Winnie-the-Pooh (book)

''Winnie-the-Pooh'' is a 1926 children's book by English author A. A. Milne and English illustrator E. H. Shepard. The book is set in the fictional Hundred Acre Wood, with a collection of short stories following the adventures of an anthropomorphic teddy bear, Winnie-the-Pooh, and his friends Christopher Robin, Piglet, Eeyore, Owl, Rabbit, Kanga, and Roo. It is the first of two story collections by Milne about Winnie-the-Pooh, the second being ''The House at Pooh Corner'' (1928). Milne and Shepard collaborated previously for English humour magazine ''Punch'', and in 1924 created ''When We Were Very Young'', a poetry collection. Among the characters in the poetry book was a teddy bear Shepard modelled after his son's toy. Following this, Shepard encouraged Milne to write about his son Christopher Robin Milne's toys, and so they became the inspiration for the characters in ''Winnie-the-Pooh''.

The book was published on October 14, 1926, and was both well-received by critics and a commercial success, selling 150,000 copies before the end of the year. Critical analysis of the book has held that it represents a rural Arcadia, separated from real-world issues or problems, and is without purposeful subtext. More recently, criticism has been levelled at the lack of positive female characters (i.e. that the only female character, Kanga, is depicted as a bad mother).

''Winnie-the-Pooh'' has been translated into over fifty languages; a 1958 Latin translation, '' Winnie ille Pu'', was the first foreign-language book to be featured on the ''New York Times'' Best Seller List, and the only book in Latin ever to have been featured. The stories and characters in the book have been adapted in other media, most notably into a franchise by The Walt Disney Company, beginning with ''Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree'', released on February 4, 1966 as a double feature with ''The Ugly Dachshund''. On January 1, 2022, the original ''Winnie-the-Pooh'' book entered the public domain in the United States, but remains protected under copyright in other countries, including the UK.

Background and publication

Before writing ''Winnie-the-Pooh'', A. A. Milne was already a successful writer. He wrote for English humour magazine ''Punch'', had published a mystery novel, ''The Red House Mystery'' (1922), and was a playwright. Milne began writing poetry for children after being asked by fellow ''Punch'' contributor, Rose Fyleman. Milne compiled his first verses for publishing, and though his publishers were initially hesitant to publish children's poetry, the poetry collection ''When We Were Very Young'' (1924) was a success. The illustrations were done by artist and fellow ''Punch'' staff E. H. Shepard.

Among the characters in ''When We Were Very Young'' was a teddy bear that Shepard modelled after one belonging to his son. With the book's success, Shepard encouraged Milne to write stories about Milne's young son, Christopher Robin Milne, and his stuffed toys. Among Christopher's toys was a teddy bear he called "Winnie-the-Pooh". Christopher got the name "Winnie" from a bear at the London Zoo, Winnipeg. "Pooh" was the name of a swan in ''When We Were Very Young''. Milne used Christopher and his toys as inspiration for a series of short stories, which were compiled and published as ''Winnie-the-Pooh''. The model for Pooh remained the bear belonging to Shepard's son.

''Winnie-the-Pooh'' was published on 14 October 1926 by Methuen & Co. in England and E. P. Dutton in the United States. As a work first published in 1926, the book entered the public domain in the United States on 1 January 2022. British copyright of the text expires on 1 January 2027 (70 calendar years after Milne's death) while British copyright of the illustrations expires on 1 January 2047 (70 calendar years after Shepard's death).

Stories

Some of the stories in ''Winnie-the-Pooh'' were adapted by Milne from previous published writings in ''Punch'', '' St. Nicholas Magazine'', '' Vanity Fair'' and other periodicals. The first chapter, for instance, was adapted from "The Wrong Sort of Bees", a story published in the ''London Evening News'' in its issue for Christmas Eve 1925. Classics scholar Ross Kilpatrick contended in 1998 that Milne adapted the first chapter from "Teddy Bear's Bee Tree", published in 1912 in ''Babes in the Woods'' by Charles G. D. Roberts.

The stories in the book can be read independently. The plots do not carry over between stories (with the exception of Stories 9 and 10).
#''In Which We Are Introduced to Winnie the Pooh and Some Bees and the Stories Begin'':
#*Winnie-the-Pooh is out of honey, so he tries to climb a tree to get some, but falls off, bouncing on branches on his way down. He meets with his friend Christopher Robin and floats up with a balloon of Christopher's, only to discover they are not the right sort of bees for honey. Christopher then shoots the balloon with his gun, letting Pooh slowly float back down.
#''In Which Pooh Goes Visiting and Gets into a Tight Place'':
#*Pooh visits Rabbit, but eats so much while in Rabbit's house that he gets stuck in Rabbit's door on the way out. Christopher Robin reads him a book for a week and, having not had any meals, Pooh is slim enough to be pulled out by Christopher, Rabbit, and Rabbit's friends and extended family.
#''In Which Pooh and Piglet Go Hunting and Nearly Catch a Woozle'':
#*Pooh and Piglet track increasing numbers of footsteps round and round a spinney of trees, only to realise, when Christopher Robin points it out, that they are their own.
#''In Which Eeyore Loses a Tail and Pooh Finds One'':
#*Pooh sets out to find Eeyore's missing tail, and visits Owl's place. Owl suggests putting up posters and offering a reward, before asking what Pooh thinks about his bell-rope. They realise that Owl has taken Eeyore's tail by accident and Christopher Robin nails it back on.
#''In Which Piglet Meets a Heffalump'':
#*Piglet and Pooh try to trap a Heffalump, using honey as a bait, but Pooh ends up getting stuck in the hole himself with the honey jar on his head. Piglet is convinced that Pooh is a Heffalump and calls Christopher Robin, who quickly realises it is Pooh and laughs.
#''In Which Eeyore has a Birthday and Gets Two Presents'':
#*Pooh feels bad that no one has gotten Eeyore anything for his birthday, so he and Piglet try their best to get him presents. Piglet accidentally pops Eeyore's balloon and Pooh brings Eeyore a honey jar which Owl has written Happy Birthday on. Eeyore ends up being happy with this present.
#''In Which Kanga and Baby Roo Come to the Forest and Piglet has a Bath'':
#*Rabbit convinces Pooh and Piglet to try to kidnap newcomer Baby Roo to convince newcomer Kanga to leave the forest. They switch Roo for Piglet and Kanga mistakes Piglet for Roo and gives him a bath, before Christopher Robin points out the mistake she has made.
#''In Which Christopher Robin Leads an to the North Pole'':
#*Christopher Robin and all of the animals in the forest go on a quest to find the North Pole in the Hundred Acre Wood. Roo falls into the river and Pooh helps him out using a pole. Christopher Robin announces Pooh has found the North Pole and puts a sign down dedicated to him.
#''In Which Piglet is Entirely Surrounded by Water'':
#*Piglet is trapped in his home by a flood, so he sends a message out in a bottle in hope of rescue. Pooh stays at home, eventually runs out of honey, and then uses the empty jars as a makeshift boat. After Pooh meets Christopher Robin, they set off in a boat made of an umbrella and rescue Piglet.
#''In Which Christopher Robin Gives Pooh a Party and We Say Goodbye'':
#*Christopher Robin gives Pooh a party for helping to rescue Piglet during the flood. Pooh gets a pencil case as a present.

Reception

The book was a critical and commercial success; Dutton sold 150,000 copies before the end of the year. First editions of ''Winnie-the-Pooh'' were published in low numbers. Methuen & Co. published 100 copies in large size, signed and numbered. E. P. Dutton issued 500 copies of which only 100 were signed by Milne. The book is Milne's best-selling work; the author and literary critic John Rowe Townsend described ''Winnie-the-Pooh'' and its sequel ''The House at Pooh Corner'' as "the spectacular British success of the 1920s" and praised its light, readable prose.

Contemporary reviews of the book were generally positive. A review in ''The Elementary English Review'' reviewed the book positively, describing it as containing "delightful nonsense" and "unbelievably funny" illustrations. In 2003, ''Winnie the Pooh'' was listed at number 7 on the BBC
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