The Complete Tales & Poems of Winnie-the-Pooh

For generations, A.A. Milne's four Pooh books -- two of prose stories, and two of poetry -- were the delight of children and adults, a treasure of English literature. The kindly wisdom depicted in the peaceful adventures of Pooh, Piglet, Rabbit, Eeyore, and others, all overseen by the wise and thoughtful Christopher Robin, tickled the fancies and warmed the hearts of millions. But Disney's animated treatment convinced far too many that Pooh was only for very little children, and for many families the original books dropped off their radar.

But the originals are a delight at any age, wonderful as read-alouds, and a challenge for young readers. The poems, about "Bad King John" and "The King of Peru" and "The Knight Whose Armor Didn't Squeak," are some of the cleverest and wittiest poetry ever written for children. And all of it is perfectly matched in tone by Ernest Shepard's delicate line drawings. This edition combines all four books into one volume, which is fine for reading aloud but too heavy and bulky for small hands to handle on their own for long.