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Winnie-the-Pooh

by A.A. Milne

"Winnie-the-Pooh" is a 1926 children's book by the English author A. A. Milne, illustrated by E. H. Shepard. Set in the fictional Hundred Acre Wood, it collects short stories following an anthropomorphic teddy bear named… more

First published 1926 · 160 pages · English

28 quotes ★ 4.37 (357,468) Classics

Quotes from the Book

Some people care too much. I think it's called love.
You can't stay in your corner of the Forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes.
It is more fun to talk with someone who doesn't use long, difficult words but rather short, easy words like "What about lunch?
I think we dream so we don’t have to be apart for so long. If we’re in each other’s dreams, we can be together all the time.
People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.
Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there some day.
If the person you are talking to doesn't appear to be listening, be patient. It may simply be that he has a small piece of fluff in his ear.
I used to believe in forever, but forever's too good to be true
I'm not lost for I know where I am. But however, where I am may be lost.
Some people talk to animals. Not many listen though. That's the problem.
I don’t feel very much like Pooh today," said Pooh. "There there," said Piglet. "I’ll bring you tea and honey until you do.
Piglet noticed that even though he had a Very Small Heart, it could hold a rather large amount of Gratitude.
Well," said Pooh, "what I like best," and then he had to stop and think. Because although Eating Honey was a very good thing to do, there was a moment just before you began to eat it which was better than when you were, but he didn't know what it was called.
When you see someone putting on his Big Boots, you can be pretty sure that an Adventure is going to happen.
I wonder what Piglet is doing," thought Pooh. "I wish I were there to be doing it, too.
What I like doing best is Nothing." "How do you do Nothing," asked Pooh after he had wondered for a long time. "Well, it's when people call out at you just as you're going off to do it, 'What are you going to do, Christopher Robin?' and you say, 'Oh, Nothing,' and then you go and do it. It means just going along, listening to all the things you can't hear, and not bothering." "Oh!" said Pooh.
Rabbit's clever," said Pooh thoughtfully. "Yes," said Piglet, "Rabbit's clever." "And he has Brain." "Yes," said Piglet, "Rabbit has Brain." There was a long silence. "I suppose," said Pooh, "that that's why he never understands anything.
When you are a Bear of Very Little Brain, and you Think of Things, you find sometimes that a Thing which seemed very Thingish inside you is quite different when it gets out into the open and has other people looking at it.
Just because an animal is large, it doesn't mean he doesn't want kindness; however big Tigger seems to be, remember that he wants as much kindness as Roo.
A bear, however hard he tries, grows tubby without exercise.
Think it over, think it under.
It's not much of a tail, but I'm sort of attached to it.
Nobody can be uncheered with a balloon.
I did know once, only I've sort of forgotten.
Pooh," said Rabbit kindly, "you haven't any brain." "I know," said Pooh humbly.
My spelling is Wobbly. It's good spelling but it Wobbles, and the letters get in the wrong places.
You never can tell with bees.
There must be somebody there, because somebody must have said "Nobody.

Did you know?

  • The character was named after Winnie, a Canadian black bear at London Zoo, and Pooh, a friend's pet swan the Milnes had encountered on holiday.
  • Winnie-the-Pooh first appeared by name on 24 December 1925 in a Christmas story published by the London newspaper the Evening News.
  • The characters Piglet, Eeyore, Kanga, and Roo were based on real stuffed toys owned by Milne's son, Christopher Robin.
  • The book was published in Britain by Methuen & Co. on 14 October 1926, illustrated by E. H. Shepard.
  • In the United States, Dutton sold 150,000 copies before the end of 1926.

About A.A. Milne

A. A. Milne (1882-1956) was an English author and playwright best known for his Winnie-the-Pooh stories, which he wrote for his young son, Christopher Robin. He also worked as a contributor to Punch and wrote plays, poetry, and novels.

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About the book

"Winnie-the-Pooh" is a 1926 children's book by the English author A. A. Milne, illustrated by E. H. Shepard. Set in the fictional Hundred Acre Wood, it collects short stories following an anthropomorphic teddy bear named Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends, whose gentle adventures unfold around the boy Christopher Robin. The characters were inspired by the real stuffed toys of Milne's son, Christopher Robin Milne, and the bear's name came partly from Winnie, a Canadian black bear the family often saw at London Zoo.

At its heart the book presents a rural, arcadian world separated from real-world troubles, appealing through its depiction of innocent childhood and warmly drawn character personalities. Its comedy grows out of small predicaments and the distinct temperaments of its cast: Pooh's cheerful appetite for honey, Piglet's timidity, Eeyore's gloom, and the well-meaning bustle of Owl and Rabbit. The stories are episodic and affectionate, with no menace beyond the mild scrapes the animals get themselves into.

The book was both a critical and commercial success and became Milne's best-selling work, followed by a second story collection, "The House at Pooh Corner" (1928). Together with Shepard's line drawings, the stories established Winnie-the-Pooh as one of the most enduring figures in children's literature, spawning generations of readers and countless adaptations worldwide.

Key characters

  • Winnie-the-PoohA good-natured teddy bear with an insatiable love of honey
  • Christopher RobinThe human boy who is friend and guide to the animals
  • PigletPooh's small and timid best friend
  • EeyoreA gloomy, pessimistic old grey donkey
  • OwlA self-styled wise resident of the Wood
  • RabbitA busy, organizing, clever animal
  • KangaA motherly kangaroo, parent to Roo

Book details

First published
1926
Length
160 pages
Reading time
2 hours
Goodreads rating
4.37 (357k ratings)
First line
“Here is Edward Bear, coming downstairs now, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head, behind Christopher Robin.”

Series & reading order

  1. 1 Winnie-the-Pooh
  2. 2 The House at Pooh Corner

If you liked this, read…

  1. 1
    The Wind in the WillowsAnother classic of gentle, character-driven animal adventures in an English pastoral setting
  2. 2
    The House at Pooh CornerMilne's direct sequel continuing the Hundred Acre Wood stories
  3. 3
    PaddingtonA beloved, mild-mannered fictional bear at the center of warm children's stories

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