Winnie the Pooh [Hardcover]

A.A. Milne (Author), Ernest H. Shepard (Illustrator)

Book Description

Release date: September 3, 2009 | Age Range: 3 and up

Happy 80th birthday, Pooh! The Bear of Very Little Brain and his friends from the Hundred Acre Wood have delighted generations of readers since Winnie-the-Pooh was first published in 1926. This deluxe anniversary edition of Winnie-the-Pooh is the perfect way to celebrate the enduring popularity of A. A. Milne's classic work. The interior features the unabridged text and Ernest H. Shepard's charming illustrations in full color on cream-colored stock. It is an impressive package for new fans and collectors both. Three cheers for Pooh!

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 3- Children will be enchanted to meet A.A. Milne's unforgettable bear in this dramatization produced in England. David Benedictus has retained all the best elements of the original text to create a lively romp through the Hundred Acre Woods with Oscar-nominee Judi Dench narrating the way. She is joined by an excellent cast of British actors including Stephen Fry, Jane Horrocks, and Michael Williams. Using a variety of regional accents and vocal qualities, they bring Pooh, Christopher Robin, and all their friends to life. John Gould's music provides a perfect backdrop to Pooh's poetic creations and works as a natural chapter break. Good sound effects allow listeners to imagine themselves treading forest paths with the likes of Piglet and Eeyore. The cassettes are well marked, and the cover art features nicely colored versions of Ernest H. Shephard's original illustrations. The only drawback to the packaging is the clear plastic container which is likely to need replacing. This recording will be useful for introducing primary grade listeners to Pooh, but will also appeal to older children and adults.
Barbara S. Wysocki, Cora J. Belden Library, Rocky Hill, CT
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

Review

A story collection for children by A.A. Milne, published in 1926. Milne wrote the episodic stories of Winnie-the-Pooh and its sequel, The House at Pooh Corner (1928), for his young son Christopher Robin, whose toy animals were the basis for the characters and whose name was used for the young boy who appears in the tales as the benign master of the animals. The main character, Winnie-the-Pooh (sometimes called simply Pooh or Edward Bear), is a good-natured, honey-loving bear who lives in the Forest surrounding the Hundred Acre Wood. His companions are Eeyore, a gloomy gray donkey; Tigger, a frisky tiger; Piglet, a timid pig; Owl, a pontificating bird; the meddlesome Rabbit; and Kanga, an energetic kangaroo whose inquisitive baby, Roo, lives in her pouch. -- The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Age Range: 3 and up
  
• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Dutton Juvenile; Deluxe Edition edition (September 3, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0525477683
• ISBN-13: 978-0525477686
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (144 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #23,639 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #97 in Books > Children's Books > Sports & Games > Activities & Toys

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 43 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars a JOY to hold as well as READ December 22, 2007

By A. Karlsson

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Before I bought this book I had read a few comments complaining about the color of the pages... somewhat yellowish in an almost but not quite parchmenty sort of way. Oh bother, said I, This is coloring my experience of the book. It's been in the back of my mind through every chapter, "Do I like this? Or do I not?" First let me say I love the brushed watercolors over the illustrations... I'm enthralled by the book jacket and the way the window is lit up by the colored version beneath on the actual cover... and the truth is I would have picked a slightly different page color -- but that's besides the point. It's still a lovely edition and my first grader certainly has no complaints.

On top of that, I'd forgotten how wonderful Pooh is. I'm so jaded by the Disney versions that invade every store and home (except mine) that I've spent a lot of time bypassing poor Pooh & Co altogether. We had recently revamped reading aloud here at home because books "written for first graders" were too mindless, books written at the reading level of Pooh today are written for an intellectual level of thought and humor that is beyond the first grader (A. A. Milne had an incredible gift for including all levels of maturity in these works) so our attempts there got tossed aside as my first grader played with his toes, fingers, hair and anything else he could reach because the books just weren't "keeping him." So I tallied up a new library budget and between Amazon and Abe Books did an overhaul... Pooh certainly is one that has hit the spot. The writing is more like how I would speak to my son, but the story is still appealing to the imagination of a first grader, the plot easily managed... so we've started each sit down with a couple of Milne poems and then followed it up with a chapter or two from this and The House At Pooh Corner Deluxe Edition thank the heavens for older books still in print! Do yourSELF the same favor, and while you're at it, toss out any of those Disney Pooh books... this will do so much more for your child's development.

83 of 92 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Somewhat Disappointing July 3, 2007

By A. P.

Format:Hardcover

First of all, as pretty as the die-cut dust jacket is, it's prone to tearing. And if you have young children this is likely to be an issue, which sort of spoils the whole collector's/heirloom edition thing. Second, although I would ordinarily like the cream colored pages and colored illustrations, I don't like how they did it for this edition. Starting in the early '90s Dutton published full-color editions of all four of Milne's books (Winnie-the-Pooh, The House At Pooh Corner, When We Were Very Young, and Now We Are Six) on white paper, and the illustrations blended perfectly with the pages. Unfortunately, for this 80th anniversary edition the publisher seems to have simply reused the color pictures from the 1991 edition, complete with the white backgrounds for each illustration. The effect of this against the cream colored pages of this new book looks a bit sloppy to me, as if someone had cut out the pictures from the 1991 edition and pasted them onto the pages of this new one. The older color editions of Milne's books are still available through Amazon (search for "Winnie-the-Pooh full-color gift edition"), and in my opinion they're nicer than this new edition.

63 of 70 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent reading of the book. March 19, 2004

By drariadne

Format:Audio CD

This is a review of the Jim Broadbent recording of the first Winnie the Pooh book. Although it does seem to include the other recordings I have heard, and I expect his version of The House at Pooh Corner would be quite similar.

Jim Broadbendt does a great job reading us WtP. Anyone who has heard the Charles Kuralt version- this version is 300% better. Jim not only has a sense of of humor, but does a different voice for each character. Two things sorely lacking on the CK versions. Now, for those who have heard the Peter Dennis recordings, well, those are better, there's no getting around that. Peter's piglet cannot be topped and he also does the most wonderful versions of the songs I have ever heard. But alas, those tapes are no longer available and Dennis never recorded the entire book(s). So, I figure Jim is still deserving of the 5 stars.

Broadbent does a wonderful job of bringing out the humor in the stories, something which the Kuralt recordings do not. His Eeyore does sound a bit like Ringo Starr- but, that works rather well now, doesn't it? Pooh, well, he's a bit on the not-so-bright side, but he's cheerful and trustworthy. Piglet does sound timid and sweet. Rabbit, well, he could be a bit more edgey in these. Jim has made Rabbit a bit more sympthetic a character than I envision him. Still, the subtle nuances are not lost, even on children. And, it is nice to have an unabridged version of the story available.

My children just love these cds. Which is nice. It's always good to have something that the entire family enjoys and is still a worthwhile use of time. Especialy something that one can listen to in the car that doesn't bore the pants off the driver and yet amuses the children enough to keep them quiet. I highly recommend this version for anyone who would like to expose their child to the original Pooh stories.