Review: The Winnie-the-Pooh Collection by A. A. Milne and Ernest Shepard

The Winnie-the-Pooh Collection
A. A. Milne
Illustrated by Ernest Shepard
Aladdin Books
Published August 6, 2024

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About The Winnie-the-Pooh Collection

With gorgeously redesigned covers and the original black-and-white interior illustrations by Ernest Shepard, these beautiful editions of the four Winnie-the-Pooh books by A.A. Milne are now together in a collectible hardcover boxed set—sure to delight new and old fans alike!

Explore the Hundred Acre Wood with everyone’s favorite bear-of-very-little-brain, Winnie-the-Pooh!

In Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner, meet Pooh, Christopher Robin, and the other residents of the forest, including the timid Piglet, the downcast Eeyore, the impatient Rabbit, the loquacious Owl, the always bouncing Tigger, and newcomers Kanga and Roo. In each chapter, they have a new adventure, from searching for honey or celebrating birthdays to hunting Heffalumps or navigating new friendships.

Rounding out the collection are two books of children’s When We Were Very Young —in which we meet Mr. Edward Bear, the character that inspired Winnie-the-Pooh—and Now We Are Six, in which Pooh and Christopher Robin make frequent appearances. These playful and imaginative verses explore the joys and pains of growing up, the antics of peculiar characters, quiet afternoons in nature, memorable animal friends, and more.

Mini-Reviews of Each Book in the Collection

There are four books in this collection that feature the original illustrations inside the books. The book covers are completely new. The cover illustrations are new, and are pretty simplified.

Reading Milne’s classic works is a great way to slow down and reconnect to a child’s view of the world. I love the original artwork—it was really fun just flipping through the books to look at the illustrations.

This would make a great gift for a family with younger kids or early middle grade readers.

Winnie-the-Pooh

This book introduces readers to Winnie-the-Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, Christopher Robin, and their familiar friends. Each chapter reads like a self-contained adventure and is written as though it’s a story being told to a young boy named Christopher Robin about his very own stuffed bear, Winnie-the-Pooh.

I’ve read at least part of the book before, so this was partly a reread for me, but it was fun to revisit these characters and their stories. The dialogue contains a lot of wordplay or interpretations of words that feel very childlike.

Perhaps the only moment that stood out to me as something to think about is when Pooh gets stuck in Rabbit’s front door in the first chapter. Christopher Robin says they’ll have to wait a week for him to “get thin again.” I don’t know that anyone said anything directly shaming to Pooh. They sort of shrug and go along with the situation, but readers sensitive to body image issues or shaming might find that scene uncomfortable.

The House at Pooh Corner

If you’re a Tigger fan, this is the book you want to read, as it’s the only one in which he appears. Early in the collection, Tigger appears in the Hundred Acre Wood, and the rest of the group has to figure out what to make of their bouncy new friend.

The stories in The House at Pooh Corner are loosely connected, but each volume could be read independently. This volume also contains a lot of poetry or “hums” as Pooh calls them. Shepard’s charming illustrations appear on almost every page, too.

This is the longest book in the set of four.

When We Were Very Young

This collection of poems celebrates childhood and imagination with poems about Christopher Robin or other children. Some invert childhood experiences. For example, in one poem, the child tells his mother not to venture off by herself. When she does, she gets lost and has to be returned to the child.

In one poem, Pooh examines his body and feels bad for its stout shape. Then, he reads a book that names a stout king as handsome and feels better about himself. One poem tells about a boy who imagines sailing to South America to wave to the “Indians.” In the final poem, Christopher Robin says his prayers before bed.

Now We are Six

Now We Are Six includes a mix of poetry that ranges from sweet reflections on childhood (playing with an imaginary friend) to stories with a moral message (a king whose advisor doesn’t follow any directions is replaced by a beggar at the gate who asks for aid).

Though Winnie-the-Pooh isn’t named directly in the poems here, he appears in the charming illustrations. Milne does warn in his introduction (my favorite part of the whole book, actually) that Pooh wandered through the pages and sat down on some of them. I suppose that’s his way of telling readers to look for him in the illustrations, which is cute.

Like the other books in the collection, this volume delivers nostalgia for childhood and shows a love for those days when so many experiences were fresh and new.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 6 to 10.

Representation
Human characters are white. Most characters are animals.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Some poems and stories have elements of fantasy. In one poem, Christopher says his prayers, asking God’s blessing on his parents, Nanny, and himself.

Violent Content
In one chapter of Winnie-the-Pooh, Pooh and Piglet dig a trap and hope to catch a heffalump. In one chapter, rain floods the wood, and Piglet needs to be rescued from a tree. One poem vaguely references colonialism. In it, a boy imagines sailing to South America and visiting or dismissing the “Indians” as he pleases.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this collection in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday

I’m sharing this post as a part of a weekly round-up of middle-grade posts called Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday. Check out other blogs with posts about middle-grade books today on Marvelous Middle-Grade Mondays at Always in the Middle with Greg Pattridge.