Book Review: Winnie: The True Story of The Bear Who Inspired Winnie-The-Pooh

Author: Sally M. Walker Illustrator: Jonathan D. Voss Henry Holt and Co. January 2015

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Synopsis (From Publisher):

Who could care for a bear?

When Harry Colebourn saw a baby bear for sale at the train station, he knew he could care for it. Harry was a veterinarian. But he was also a soldier in training for World War I.

Harry named the bear Winnie, short for Winnipeg, his company’s home town, and he brought her along to the training camp in England. Winnie followed Harry everywhere and slept under his cot every night. Before long, she became the regiment’s much-loved mascot.

But who could care for the bear when Harry had to go to the battleground in France? Harry found just the right place for Winnie while he was away — the London Zoo. There a little boy named Christopher Robin came along and played with Winnie — he could care for this bear too!

Sally Walker’s heartwarming story, paired with Jonathan Voss’s evocative illustrations, brings to life the story of the real bear who inspired Winnie the Pooh.

CWR Review:

This is the story behind A. A Milne’s infamous Winne-The-Pooh series! It all begins when a Canadian Army Veterinarian, Harry Colebourn, saw a man sitting at a train station with a bear. The man had accidentally shot the bear’s mother but did not want to keep the cub. Harry purchased the bear for 20$ and named the sweet and gentle bear “Winnipeg” which eventually became Winnie. Winnie won the hearts of all the soldiers, who eagerly took turns – cub-sitting when Harry was on duty. Harry and Winnie spent lots of time together, she even slept under his cot at night! When Harry was being called to help take care of wounded horses in France, he had to make the difficult decision to leave Winnie at the London Zoo.

There she quickly became a favorite of visitors for her gentleness, children were even able to ride on her! Even after the war, harry decided that the zoo would be the best place for Winnie, where she continued to be a favorite animal of the zoo customers. One day, a young boy named Chrstopher Robin came to the zoo and had the opportunity to give Winnie milk. He loved the bear and talked about her all the way home. He even changed the name of his beloved stuffed animal, Edward, to “Winnie”. The boy’s father was a well-known author, and that night began to tell his son the story of a bear named Winnie the Pooh who lived deep in the forest

I read the adventures of Christopher robin and Winnie the Pooh to my children when they were small, and we thoroughly enjoyed them! A A Milne has a unique ability to climb into a child’s head and create stories that relate to those experiences. It was exciting to read this short back drop to his famous works. I had no idea it began with a relationship between and soldier and his beloved bear cub. The vocabulary is simple and easy to follow, the illustrations have a typical cartoon look but not the kind that is off-putting, it is bright, and expressions and objects are portrayed skillfully.

Heart warming, emotional, fun, get yours here or here.

Themes- history behind literature series, biography