of emotions I’ve never been able to put into words.<\/p>\n

“I wonder what Piglet is doing,” thought Pooh.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I wish I were there to be doing it, too.”<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

As I said, Milne’s sense for sentence construction is superb and on display here.\u00a0 He could have said — and I think most would — “I wish I were there doing it too.”\u00a0But the inclusion of “to be” changes the feel, makes Pooh a bit more unique\u00a0while showing his care for Piglet.\u00a0Furthermore, read out loud, it is very pleasant in its rhythm and rhyme.\u00a0It manages, while skirting the line\u00a0of formal English, to come off child-like but not childish.\u00a0I’m not sure I’m capable of explaining why, but that’s how it feels to me.<\/p>\n

Also, a book, to be great, has to touch on larger themes without shoving them in your face as is\u00a0all too common in contemporary fiction.\u00a0Milne succeeds here too.\u00a0In Pooh, as in life, things like friendship, life, death, etc.,\u00a0are omnipresent, yet\u00a0somewhat just outside our thoughts most of the time.\u00a0Without knowing what’s happening, we feel them, and\u00a0they\u00a0find a way to influence the quotidian.\u00a0Simple events, while allowed to remain simple, represent some of the most profound elements of life.\u00a0This is particularly present as Christopher Robin slowly ceases to be a strong presence in the narrative.\u00a0One day, there’s a sign on Christopher Robin’s door saying he’s gone to school, be back soon.\u00a0Innocent at first, but we all know where this is going (and, dear me, it’s so painful — yet beautiful).<\/p>\n

Then, suddenly again, Christopher Robin, who was still looking at the world, with his chin in his hands, called out “Pooh!”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Yes?” said Pooh.<\/span><\/p>\n

“When I’m — when — Pooh!”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Yes, Christopher Robin?”<\/span><\/p>\n

“I’m not going to do Nothing any more.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Never again?”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Well, not so much.\u00a0They don’t let you.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Pooh waited for him to go on, but he was silent again.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Yes, Christopher Robin?” said Pooh helpfully.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Pooh, when I’m — you<\/em> know — when I’m not <\/em>doing Nothing, will you come up here sometimes?”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Just Me?”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Yes, Pooh.”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Will you be here too?”<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

To continue on DGR and KFC’s ideas then, here is my contribution to bringing out the inner child.\u00a0Turns out it’s much more than that.<\/p>\n

\"pooh-and-piglet\"<\/p>\n

Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind.\u00a0“Pooh,” he whispered.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Yes, Piglet?”<\/span><\/p>\n

“Nothing,” said Piglet, taking Pooh’s paw, “I just wanted to be sure of you.”<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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