Customer Reviews

Now We Are Six

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Everyone who has read Milne's original Pooh books knows that he can write a good hum, after all Pooh gives us several.

In this volume (and the earlier "When We Were Very Young") Milne's voice comes through more clearly, unmoderated by writing for his bear of little brain. He gives us a small volume full of poems that should surely last as well as his prose. While some of them are strongly flavoured by the time and place where he wrote them others are more universal in their subject and tone.

As you read this volume you will almost certainly come across something you recognise, if it isn't the line "James James Morrison Morrison Weatherby George Dupree" that catches your memory then it might be "Just a bit of butter for the royal slice of bread." If not, then you will find many of them sticking when you have read them to a child.

I have seen editions of this volume without the illustrations by E.H. Shepard, it would seem to me a travesty to separate the two. Shepard has always been the traditional illustrator of Milne and the pen and ink drawings he made for the first edition of this book, retained in this (and most) paperback edition are marvellous - well executed and suiting the style and subject of the poems.

It is hard to overstate the joy my daughter and I have had from this volume. My mother read many of these poems to me thirty five (and more) years ago, over the past few years my daughter and I have discovered our own favourites. Now she is old enough that she reads them herself.

The poems are indeed a little sentimental, a little whimsical and seem to come from a softer, more pastoral childhood than has perhaps existed for many years. I don't see this as a problem for the poetry, after all, if we cannot recreate a gentler time for our children perhaps we can soften the one we can provide with the tiny charming tales in these poems.

I would recommend this book to anyone with a small child. I give it only four stars as the poems are mixed in quality.

I'm buying this book now for my daughter. I still remember many of the poems from when I was growing up, and I hear my Mom's voice as I read them.

There is nothing truly profound you can say about a book like this, or, for that matter, its predecessor WHEN WE WERE VERY YOUNG. These are simply short and very sweet books of children's poetry. They can be read to a child (perhaps one of the best introductions to poetry a youngster could receive) or read by an adult who is mature enough to truly apprectiate classic children's literature and poetry.

A.A. Milne was a literary genius - that much is certain. If he wanted to write books consisting of classic and intellectual poetry, he certainly could have and would have. But his aims were much higher than that. He wanted to reach out to children and adults everywhere. He wanted to show that childhood innocence never has to end (see the last few lines of the last chapter of THE HOUSE AT POOH CORNER). And unlike so many writers who (perhaps with the best of intentions) attempt this amazing feat, Milne succeeded.

A.A. Milne's second collection of poems has a different tone than his first; a little sly, a tad more mature, as befits little bookworms that have graduated from "When We Were Very Young". Now Milne gives us the delightfully funny "Sneezles" (Christopher Robin had wheezles and sneezles, they bundled him into his bed), and the hilarious good girl Jane ("Well, what did they think that I went there to do? And why would I want to be bad at the zoo? And would I be likely to say if I had?") accompanied by Ernest Shepard's great pen and ink drawings (check out his picture of Jane trying to climb into the bears' cage in the zoo). Kids of all ages (and yes, that includes old coots over 30 like you and me) love reading and listening to the poems in this book. Highly recommended.

We have the complete works of Milne. My 5 year old son and I absolutely LOVE Pooh collections. We enjoy our special time together reading Now We Are Six...and this book is not just to be enjoyed by a child...but for all of us who are still kids at heart and enjoy real literature of substance. Silly, heartwarming, fun and clever are just a few words I would use to describe this book! Disney's version of Pooh (books, movies, cartoons) is far inferior!

And as I sign off, I will leave you with one of my favorite poems from this book. Found on page 1 in my handed lovingly down 1950 edition. And after reading the poem, I ask you...who doesn't still feel like this from time to time? 6 or 106...this is a timeless classic!

Solitude

I have a house where I go
When there's too many people,
I have a house where I go
Where no one can be;
I have a house where I go
Where nobody ever says "no";
Where no one says anything-so
There is no one but me.

(AA Milne page 1 of Now We Are Six)

Getting to play great-uncle, I can stock my niece's shelves with the right books. I grew up with and nearly wore out Now We Are Six. It's great from several aspects.

Most obviously, this is the same style and size I had, without any artificial graphics or other changes. The simple illustrations and words are plenty.

It is appropriate for parents (and uncles) to read to much younger kids as well. It's alternately amusing and touching poems tell stories, have an occasional object lesson, use real words the child will find useful later and is not sing-song as so many are. That last is key because reading the same book 143 times can be terrifically annoying or boring otherwise.

Certainly don't wait until a child is six to read this to and with him or her.

The other reviews say plenty about the content...which is great. There are some great insights and reminders about childhood in here that have helped me see things from my childrens' perspective much more frequently. I have a paperback copy with the original EH Shephard illustrations...and it is literally falling apart. My four year old was very eager to buy a new one and made sure that I understood that she wanted the same pictures in it. We read poems out of this book several times a week...take it in the car with us and my daughters remind me to read them a poem while we wait in the car for any reason. They ask for poems at lunch time. We finish one, they always ask for another one. I'm glad I found it. I wouldn't have sought it out on my own...it was at a library book sale and since I know my girls like Pooh, I thought I'd get it...Pooh was ruined for me by Disney until I read this book...and now I'm looking for the real Pooh books. I will buy them all hardback and probably new so that they will last a long, long time. This is a book worth having, and keeping.

This edition of a timeless classic is wonderful. All illustrations are in full color. I had never seen a version in color and I do not know if they are original but they do look very nice. The dust jacket is cleverly die cut and laminated on the inside for durability. All the magic is still there, presented beautifully.

I'm very happy with this new Deluxe Edition. Our granddaughter turns 6 in August, so that's where the book: "Now We Are Six" will go to.
Also the delivery was vere fast. Thanks.

A.A.Milne's "Now We are Six" is a must for all chldren. Read it over and over, and son the child will learn favorite poems and can look at the words and read along. It is good that children learn the Real Pool characters rather than Disney's idea.