Book Description

1966-1988 Best of the Best Books for Young Adults (ALA)
1979 Fanfare Honor List (The Horn Book)
1979 Books for the Teen Age (NY Public Library)

2000 List of Popular Paperbacks for YA

Reviews (168)

A Beautiful Tale
I love this book. It is perhaps one of the best renditions of Beauty and the Beast, and I like it even more than the well-known fairy tale. The skeleton of the story is widely familiar but McKinley lets her creativity flow through the writing and creates a totally original telling of the tale.

Honour is not your classic so-weak-that-the-guy-has-to-do-everything damsel in distress. She is spunky, intelligent and real! The character develops into a complete, realistic person through the story, and so does the beast. Clearly one who loves fairy tales as well, McKinley tells the tale with grace, charm and enchantment, that not only gives depth to the story, but makes it real in our minds. You don;'t get a goody-good, beautiful, flawless Beauty, but rather, one whose nickname mocks her appearance (compared to her sisters) and whose character has flaws, like any other person in real life. The love story unfolds with a plot that wrenches your emotions through the unfortunate situations and have you tearing with joy at the happy ones.

Unlike many other authors, who tend to inject too much violence or sex into fairy tales to make them the "adult" version, Beauty is a remarkable tale written with originality and maturity. This book is the definitive of how fairy tales for adults should be like. Well-rounded, well-written and complete.

Read it.

A refreshing retelling of a classic
It is nice to read something three dimensional that breaks the "disneyfied" fairy tale mold. I read this book twice in just a few days and plan to read it again. The characters were so real and engaging. Beauty has a personality and is not the overused wilting flower type heroine. This is a great story, I even like it better than Rose Daughter because Beauty's transformation and her relationship with the Beast is beautiful and interesting. But it is not perfect, the ending was much to abrupt and left the reader wanting to hear more of the story this is why I gave this book only 4 stars. Otherwise, it is great and worth reading.

Beauty-ful Retelling
Robin McKinley has a talent to recreate the fantasy worlds of childhood bedtime literature and make them fullblooded novels that any respectable reader will enjoy. Of all her fairytale remakes that I have read, this is my favorite.

The story is well known, a young woman is more or less promised to a beast and transforms him. But there is so much more than that in Beauty.

Beauty, or Honor, as she was named, is a young, 'ugly' woman whose father is destroyed publicly when his shipping company collapses. He and his two other daughters, Grace and Hope, and Beauty all move to the countryside to live with Hope's fiance, Ger. They adapt to the quiet country life--Ger works as a blacksmith and their father does wordworking. After the first couple of days there, Ger tells Beauty not to go into the woods, because they are more or less haunted by what seems to be an old "bogey-man" story.

When Beauty's father gets called back to town with news that one of his presumably lost ships has returned, he leaves the family for a short while. His return, with saddle bags filled with goods--golds and necklaces and dresses, is in the dead of a wintry night and he brings back a perfect rose, the one thing Beauty asked him for when he left. The rose, taken from the Beast, is a symbol of a promise, and it is Beauty who fulfills that promise, going to the Beast in her father's stead.

The romance is beautiful and eloquently expressed. To make a Beast, which would be seen through our eyes as an animal, into a man as an author must have been a challenging task, but Robin McKinley did a wonderful job. As a fairy tale retelling, this one is definitely at the top.

Beauty and the Beast
This is a really good romance story. I do not read a lot of romance. However, I really liked this.
Beauty and the Beast is one of my most favorite fairy tales. I was not let down with this story.

Beautifully written; true to the old tale... but...
This is Robin McKinley's version of "Beauty and the Beast", told with her excellent grasp of the written word.

Wonderful prose; wonderful characterization of Beauty and her family (a point I have often found lacking in almost all "Beauty and the Beast" versions.). In this version, we are made to understand how Beauty's family could give her up to a terrible Beast, how human they are in the face of such unexplainable enchantment, how they react to the surreal events of their lives when it comes to loss. I appreciate this part of the book where her sisters and father are actually people who have volume, not just mentioned characters who seem so heartless and greedy giving up their sister to such an uncertain fate.

The beast was intriguing, but as with most of Robin McKinley's male characters who happen to be her heroine's love interest, they are weakly developed, or at least half-baked. Which is strange because all the rest of the male characters come pretty strong.

Now, while generally, Beauty in this tale isn't the typical Beauty of the tales we've already heard, the retelling, as a whole, really doesn't divert much from the original. While I realize that this could be a good thing, I was hoping for something fresh; a twist of sorts, like the way "Spindle's End" was told. Unfortunately, this came off with the same impact as McKinley's "The Outlaws of Sherwood".

I would recommend "Beauty and the Beast" for first time visitors of the old tale. I would recommend this book to those who want to understand the motives behind Beauty's family. I would not recommend this book to someone looking for a fresh take. ... Read more

Book Description

What a wonderful feeling it is, to know that wherever you are there is something you love. It is a feeling millions of readers have for the Christopher Robin books.

The verses here, and in When We Were Very Young, the stories in Winnie-The-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner have endeared themselves to so many readers that it is painful to try to imagine what the world would be like without them.

The perfect book for that all-important birthday, Now We Are Six is much more than a worthy successor to When We Were Very Young; it is a modern classic in its own right.

The beguiling verses are rendered more delightful by E.H. Shepard’s enchanting pictures.
... Read more

Reviews (5)

Not so young any more...
A.A. Milne's second collection of poems has a different tone than his first; a little sly, a tad more mature, as befits little bookworms that have graduated from "When We Were Very Young". Now Milne gives us the delightfully funny "Sneezles" (Christopher Robin had wheezles and sneezles, they bundled him into his bed), and the hilarious good girl Jane ("Well, what did they think that I went there to do? And why would I want to be bad at the zoo? And would I be likely to say if I had?") accompanied by Ernest Shepard's great pen and ink drawings (check out his picture of Jane trying to climb into the bears' cage in the zoo). Kids of all ages (and yes, that includes old coots over 30 like you and me) love reading and listening to the poems in this book. Highly recommended.

Marvellous but mixed collection of poetry
Everyone who has read Milne's original Pooh books knows that he can write a good hum, after all Pooh gives us several.

In this volume (and the earlier "When We Were Very Young") Milne's voice comes through more clearly, unmoderated by writing for his bear of little brain. He gives us a small volume full of poems that should surely last as well as his prose. While some of them are strongly flavoured by the time and place where he wrote them others are more universal in their subject and tone.

As you read this volume you will almost certainly come across something you recognise, if it isn't the line "James James Morrison Morrison Weatherby George Dupree" that catches your memory then it might be "Just a bit of butter for the royal slice of bread." If not, then you will find many of them sticking when you have read them to a child.

I have seen editions of this volume without the illustrations by E.H. Shepard, it would seem to me a travesty to separate the two. Shepard has always been the traditional illustrator of Milne and the pen and ink drawings he made for the first edition of this book, retained in this (and most) paperback edition are marvellous - well executed and suiting the style and subject of the poems.

It is hard to overstate the joy my daughter and I have had from this volume. My mother read many of these poems to me thirty five (and more) years ago, over the past few years my daughter and I have discovered our own favourites. Now she is old enough that she reads them herself.

The poems are indeed a little sentimental, a little whimsical and seem to come from a softer, more pastoral childhood than has perhaps existed for many years. I don't see this as a problem for the poetry, after all, if we cannot recreate a gentler time for our children perhaps we can soften the one we can provide with the tiny charming tales in these poems.

I would recommend this book to anyone with a small child. I give it only four stars as the poems are mixed in quality.

Kuralt has the most boring, monotone voice I have ever heard
I grew up listening to and loving the two poetry Winnie the Pooh books. If like me, you love this poetry, DO NOT purchase these tapes! After listening to the first 15 minutes of one tape and skimming other poems in the hopes that Kuralt suddenly gained inspiration, the tapes have remained in the box unlistened to. I have tried to give them to other teachers, only to have them returned to me. Charles Kuralt is absolutely the WRONG person to read this wonderful poetry. His dry, boring, monotonous voice made me want to cry, terrified that his reading would turn kids off to Milne's incredibly beautiful and funny poetry.

Sentimental verses very inferior to the Pooh books
I spent my childhood and adolescence in sight of Ashdown Forest, England, where the Pooh books are set. I still retain a deep affection for them. But Milne's verse is something else and would long-ago have been forgotten but for the stories with which it is associated. Nobody who has seen the parody:

Hush, Hush. Nobody cares. Christopher Robin has fallen down stairs.

will ever again be able to read Milne's sentimental whimsies with a straight face. The book is only worth three stars for the beautiful illustrations by E H Shepard

A wonderful book of children's poems
I'm buying this book now for my daughter. I still remember many of the poems from when I was growing up, and I hear my Mom's voice as I read them. ... Read more

Book Description

Sarah came to the prairie from Maine to marry Papa. But that summer, a drought turned the land dry and brown. Fires swept across the fields and coyotes came to the well in search of water. so Sarah took Anna and Caleb back east, where they would be safe. Papa stayed behind. He would not leave his land.

Maine was beautiful, but anna missed home, and Papa. And as the weeks went by, she began to wonder what would happen if the rains never came. Would she and Caleb and Sarah and Papa ever be a family again?When Sarah came to the prairie, Anna and her brother Caleb worried that she would not stay and be their new mother. But Sarah fell in love with Caleb and Anna, and with their father, Jacob. Together they became a family. Jacob is a man of the land but for Sarah, the prairie isn't yet her home. So when a drought threatens to devastate their way of life, Jacob must save the farm. But the children go back to the home Sarah knew first, Maine, where there is family and an ocean. But will they ever be a family again on the prairie? "Fans will rejoice for [this] eagerly awaited sequel."—K. "Maclachlan's writing is lyrical. . . . Will be a must for fans." —C. "There are worlds in MacLachlan's words." —Publishers Weekly.

... Read more

Reviews (3)

Skylark
This book is the sequel to "Sarah Plain and Tall." Sarah came from Maine to marry papa. But when a drought starts, Sarah takes Anna and Caleb to Maine and leaves papa. Will they ever become a family again? Read this book to find out.

Wonderfull !!!
This book is one of my favourite books.Even the first chapter was interesting.Some parts really touch my heart.They make me feel that I am over there feeling their pain and sorrow.This story is the sequel to "Sarah,Plain and Tall".The drought had wiped out every drop of water on the prairie.Sarah had married Caleb's father,Jacob.Their neighbours were slowly leaving the prairie.Caleb didn't want to leave Sarah and the prairie.He wanted rain to fall.When I read this part,I was so worried that I wished that I could read it the whole day.When Caleb's papa said that they have their names written in the prairie,Caleb didn't want Sarah to leave so he really wrote "SARA" in the land.But in the end,they still had to leave the prairie and went to stay with Sarah's aunts in Maine for a while until it rained in the prairie.In Maine,it was totally different.There were the sea and flowers blooming.Do you think the children will ever see the prairie and their father again? Read this moving story and find out.

GETTING IN TOUCH WITH THE LAND
This short book (only 87 pages) is the perfect sequel to Sarah, Plain and Tall. Sarah, once a mail-order bride from Maine, now is almost integrated into family life on the harsh prairie. But prolonged drought and other natural conditions deteriorate to the extent that she takes her instant children, Anna and Caleb, on a nostalgic (for her at least) trip back East, to share her roots with them.

This story is narrated in the first person by Anna, daughter of farmer Jacob. But how to blend love of the ocean with love for the prairie--two opposing causes for nostalgia and homesickness? Sarah needs to learn to stop being a lark who merely hovers above the land, She must let her husband's love for her help her to grow into the kind of person who can write her name on the land as well. A thoughtful read for more mature readers. Companion volumes to complete the mail-order marriage. Read as a pair! ... Read more

Book Description

It is the year 4022; all of the ancient country of Usa has been buried under many feet of detritus from a catastrophe that occurred back in 1985. Imagine, then, the excitement that Howard Carson, an amateur archeologist at best, experienced when in crossing the perimeter of an abandoned excavation site he felt the ground give way beneath him and found himself at the bottom of a shaft, which, judging from the DO NOT DISTURB sign hanging from an archaic doorknob, was clearly the entrance to a still-sealed burial chamber. Carson's incredible discoveries, including the remains of two bodies, one of then on a ceremonial bed facing an altar that appeared to be a means of communicating with the Gods and the other lying in a porcelain sarcophagus in the Inner Chamber, permitted him to piece together the whole fabric of that extraordinary civilization. ... Read more

Reviews (23)

A book ALL Archaeologists / Historians should read
If you are a fan of David Macaulay's books about the contruction of such wonders as a Cathedral, Pyramid, City, Mill, etc ... then you will really enjoy this book about future archaeologists / explorers "discovering" the burried ruins of an American motel room in the 41st century ... and the miss-identification of just about every item found.

I think that this is a book that every archaeologist / historian should read because it perfectly explains the traps that we may fall into when trying to explain the past using present day knowledge and sensibilities.

The events portrayed in this book show the reader just how easy it is to make a mistake ... even when one's best intentions are at stake.

Then again, it is a David Macaulay (always great) and it is funny! Especially the Museum Gift Store items displayed at the end of the book.

Motel of the Mysteries
Motel of the Mysteries is an about-face for David Macaulay, whose previous books educated readers about fascinating architectural achievements. Motel is a totally different story-line. What remains the same are his illustrations - pen and ink demonstrations of meticulous obsession. Works like Cathedral and Pyramid display the intricacies of history's architectural marvels in astonishing detail. The cover of Cathedral alone is a spectacle. Motel achieves the same level of elaborateness but throws in a monkey wrench with an outrageous story of our civilization's abrupt demise and its discovery thousands of years later.
The illustrations add a witty visual flair to the laugh-out-loud storyline. The language, intended for upper elementary to adult ages, will probably leave younger readers confused, because the humor is above them, and often too advanced. This can make the story funnier in some places, such as an ice bucket being dubbed the Internal Component Enclosure.
The book is as fictional as books can get. The story takes place in 4022 and only in Motel of the Mysteries could a woman possibly believe a toilet seat is a ceremonial headdress worn by the ancient people of Usa.
In the distant future, America has been dead and gone for thousands of years, and historians and paleontologists search frantically for remnants of the ancient civilization Usa (get it?). Howard Carson, an amateur at best, and associate Harriet Burton discover a 'burial tomb' of the Usa people. What they really discovered was a late 1900s motel. No suspense, nothing that really defines a story, just the hilarious commentary of stumbling upon this motel.
The "Treasures" section explains in full detail the ceremonial items used in Usa burials. The wacky, absolutely outrageous functions given to each item (such as the toilet seat passed off as a headdress) keep the reader glued until the last page.
Macaulay's style is totally unique. Not only is he far more amusing than most authors, he uses his illustrations to weave his knowledge of architecture into the story. The entire book is something of a spoof on historians today. Maybe the pharoahs of Egypt were really just street peddlers!

Motel of the Mysteries
I think this book is creatively written to get young people to read, and to get a good laugh about how people in the future look at people in the past.

Motel of the Mysteries
Great and interesting book for adolescents! I would highly recommend this book because it will keep you on the edge of your seats.

Laugh out loud funny spoof of archeology
Macauley's other books, such as CASTLE, show our archeologists recreations of times past. But what if it's ALL WRONG???

In MOTEL OF THE MYSTERIES, we get a marvelous story of a future archeologist finding, and completely misunderstanding, an ordinary motel room.

Great fun, and you'll never watch a Discover Channel special with quite that credulity again. ... Read more

Book Description

How did the camel get his hump? How did the leopard get his spots? How did the elephant get his trunk?

These are questions that children around the world have asked for centuries, but it took Nobel Prize winner Rudyard Kipling's lively, hilarious stories to give them answers. For one hundred years, these classic tales -- drawn from the oral storytelling traditions of India and Africa and filled with mischievously clever animals and people -- have entertained young and old alike.Intertwined within these delightful tales are little pearls of wisdom about the pitfalls of arrogance and pride and the importance of curiosity, imagination, and inventiveness. Kipling's rhythmic prose makes these tales perfect for sharing aloud with the whole family.

This deluxe edition contains all of Kiplin's unforgettable stories as well as ten stunning watercolors, along with numerous black-and-white drawings, from award-winning artist Barry Moser, bringing this timeless masterpiece brilliantly to life for a whole new generation of readers.

Reviews (20)

Elephant's child in particular
This book is the most valued in my family history. Now my children are asking after it to read to their children because of all of the beloved memories it brings back. The language is a delight. The way Kipling draws the reader and listener in to feel they are part of the story, it is story telling magic at its very best. I can't believe anyone who has this book in their home, once read, will ever be without it. As long as children and that child in all adults long for the gifted story teller's magic, this book is special.

Delightful Stories to Read Aloud
If you enjoy language and good story-telling this book belongs on your bookshelf. I've been reading the stories to my seven-year-old daughter who eats them up. Yes, the vocabulary is challenging - it isn't Berenstain Bears! But there is a time for "I Can Read" books and a time for "Read to Me" books. This will challenge kids and their imaginations, especially if they love animals like my kids do. And it's not just for kids - I love the stories too! Buy it!

Charming stories with a charming presentation.
I recently purchased this set on cd with a gift certificate for my young daughter. The price tag may have put me off at any other time, but since I was getting it with a certificate, I went for it. I read these stories cover to cover repeatedly as a little girl and took great delight in the hilarity of the answers to such questions as "how did the leopard get his spots?" or "how did the camel get his hump?" Kipling's stories are marvelously nonsensical - which makes them fit for a child's world. However, it was not until hearing them read aloud on this very set that I realized his rhyme and use of repetitive words or phrases is very similar to our modern master of children's literature: Dr. Seuss. It would not surprise me to find that Seuss took his inspiration from the works of Kipling. This is not striking to a reader, but as you listen to his words brought to life by the human voice it is hard to miss.

Geoffrey Palmer, of As Time Goes By, is one of my favorite actors. His voice and interpretation of these beautiful stories enhances the experience so much that I was laughing out loud listening to him in my car. His dry sense of humor is felt in his characterizations of the cast and the lulling of his voice lends a calming, gentle, and sophisticated quality to the text. I now can simply not imagine these stories being read by anybody else.

Finally, the classical musical selection is superb and adds an intelligent whimsiness to the piece. I would highly recommend this set as a lovely gift for any child you find "tenacious and full of segacity". What a delightful alternative to the screech of today's cartoons and children's "pop" albums full of Britney Spears remakes.

Just So Stories
The just so stories
By: Rudyard Kipling Published by: William Morrow and Company

This book O best beloved (meaning you, in the language that the author used) is a short story book that has many adventures to it and the one that I'm going to tell you about is the story called, The Beginning of the Armadillos. This plot takes us to the steamy jungles of the Amazon rain forest in South America in the Northern part of Brazil. Also in this plot there lives a painted jaguar, a stickly-prickly hedgehog, and slow and solid tortoise. Now O best beloved (meaning you) this particular jaguar isn't very bright so he goes to his mother for advice on how to eat the hedgehog and the tortoise. Well, as any mother would, she tells him ohhh, so many times graciously waving her tail, "Painted Jaguar to catch the hedgehog you must dip him the water so he will uncoil and you must scoop the tortoise out of it's shell with your paw, got it?!" So he goes to the river to find the hedgehog and the tortoise so he can eat them. The first time they barely got away by confusing him. The hedgehog and the tortoise confuse him by messing up what his mother told him. But the second time Painted Jaguar is confused just by looking at them. You'll have to read it to believe it.

As you know, in this particular story you are introduced to a hedgehog named Stickly-Prickly and a tortoise named Slow and Solid. As you might see these two unique animals are very close and have the same predators. In this story Stickly-Prickly hedgehog and Slow and Solid tortoise are being hunted by a creature named Painted Jaguar, as you know, who is not too smart and has spots. Now since Stickly-Prickly and Slow and Solid were able to fool the jaguar once they want to make him so confused that he won't know which is which just by looking at them. So day after day they teach one another how the other works, like Stickly-Prickly teaches Slow and Solid to curl up and Slow and Solid teaches Stickly-Prickly how to swim. After they have done that and are comfortable with their skills they wait for Painted Jaguar to come looking for them but they don't know that they will never be the same again. Stickly-Prickly hedgehog and Slow and Solid tortoise help this particular story because they are smart and they fool the jaguar and they surprise the reader with their cunning and hard work.

This book has been really fun in the fact that there is more than one story in the book and for me more than one story meant that it was a page turner. The story that I described in this book review was easy to concentrate on because I liked it so much. Some stories in this book were just plain old boring so it was harder to read them . The thing that caught my attention was the language that the author used in the book, I thought that the language was very unique and very funny. To tell the truth I thought that there weren't very many surprises at all, the only surprises would be all the purposes of the story that was being told, like how the camel got his hump or the beginning of the Armadillos. To me they make the language in the book fun, like Oh best beloved and stickly-prickly and slow and solid. The people who might like this book would have to have a sense of humor, so if they have that then the person reading this book will have a very fun time indeed.

Complete lack of worthy content
This book lacks substance and the qualities that make a read worth the while, especially since it's for children who may not read that much in the first place. You'd be MUCH better off with something like The Wind in the Willows, or the Berenstain Bear. ... Read more

Book Description

"Once upon a time, a very long time ago, Winnie-the-Pooh lived in a forest…" The world of Pooh is a world of enchantment. It is a world forever fixed in the minds and hearts of countless children -- a world where Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends Piglet, Eeyore, Tigger, Kanga and the others share unforgettable adventures with Christopher Robin.

Winnie-the-Pooh is filled with delight: Pooh goes hunting with Piglet, celebrates Eeyore's birthday, and accompanies Christopher Robin and the others on an "Expotition" to the North Pole. Through it all, Pooh remains the whimsical philosopher and staunch friend, captivating children as he has for generations.

Reviews (20)

There's no classic like an old classic
Ah, the adventures of Pooh & Co. Far fewer people have read these light lovely little books than seen their animated semi-accurate Disneyfications. Should the average reader choose to actually read, "Winnie the Pooh", they'd find a series of adventures set in a child's safe/tame landscape. The great recommendation of this book (and its subsequent sequals) is the jokes that kids won't get but that adults will adore. Aside from some of the more C.S. Lewis-like twistings of the English language, some characters are written as charicatures of the timid, the pompous, and the dejected. After all, who hasn't known their own Owls or Eeyores at some point in their life? In my opinion, Piglet is almost the quintessential timid Englishman. As for the original illustrations, they cannot be improved upon (especially since the movie has so invaded the public consciousness). My advice? Get kids to read this before they see the film (which is probably an impossible thing to desire these days). You won't regret it and they'll take them to heart.

A pre-schooler's delight
Ah, the treasures you come across cleaning out your adult child's closet once he's grown and left the nest. How could I have forgotten this enchanting book? My son used to love Winnie the Pooh and all his friends when he was three years old. In Piglet, Kanga and Baby Roo, Eeyore, Rabbit, Owl and Pooh himself, A.A. Milne created some of the best-loved characters in children's literature. The stories in the book are funny and endearing, what child doesn't laugh out loud over Pooh and Piglet hunting for Woozles, and Eeyore losing his tail? Read this book out loud to your child (or silently to yourself), and you may find yourself transported back to your own childhood:

"Isn't it funny
how a bear likes honey?
Buzz, buzz, buzz!
I wonder why he does?"

Excellent reading of the book.
This is a review of the Jim Broadbent recording of the first Winnie the Pooh book. Although it does seem to include the other recordings I have heard, and I expect his version of The House at Pooh Corner would be quite similar.

Jim Broadbendt does a great job reading us WtP. Anyone who has heard the Charles Kuralt version- this version is 300% better. Jim not only has a sense of of humor, but does a different voice for each character. Two things sorely lacking on the CK versions. Now, for those who have heard the Peter Dennis recordings, well, those are better, there's no getting around that. Peter's piglet cannot be topped and he also does the most wonderful versions of the songs I have ever heard. But alas, those tapes are no longer available and Dennis never recorded the entire book(s). So, I figure Jim is still deserving of the 5 stars.

Broadbent does a wonderful job of bringing out the humor in the stories, something which the Kuralt recordings do not. His Eeyore does sound a bit like Ringo Starr- but, that works rather well now, doesn't it? Pooh, well, he's a bit on the not-so-bright side, but he's cheerful and trustworthy. Piglet does sound timid and sweet. Rabbit, well, he could be a bit more edgey in these. Jim has made Rabbit a bit more sympthetic a character than I envision him. Still, the subtle nuances are not lost, even on children. And, it is nice to have an unabridged version of the story available.

My children just love these cds. Which is nice. It's always good to have something that the entire family enjoys and is still a worthwhile use of time. Especialy something that one can listen to in the car that doesn't bore the pants off the driver and yet amuses the children enough to keep them quiet. I highly recommend this version for anyone who would like to expose their child to the original Pooh stories.

Sing Ho for the life of a Pooh
Unless you were just teleported here from an alternative universe where Walt Disney was a hobo and stayed locked up in jail, never to entertain the world with his many talents, you _had_ to have heard of Winnie the Pooh. This _is_ the A.A.Milne stories with the beautiful Ernest Shepard's illustrations and if you never read this, you are in for a real treat.

The illustrations are gorgeous watercolors. The characters have more dimensions to them and the effect is more subtle. You'll recognize some stories from the Disney movies / shows - some you won't. They are great bedtime stories for your little ones and work equally well for adults.

If you have little ones in your life, you are going to want this book to read to them or give as a shower gift to an expectant mom. If you want to see what Pooh, Piglet ant the gang are like without all the "Disneyfications", this is also a great book. And, if you're like me and have fond memories of this book, it's _definitely_ for you. Read and enjoy:)

black and white originals
Horn Book review hit it on the head: the black and white illustrations are superior in every way to the colored-in versions. The original editions were, after all, illustrated with simple, clearly-outlined sketches. So now, finally, we have have Winne-the-Pooh as it was originally intended to be. On top of that, excellent quality paper, beautiful binding, a perfect size, this slip-cased edition is a collector's item. ... Read more

Book Description

HOW CAN ONE GIRL SAVE AN ENTIRE WORLD?

To the nobles who live in Benden Weyr, Lessa is nothing but a ragged kitchen girl. For most of her life she has survived by serving those who betrayed her father and took over his lands. Now the time has come for Lessa to shed her disguise—and take back her stolen birthright.

But everything changes when she meets a queen dragon. The bond they share will be deep and last forever. It will protect them when, for the first time in centuries, Lessa’s world is threatened by Thread, an evil substance that falls like rain and destroys everything it touches. Dragons and their Riders once protected the planet from Thread, but there are very few of them left these days. Now brave Lessa must risk her life, and the life of her beloved dragon, to save her beautiful world. . . .


From the Paperback edition. ... Read more

Reviews (130)

I LOVE THIS BOOK!
I must say that this book is one of my ABSOLUTE favorites! I have read it so many times that I almost know it all by heart! This book tells the story of Lessa, (my fav. character) who Impresses the last golden-queen dragon of Pern, Ramoth and how, basically, they defy all and, against all the odds against them, the save the world. This was the 1st Pern book I have ever read, and I say you should definetly read this one first. It makes understanding the different ranks and colors of the dragons easier...it makes you understand the real, emotional bond that the dragons and their riders have...how their minds are linked and how they understand everything about the other... This world is so believable that it makes me want to go to Pern and Impress a dragon! (lol) One of my favorite parts would have to be when Ramoth rose in flight to be caught by Mnementh, whose rider is F'lar, who was the only bronzerider who believed that the ancient menace of Thread would fall once again in the skies of Pern. And lo, was he ever correct! He and Lessa and Ramoth and Mnementh make the BEST couple, and their fierce wit and sense of knowing make the story fast-paced and wonderful! You get to really know all the characters like you are actually standing there, with them...its great! This is a TOTAL read for dragon fans and even sci/fi and fantasy fans! Its great for all ages, though I do warn against the 10 and under year olds-they might not get the concept. PLEASE READ! ITS SO WORTH A HARBACK VERSION! (I have all these books, so trust me!) :OD

The beginning of a pretty good thing...
This is a typical coming-of-age SF/fantasy story, where the protaganist must overcome overwhelming odds to triumph over the forces of evil. It's main selling point is that it's a hybrid, giving us dragons and romance in an SF setting (altho the reader isn't necessarily aware that it's SF at first).

Lessa is the Cinderella of the story, working as hard in her hold as the lowliest peasant despite being the heir. The arrival of dragonriders to the hold upsets all of her long-range plans and she eventually ends up 'impressed' to a dragon queen. This opens the way for romance and more adventures as 'thread' (a burning, sometimes fatal thing that falls from the sky like rain) suddenly returns to bedevil the lives of people on Pern.

The story of Lessa is perfectly aimed at the Young Adult audience, with lots of adventure and many chances for the reader to try to figure out what 'thread' is and where the people of Pern are from. I first read it in my 20s and have reread it and the next 3 books in the series many times since (altho after that the series goes down the tubes).

I consider it on the same par as the Foundation series - light SF/fantasy entertainment. It's nowhere near as difficult to read as Tolkien or Cherryh but you don't get the same payoff either.

Great imagination...but somehow it still feels boring
Contrary to all the praiseful reviews, I think this book is a bit boring. Yeah, just as my title says, the writer has a great imagination. Also the story is quite complex - something I like - but somehow it's just boring. This has a lot to do with her writing style. It's so monotonous... A lot of spectaculair things happen, but they seem to go almost unnoticed. She describes action from a distance.

I want to experience the burning of 'the thread' in a dragon's wing..!! Just mentioning it doesn't get me arroused.

The only bit of action is in the dialoges. These are relatively well written, although sometimes hard to follow (it seems one needs to fill in gaps). Yet I kept waiting and waiting for Lessa and F'lar's romance. Hoping dearly for increasing tenderness between the two. No way, suddenly everything is alright... State affairs are the only fun thing to write about, according to Anne McCaffrey.

Well, I don't want to paint a very bad picture. Maybe you should give it a try.

Decent, light fun
Anne McCaffrey's famous Pern series is "Science Fantasy"--that is, it incorporates elements (such as, of course, dragons) commonly accepted as Fantasy, but explains them with science. Science that is sometimes a little shaky, but rational, not magical or mythical, explanations, nonetheless. So one person might call it "Fantasy" and another might call it "Soft Sci-Fi", and they'd both be right.

That aside, the world McCaffrey has created is well-envisioned and fresh. Though the prologue is dry, it's interesting because the world itself is interesting.

"Dragonflight" was just starting to capture my interest and bring me into the world when it kicked me out... with time travel. McCaffrey introduces it too late for it to feel real, and serious logic holes in its operation (of the "why has nobody figured this out before?" type) cause some serious skepticism on the part of the reader. It pulls you out of the world and significantly damages the believability of the story.

As sketchy is it is, the time travel is necessary for this to be a novel rather than a novella... and for many other reasons. But it's still a tired plot device used in a problematic fashion, and it's the crutch this novel rests upon.

The time travel is but one part of why this novel feels like light fantasy. Though they're not caricatures, the characters aren't particularly deep--but they get the job done.

McCaffrey's prose turned me off at first, seeming a little flowery, but it either got better or I got used to it, because it was very easy to read for the rest of the novel.

But more than anything, the reason this novel is merely average is because the premise for the story does not offer a very good conclusion. This isn't a character drama, it's not about relationships. It incorporates those elements and more, but what this story is really about is saving the world. That in itself is not a serious flaw, but the fact that it takes fifty years before the world can be considered 'saved' is one. Because of the admittedly interesting setup, the peril that the dragonriders are fighting will last for half of a century... so since the characters are quite human, McCaffrey has to end the story without truly accomplishing what it set out to do.

And the way she ends it works... sort of. It doesn't feel completely fulfilling, but she did the best she could with what she gave herself to work with.

I could talk about the problems of "Dragonflight" for hours, but the fact is, it's still fun. It's just downright fun to read. Take it too seriously and you'll be disappointed, but come in looking for a "book snack" and you'll enjoy yourself.

A Satisfyingly Rational Approach to Flying Dragons
Anne McCaffrey walks the blurry line between science fiction and fantasy in this pleasing tale of men, dragons, time travel, and natural catastrophe on a faraway planet.

Leesa is an undistinguished servant girl in her home town when the dragon rider F'lar arrives. He recognizes her considerable natural gifts, and takes her home to be queen of Brenden Weyr. Unlike most of the inhabitants of the planet Pern, F'lar and Leesa believe the ancient ballads that foretell the coming of the Threads - a calamitous rain of death that comes from the sky every 200 years. It having been almost 400 years since the last attack, most people believe that the Threads have ceased, or are mere legends that never happened at all, and that the elaborate ongoing defensive preparations are mere idle rituals of the distant past, which more and more are being abandoned. Can Leesa and F'lar convince the people of the error of their ways, and fight off the coming attack of the all-consuming Threads?

The whole argument about sci-fi vs. fantasy is probably not that important, although it can be interesting, and this book makes for a good test case. McCaffrey has done an excellent job of using the tropes of fantasy: an armored warrior class, their daring and headstrong Queen, fire-breathing dragons, a medieval social structure, age-old prophecies, etc..., and giving them just enough historical and scientific background to make them credible. It seems a little too much to call this science fiction - the scientific explanations given are rarely more than a sentence or two, and they in no way dominate the story; but at the same time the very fact that there are explanations puts this book beyond the realm of garden-variety fantasy. There's no magic at work here - this story takes place in a logical universe where everything that happens does so for a reason.

McCaffrey's prose is sometimes a touch awkward, especially towards the beginning of the book, but it's still much easier reading than Tolkien or Cherryh, and the length is not intimidating, although there is a whole series of sequels available to those who want more (and many surely will). This novel is an excellent selection for teens, particularly young women, who may find Leesa easier to identify with than the standard fantasy hero. For them, this should be considered a 5-star selection. ... Read more

Book Description

The kids in Room 207 take advantage of their teacher's good nature until she disappears and they are faced with a substitute. ... Read more

Reviews (28)

Essential For Any Elementary School Teacher in need of a Sub
When I was in second grade my teacher read this book to the class. Everyone loved the story and the illustrations were pretty good. But the next day at class our teacher wasn't there! In her place was a strange woman. Now, if you know anything about kids you understand that they can run on a wolf pack mentality, especially when it comes to substitutes. Under normal circumstances we would have pushed this stranger, this substitute, to the brink of insanity. Sure, we'd have had some casualties headed for the principal's office, but a substitue was an opportunity not to be missed. That is, unless she looked like Miss Viola Swamp!

And boy did this woman ever fit the bill! I can't recall ever seeing a group of second graders so attentive to the day's lesson, so well behaved! Now, the substitute wasn't all that bad, just not as nice as the actual teacher. But we all had Miss Nelson is Missing on our minds and everyone of us kept thinking "What if...?"

I'm just guessing here, but I do believe my second grade teacher knew the affect this book would have on us. She knew we would pay attention in her absence and upon her return great her with enthusiasm and relief. She was right! Now anyone even thinking about becoming an early Elementary School teacher should think well on investing in this book. It may one day prove invaluable to your state of mind when leaving your class to a stranger!

Having a substitute teacher is not always a good thing
Remember when Joni Mitchell told us "You don't know what you've got 'till its gone"? Well, even if you have never heard about the "Big Yellow Taxi" you will realize that this is exactly what the kids in Room 207 learn when their teacher Miss Nelson goes missing. This was the worst behaved class in school and no matter what Miss Nelson tried the class would not settle down, made faces, giggled, squirmed and refused to do their homework. When Miss Nelson does not come to school the next day, the children are all excited because they think that now they can REALLY act up. But it is the children who are in for a rude awakening when they meet their new teacher, Miss Viola Swamp, a woman in an ugly black dress. After a few hours with Miss Swamp, the kids decide that they really miss their old teacher and wonder what could have happened to her?

No parent ever wants to hear that their kids do not like their teacher, but then what teacher wants students who are rude? "Miss Nelson Is Missing," written by Harry Allard and illustrated by James Marshall, teaches children several valuable lessons about appropriate decorum in the classroom without the children recognizing that they are actually learning something reading this book. This book makes having a happy classroom with a pleasant teacher sound like a very good thing indeed. Which, of course, it is! However, I think you will discover that teachers will like this book every more so that children. There are at least two other adventures of Miss Nelson and Room 207 that I know about, plus you can also read this classic children's book in Spanish in "La Senorita Nelson Ha Desaparecido!"

Miss Nelson! Come back, Miss Nelson!
Like a lot of children, I came to discover Miss Nelson in a kind of roundabout way. A child of the 80s, I am a first-generation "Reading Rainbow" graduate. Which is to say, I watched it from the beginning. One of the earliest episodes of this remarkable PBS program was a reading of the story "Miss Nelson Is Back". For years I lay under the mistaken impression that this was the first, heck the ONLY Miss Nelson book put together by that crazy duo of Harry Allard and James Marshall. Imagine my surprise when I discovered (much to my delight) the delightful "Miss Nelson Is Missing". Here is where the Miss Nelson saga all started, and it is a joy to page through.

As the book points out immediately, the kids in Room 207 were the worst behaved class in the whole school. They were rude and nasty and they didn't pay any attention to their sweet-natured teacher Miss Nelson. One day, however, Miss Nelson does not come to school. In her place is the nasty, mean, foul-tempered witch Miss Viola Swamp. A true crone through and through, Miss Swamp immediately whips the children into shape. They are crushed by homework and forced to work that's long and hard. It's not too long after Miss Swamp's arrival that the children start yearning for the lovely Miss Nelson. Unfortunately, no one seems to be able to find her. Finally, one day Miss Nelson comes back and the class is as well behaved as it can be. Only the telltale black dress hanging in Miss Nelson's closet suggests that there may have been more to the class's transformation than initially met the eye.

The story is one that children instantly love. After all, they feel incredibly intelligent when they discover on their own that Miss Nelson and Miss Viola Swamp are one and the same. Combine the funny text with James Marshall's goofy pictures and you've got yourself a fabulous classic. Mr. Marshall once noted that he based the design of Miss Viola Swamp on a teacher he once had (and disliked so much that he was able to reincarnate her years later as the world's ultimate horrible teacher). There's a lot to love in these pictures as well. When a child writes math problems on the blackboard, some of the answers are a little off. Children carry textbooks that read "Facts and More Facts" on their spines. Best of all, Mr. Marshall never fails to put a little drop of his beloved Texas into the pictures somewhere. Altogether, this book's a joy to flip through.

If you've a kid who has a quirky sense of humor and likes to see naughty children put in their places, definitely give this book a shot. It's a beautiful undertaking filled with great visual gags and an amusing text. Also be sure to seek out its sequels.

Miss Nelson is Missing
Miss Nelson is Missing is a great book for ages 5-8 years old.
The book is about a school teacher who has kids that screw around in class all the time. The kids go to school one day and realize Miss Nelson is not the teacher but some mysterious old grumpy lady. She had loaded them with homework, and the kids where very upset. You are is a real surprise on who the teacher really is.
There is a great lesson to be learned, and it is to not be noughty in class. you should also appreciate what your teacher does for you. All and all this is an exalent book for young readers.

Another Childhood Favorite! And It's Still Great Today!
As I mentioned in my review of "Stinky Cheeseman and Other Fairly Stupid Tales," I am taking a Children's Lit class in college, which requires me to read a lot of children's books. So, this is a great excuse for me to write more reviews. If you want to make fun of me for liking these books, so be it. I could care less.

"Miss Nelson is Missing" was always a childhood favorite for me. One of my first picture books I ever read, I think. I even remember that my copy came with a record that you could listen along to as you read. Wow, does that bring back memories. I picked this up a few days ago, and found myself enjoying it as much as I did when I was little, if not more.

This is a book about a sweet and nice teacher who has one of the most terrible classes ever. Everyone is mean and nobody ever listens to her. Miss Nelson knows that something has to be done.

One day, when she doesn't arrive to class, the children are so happy. They think they have driven her away forever. They are all smiles and grins.....until....

They meet Miss. Viola Swamp, an ugly and mean teacher dressed in black and white makeup. She puts them to work, yells at them, and makes them do tons and TONS of homework. Desperate and worried, the children turn to a detective in order to solve the whereabouts of Miss Nelson.

This book is incredible. Fun for all ages, especially the young ones. It's fun and gives a good moral lesson at the same time. It has great writing and very cool pictures. The reading level is pretty easy. Nothing too mind-bending behind it.

I recommend "Miss Nelson is Missing!" to ANYONE! Yes, I don't care how old you are. You're never too old to enjoy a good children's book, and I'm starting to re-discover that. Check this one out whenever you can. And if you have kids, I can almost promise you that this will be a favorite. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Cute book!
I thought this book was the best when I was a kid, and I still love it! It is one of the cutest books I have ever read! I am now in the 8th grade, and I used this book for a speech competition with my friend. We got a superior (not to brag or anything). This book is probabally for kids from ages 5-8.

Beautiful illustrations
This is a great book for primary grade students. The illustrations are large and wonderful to look at. The text captures the devotion of a dog and the aloofness of a cat to perfection! I loved it!

A Perfect Depiction of Dogs and Cats
I Am the Dog I Am the Cat doesn't tell a story - instead it tells about the characters of a cat and a dog. Anyone who has ever owned either will recognize the essence of the animals in Hall's excellent verse, while Moser's elegant illustrations capture the dog and the cat beautifully.

I recommend this book to anyone who has ever had a pet or ever hopes to have one. Excellent for reading aloud, but be prepared for some rather urgent requests for a dog (or a cat) when the book is done. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (4)

No son, the bum in the park is _not_ a suitable playmate!
A child loses his teddy; it is found by a park derelict; who meets and becomes friends with the boy despite the obvious discomfort of the boy's parents. BZZZTTT!!! David McPhail picked the wrong year to write a book about warm, fuzzy homeless people. Why didn't he make the other character a poor child, or a lonely soldier on station far from home, or something like that? In this year of appalling, highly-publicized child abductions, the lesson couldn't be any clearer: children should be instructed to view street people as dangerous until proven otherwise. If McPhail wants to join the ranks of those who make mascots of these people, that's his business. But it is the height of irresponsibility to teach unsuspecting children to do the same.

heart felt and compassion
This book is wonderful. The boy loses his teddy bear and a homeless man finds it. I have used this book to try to explain to my son that there are alot of people who have nothing. He is starting to understand that the boy gave up the bear to the homeless man at the end because the boy realized he had so much more than the man. Now my son wants to give his bear to someone who has less.

A Heartwarming Tale
After reading THE TEDDY BEAR aloud to groups of second graders, I felt compelled to share this wonderful book with others. It's a heartwarming tale of friendship and compassion that children can easily relate to. It brought tears to many eyes. Children and adults will both benefit from reading this book. David McPhail's illustrations are brilliant.

Warmly brought to life with soft color illustrations
Charmingly written and illustrated by David McPhail, The Teddy Bear is the story of a young boy who loves his plush stuffed toy... but when he outgrows it and throws it away, a homeless man takes it for comfort. One day, the homeless man loses his beloved bear, and the boy finds and returns it to him. The Teddy Bear is a highly recommended tale of compassion, warmly brought to life with soft color illustrations. ... Read more

Book Description

David Macaulay takes us on a visual journey through a city's various support systems by exposing a typical section of the underground network and explaining how it works. We see a network of walls, columns, cables, pipes and tunnels required to satisfy the basic needs of a city's inhabitants. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

anatomy of an infrastructure
This book ranks as one of Macaulay's best, as it reveals the networks of systems that are the lifeblood of a city, from various building foundations to sewers to subways, showing how they are constructed and sometimes interact with each other. The text, though minimal, is packed with information, which is supplemented by the superb and detailed drawings. One of the coolest aspects of the book, though, is the views from below, as if a rat with x-ray vision were able to gaze up at this intricate maze of technological wonders. Macaulay's sense of humor is evident throughout, as seen by his inclusion of various critters (including an alligator and an elephant), lots of references to dogs and fire hydrants, a billboard ad for his book PYRAMID, and even a human skull and hand (!!) in one drawing of an excavation. Great fun to read and highly recommended.

"What are those round metal things in the street?"
What Mr. Macaulay does is pull up a city by the roots, shake the dirt off, and take a no-nonsense (well, maybe a little nonsense) look at what is revealed. The illustrations are clear and informative, with just a touch of whimsy. The book covers sanitary sewers, storm sewers, water lines, electricity, telephone, subways and building foundations. A gift for aspiring civil engineers of all ages!

Great Work!
David Macauley's work has just gotten better thru the years ...but even his early books like underground are wonderful! I received this book as a child & I'm now ordering it as a gift. ... Read more

Book Description

Tom, a.k.a. the Great Brain, is off to boarding school. Now his little brother, J. D., is freeto follow in Tom’s ingenious, conniving, and profitable footsteps. All of J. D.’s attemptsat turning a profit fail miserably, and he soon realizes that he just doesn’t have that craftyGreat Brain knack. But when his younger brother is kidnapped, J. D. finds that his littlebrain may not be so ordinary after all.... ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Get the series, they are great, classic children's books
John Dennis Fitzgerald intended to chronicle his youth in Utah for adults, not children. His publisher thought otherwise and the result are these gems. I don't even call them children's lit gems because I find them just as enjoyable as an adult. Before I go on, you should know that Fitzgerald wrote one book about his youth that is for adults, called "Papa Married a Mormon". It is one of the most amazing books on the American west that I have ever read. Sadly, it is out of print, and you may, like me, have to pay an exorbitant sum to get a copy. Trust me, save up and do it. Now back to this book. Every single Great Brain book in the series is pure gold, and the entire set can be had cheaply, so I say buy them all at once. I "put my money where my mouth is" as Tom the Great Brain would say, and bought the lot.

Great for the 4th grade reader
I was introduced to "Me and My Little Brain" back in the late 70's when my 4th grade teacher assigned it to the class. Not only do I remember being obsessed with this book, I made my parents go out and buy the rest of the Great Brain books so I could read them all. It was an excellent beginning for me as a reader, and it became the first series of books I wanted to read, not just because I had to for school. The fact is, I can't wait to share it with my own son when that time comes. I highly recommend this one, and Fitzgerald's entire catelog of Great Brain books.

If I Only Had a Brain
I read these books as child by checking them out of a library. Now almost 20 years later, I have decided to reread them all starting from the beginning. In this book, J.D. decides that he can fill the Great Brain (T.D.)'s shoes, while T.D. is away at the Academy in Salt Lake City. It turns out to be a humbling experience, thus the title, Me and My Little Brain. While some people may tell you that this book isn't as good without the presence of the Great Brain, I found this book just as entertaining as the rest. The storytelling is as superb as the rest. You don't want to miss this book because it introduces the character, Frankie, who allows this book to still be about brothers. Towards the end of this book, we find out that J.D. can still do some amazing stuff even though he has a little brain. This book and The Great Brain at the Academy are parallel books, which describe events happening at the same time, however, you should read this book first to have things make sense.

Great & not so great brain
The third book in the series has mighty big shoes to fill but it lives up to expectations very well.
Other reviewers have expressed concern over the lack of stories with the main character (Tom), but this book is true to it's title and deals with the younger Fitzgerald in very well.\

I applaud the author for taking time to focus on the troubles of a younger sibling when his older (and more conniving) brother is absent.

I enjoyed this book very much when I was younger, and still enjoy it now that I am an adult and father.

This series is one that I hope to share with my children as they grow up, and I hope they will get as much pleasure from the stories as I did.

The Great Brain himself does not appear.
J.D.'s brother Tom, the Great Brain himself, does not appear at all in this particular book. This one takes place after Tom has left for the Catholic Academy and is mostly about J.D. trying to follow in the Great Brain's footsteps, a task that J.D. doesn't fulfill until the last chapter, which makes this one a pretty tedious read. Tom's absence leaves a gaping hole. Try to imagine if J.K. Rowling were to write another book about Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and Harry Potter is not in it. That's how boring 'Me and My Little Brain' is without Tom. But readers of the Great Brain series still shouldn't skip this one. It explains the adoption of a youngest son named Frankie, who will be mentioned in the fourth book, 'The Great Brain at the Academy.' ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Infectis rebus abeo
I sing of a boy and a bear...

Perhaps Vergil would have opted for Pu (Pooh) rather than Aeneid had he the choice, and begun his tome not in the journey from Troy, but rather the journey around the forest.

I have this sitting next to books of equally interesting exercise, such as a translation of modern poetry into Old English. Likewise, Henry Beard's translations of various ordinary statements and phrases in Latin (and cat behaviours in to French) also sit next to this honoured tome.

When I returned from Britain and began to think in theological-training terms, I had to re-acquaint myself with Latin; for an exam I had to memorise one biblical passage, one passage from the Aeneid, and one passage of my choice. I chose Winnie Ille Pu, and, as it had not been excluded from the list, I was permitted this indulgence (I believe that the exam list now has a section of excluded works, including this one, more's the pity).

Do not be frightened off by the fact that this is a book in Latin. It is very accessible, and quite fun to read with the English version of Winnie-the-Pooh at its side. The Latin version has kept many of the original illustrations as well as the page layout forms, for example:

In English:
And then he got up, and said: 'And the only reason for making honey is so as I can eat it.' So he began to climb the tree.

He
climbed
and he
climbed
and he
climbed,
and as he
climbed
he
sang
a little
song
to himself.
It went

like this:

Isn't it funny
How a bear likes honey
Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!
I wonder why he does?

In Latin:

Et nisus est
et
nisus est
et
nisus est
et
nisus est
et nitens carmen sic coepit canere:

Cur ursus clamat?
Cur adeo mel amat?
Burr, burr, burr
Quid est causae cur?

Statements sound much more grand in Latin: 'Ior mi,' dixit sollemniter, 'egomet, Winnie ille Pu, caudam tuam reperiam.' which means, 'Eeyore,' he said solemnly, 'I, Winnie-the-Pooh, will find your tail for you.'

This is a delightful romp through a language study. I have recommended this to friends who want an introduction to Latin, together with the Lingua Latina series, which uses a natural language method for instruction.

Alexander Lenard, the translator, obviously did a great labour of love here, and I agree with the Chicago Tribune's statement that this book 'does more to attract interest in Latin than Cicero, Caesar, and Virgil combined.' One wonders if the Tao of Pooh and the Te of Piglet will be translated into Latin to make them seem 'more philosophical; or indeed, will Winnie ille Pu be likewise translated into Sanskrit and other such languages? It is not uncommon that the entertaining use of language does more for language enrichment and interest than any academic or official push of the tongue. It is no mistake that the Welsh language effort incorporated cartoons from the beginning -- it is natural for people to respond to fun and lively things, and this kind of treatment can be rather tricky, in that the average reader might not be so consciously aware that education is going on...

Winnie-the-Pooh in Akkadian? Hmmm, I feel a Ph.D. dissertation topic coming on...

This work is no small endeavour, but rather a thorough and engaging translation of the entire Pooh story. From the start, when we are introduced to Winnie-the-Pooh, through to the adventures in the Tight Place (in angustias incurrit), when Piglet meets a heffalump (heffalumpum), meeting Kanga and Roo (Canga and Ru), the expedition to the North Pole (Palum Septentrionalem), and finally saying goodbye, the entire story and text is here. One can (as I do) set the Dell Yearling 60th Anniversary Version of Winnie-the-Pooh side-by-side with Winnie-ille-Pu and follow line by line the engaging story, which translates well into this one-time universal language. And why ever not? Surely if there is a story nearly universal appeal, it would be of dear Winnie.

As A.A. Milne was a graduate of the Westminster School (which is housed down the block from my old Parliamentary offices) and of Cambridge, he might consider the translation of his classic work into the classical language a signal honour, and one wonders if, given the fact that Milne studied classical languages himself, if he ever translated any pieces, however small, into those languages that every English schoolboy learns to hate and love.

The story leaves off with Christophorus Robinus heading off to bath (and presumably, bed) ...

Of course, being a person of small importance myself, I identify much more with Porcellus (Piglet) than Pu. I know the struggles against the clerical/hierarchical/academic heffalumpum, and as Pooh has given me a new language of consideration for such conditions, Pu has given me a bilingual command of that language.

Long live the Porcelli amicus!

Dr. Lenard's great legacy
Dr. Alexander Lenard was an hungarian physician, who lived in southern Brazil and dedicated his life to medicine, literature and curious translations. His Latin version of Winnie the Pooh, made in the 50's, stood in oblivion for quite a while, until a fellow publisher in Sao Paulo decided to make 100 copies. One of these got the attention of a Swedish publisher, who prepared 2000 copies as a gift... and the rest is history. Dr. Lenard lived a quiet and secluded life, but managed to become famous in Brazil for a while, first for staying for weeks on the top position of the "Twenty-One" local TV version, then after being mistaken for the nazi officer Joseph Mengele (and chased by the police!).

He would surely have been delighted to know that his unusual idea became a much loved and admired book. He showed us that Latin is still a living and vibrant language, and hopefully will provide a stimulus to the study of Latin for ages to come.

A useful guide to Latin
My wife and I love this book -- as I study my greek and latin I find that there are far too few "real" connections of the languages for me. Imagine my surprise when she suggested this work to remind me of my youth, and yet advance my studies. And, surprisingly enough, it does help! I just wonder if reading it to my little girl (10 months) is a good idea or not. The latin of the Grinch is confusing enough!

Great gift from Uncle Bill
My daughter was delighted to receive this lovely book for Christmas. She totally enjoyed seeing her old friend Winnie the Pooh given the honor of being translated into classical form. It was a great idea for the author to re-create this book, and to continue to perpetuate an interest in Latin. Nice find!

This was a wonderful book, appealing to all audiences.
_Winnie Ille Pu_ has been an amazing help for me, as I am beginning to learn Latin. I am fond of A. A. Milne's Winnie the Pooh books, so this just topped off the list. Having a classic children's book translated into Latin was wonderful, and I extend my greatest thanks to those who translated it. Even if you don't know Latin, it's an incredible introduction to the language! ... Read more

Book Description

Every child needs to have a pet. No one could argue with that.

But what happens when your pet is an owl, and your owl is terrorizing the neighbourhood?

In Farley Mowat’s exciting children’s story, a young boy’s pet menagerie – which includes crows, magpies, gophers and a dog – grows out of control with the addition of two cantankerous pet owls. The story of how Wol and Weeps turn the whole town upside down is warm, funny, and bursting with adventure and suspense. ... Read more

Reviews (30)

Owls in the Family is Great
Owls in the Family is a great book. We think that it is a five star because it has lots of things to look forward to reading about. It also has great details and very fun characters. It takes place in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. A little boy named Billy wants an owl for a pet. Then he gets out on the prairie with his friend Bruce to find owlets. They have many adventures to share with you. For example, Billy finds an own (Weeps) in an oil barrel with boys throwing rocks at him. So go buy the book!

Owls in the Family
Owls in the Family is a good book. This book is good because it has action and adventure. Owl lovers should read this book. It takes place in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. It is all the way in Canada. A boy named Billy wanted an owl and his dream came true. He got an owl. You should get this book now. You should get this book at your nearest bookstore!!

Nostalgia
I read this book back when I was 7 or 8 yrs old, and till this day it still brings wonderful feelings of nostalgia whenever I think of it. Every detail is still pretty fresh in my mind(I'm now 34) due to the authors brilliant attention to detail.

highly recommend it for kids of all ages...

Owls in the Faimily
I think Owls in the Family was an exciting book. It wasnt the best. But it was good.

Owls in the family
I really liked Owls in the family. The reason I liked this book was because it had some adventure.It also had some exciting parts. It also kind of lets you experience having owls as pets. It also explains how the owls look. It also proves how smart owls are. ... Read more