I read Winnie the Pooh as a child and my daughter now has her own copy. I wasn’t sure whether she would be too young for the stories but she loves them and we often read several in one sitting.
The ten individual stories include an expedition to the North Pole, Eeyore’s birthday, Christopher Robin holding a party in Pooh’s honour after he daringly helps to rescue Piglet from his flooded house, Pooh and Piglet looking for a Heffalump and Pooh getting stuck in Rabbit’s house after eating too much honey.
Winnie the Pooh and Piglet are such an amusing double act although some of their conversations can be quite difficult to keep up with! My daughter doesn’t understand all of the humour or a lot of Owl’s vocabulary (which makes me laugh especially in the story where Piglet is rescued from the flood). Eeyore’s rambling, philosophical thoughts are also quite difficult for her to understand but she likes the story about Eeyore losing his tail. Her favourite story is when Piglet and Pooh try to catch a Woozle and she was quite disappointed when Pooh and Piglet didn’t meet a Heffalump. She loves the made up words and we also find Pooh’s songs funny.
Along with Pooh and Piglet we are introduced to Christopher Robin, Eeyore the donkey, Owl, Rabbit (and her numerous relatives!), Kanga and baby Roo. My daughter asked where Tigger was but he is first introduced in House at Pooh Corner. The characters are all beautifully illustrated by Ernest Shepherd and my daughter pores over the colourful pictures as I read.
Winnie the Pooh is, as the cover of the book says, ‘The Bear For All Ages’. Children enjoy the gentleness of the stories while adults appreciate the humour. We’ll be looking out for a copy of The House at Pooh Corner next so that we can continue reading about the adventures of Pooh and his friends in Hundred Acre Wood.
Age Range: 5+
Author: Alan Alexander Milne / Illustrator: Ernest Shepherd
Winnie the Pooh is the first book that we have read as part of the 2015 Classics Challenge.
I also read The Milly Molly Mandy Storybook. I love the stories of Milly Molly Mandy’s idyllic life in a thatched cottage with her extended family. It brings back memories of the days when shops shut for lunch, children spent hours outdoors and many people didn’t have a phone or a television. I read a couple of stories to my daughter but she didn’t want to read further. I think that my enjoyment came from my childhood memories, she wasn’t so enthralled by Milly Molly Mandy’s adventures.
Author: Joyce Lankaster Brisley / Illustrator: Clara Vulliamy
Do you have a favourite childhood classic storybook? We would love to hear about it in the comments.
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