ORIGINS OF WINNIE-THE-POOH

Happy Winnie-the-Pooh Day!  Today marks the anniversary of the birth of author A.A. Milne in 1882.   Christopher Robin's "Silly Old Bear" holds a special place in my heart, being one of the early favorite characters I introduced my children to during our read aloud time.  I enjoyed Milne's books as much as they did - and there's a reason for that...

Peter Dennis, an English actor who for many years performed a one-man-show, "Bother!", and lent his vocal talents in recording all of Milne's stories and verses (available HERE), said:  For too long, Winnie-the-Pooh has been relegated to children's bookshelves and Disney children's cartoons. But A. A. Milne didn't write the stories and poems for children. He intended them for the child within you – and me – and countless millions of others. Milne rarely read the stories and poems to his son Christopher, preferring rather to amuse him with the works of P.G. Wodehouse. In a letter to me, Christopher wrote, "My father did not write the books for children. He didn't write for any specific market; he knew nothing about marketing. He knew about me. He knew about himself..." [source: Pooh Corner]

photo source: nypl.org

If you're ever in New York City, be sure and stop by the Public Library's Children's Center (their home in the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street), where you can see Christopher Robin's beloved bear and other treasured toys preserved for viewing in a glass cabinet.  Below are some "Fun Facts" from the NYC Public Library website...

FUN FACTS ABOUT THE REAL WINNIE THE POOH AND HIS FRIENDS

-The curious name of "Winnie-the-Pooh" came from Christopher Robin, from a combination of the names of a real bear and a pet swan. During the 1920s there was a black bear named "Winnie" in the London Zoo who had been the mascot for the Winnipeg regiment of the Canadian army. "Pooh" was the name of a swan in When We Were Very Young [Milne's first book of poems].

-Pooh was purchased at Harrods department store in London and given by A.A. Milne to his son Christopher Robin on his first birthday, August 21, 1921. He was called Edward (proper form of "Teddy") Bear at the time.

-The rest of the toys were received as gifts by Christopher Robin between 1920 and 1928.

-Not only Christopher Robin played with the toys; so, apparently, did the family dog, which may have contributed to their well-worn appearance.

-The baby kangaroo stuffed animal (named Roo) was lost in an apple orchard during the 1930s.

-Winnie-the-Pooh had adventures with Piglet, Eeyore, Kanga, Roo, Owl, Rabbit, and Tigger in the 100 Aker (Acre) Wood (based on the Ashdown Forest in southern England, located near the Milne family home).

-Owl and Rabbit were brought to life to join Pooh and pals Eeyore, Piglet, Kanga, Roo, and Tigger, by Milne and illustrator Ernest H. Shepard.

-The stuffed animals range in height from 25" (Eeyore, the biggest) to 4 1/2" (Piglet, the smallest).

Want more information?  You can also see NYP Library's A REAL POOH TIMELINE, here.

Make a Honey Cake, to celebrate the day: Click HERE for the recipe, from my past post, "Proper Tea with Winnie-the-Pooh".

My book recommendation for today: Three Cheers for Pooh, by Brian Sibley. You'll love Brian Sibley's richly detailed account, with lavish illustrations of Ernest Shepard's full-color artwork and original sketches (as well as photographs, newspaper reports, and manuscript pages in Milne's own handwriting). This creatively designed book is perfect for both seasoned Pooh admirers and those eager to get better acquainted with Edward Bear - known to most as: Winnie-the-Pooh.

THE BIG APPLE

Yesterday I wrote a post on the book JOHNNY APPLESEED, illustrated by gifted folk artist Kathy Jakobsen.  Today I'd like to highlight another stunning book, this one illustrated and written by Ms. Jakobsen... about the "Big Apple", where she lived for eight years.

MY NEW YORK is both fact-filled and F-U-N! On the inside front and back cover of the original book (published in 1993) is a folksy map of New York City, dominated by Manhattan, with the city's leading sights pinpointed - including Central Park and the World Trade Center. There are also two harbor views seen from the Staten Island Ferry, one of a sunset, the other a spectacular show of fireworks exploding over the tall ships, Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty, and the New York skyline -- prominently dominated by the Twin Towers.

PAYING HOMAGE IN THE NEW EDITION
About the first edition, and its images of the World Trade Center, Kathy said, ''It's become a positive link to the tragedy. It's become a memory.'' When Jakobsen's publishers asked her to do a new edition for the book's 10th anniversary, she faced the sad dilemma of how to paint the skyline minus the Twin Towers. In the harbor scene of the 2003 anniversary edition, she painted two columns of light where the Twin Towers used to be.

This book is a visual treat. The 10th anniversary edition also includes 7 foldout scenes and 23 new paintings. We learn from a little girl named Becky about The Big Apple in all its splendor, through a chatty letter she is writing to a friend who will soon visit her from the Midwest.

Becky lives near the NY City Public Library (remember the Library Lions?) and gives us an amazing tour of Manhattan, as she visits places with her family and friends. If you've ever been, do you miss it as much as I do...Central Park, Rockefeller Center, Grand Central Station, Radio City Music Hall, the Museum of Natural History, the Empire State and Chrysler Buildings, FAO Schwarz - they're all here in this spectacular book!  At the end there are fun facts and a reader challenge.

MORE BOOKS ABOUT THE CITY THAT NEVER SLEEPS:
This is New York by Miroslav Sasek (originally published in 1960)

New York, New York: The Big Apple from A to Z, by Laura Krauss Melmed, illustrated by Frane Lessac

I can't resist adding:  Stuart Little (New York, through the eyes of a Mouse) by E. B. White, illustrated by Garth Williams.

Do you have any favorite children's books about New York that I neglected to mention? I found quite an extensive list you can choose from, HERE, on a page from "The New York Society Library".

LIBRARY LIONS IN NEW YORK

Have you met Patience and Fortitude, the Lions flanking the steps and entrance of New York City's Public Library? These Magnificent Marble Cats stand sentry and have been greeting guests from all over the world since the landmark building was dedicated on May 23, 1911. I'm sure you've heard the saying, "If walls could talk."  But what if these Lions could talk... 

They've witnessed and survived the Great Depression (that's when they were given their present names - more on that below), they've watched over countless parades, been in movies, have been caricatured in cartoons, and even made into bookends!

These stern statues have been adorned with baseball caps, Christmas wreaths, graduation caps, and flowers...

And several children's books have been inspired by these famous "Library Lions":


ANDY AND THE LION by James Daugherty. Daugherty's retelling of Androcles and the Lion involves an imaginative boy, an imagined lion, and a local lending library. (The book's dedication is written to the New York Public Library Lions).  







LIBRARY LION by Michelle Knudsen, with illustrations by Keven Hawkes.  
This story is about a librarian, Miss Merriweather, and a very loud lion who comes to visit and roars when storytime ends. Miss Merriweather reprimands him and he promises to reform.  In fact, he becomes her best helper! But when she falls and breaks her arm and the Lion ROOAAARRSS! for help, things get a bit confused and the lion is sent away.  But not to worry - everything works out in the end.



Want to read more about these historic statues?  Look for  TOP CATS:  The Life and Times of the New York Public Library Lions, by Susan G. Larkin.

SOME QUICK HIGHLIGHTS ABOUT THE LIONS FROM nypl.org:
According to Henry Hope Reed in his book, The New York Public Library, about the architecture of the Fifth Avenue building, the sculptor Edward Clark Potter obtained the commission for the lions on the recommendation of August Saint-Gaudens, one of America's foremost sculptors. Potter was paid $8,000 for the modeling, and the Piccirilli Brothers executed the carving for $5,000, using pink Tennessee marble. After enduring almost a century of weather and pollution, in 2004 the lions were professionally cleaned and restored. Unfortunately, the popular tradition of decorating the lions also endangered them, so the practice has been discontinued on the recommendation of the conservators.

Their nicknames have changed over the decades. First they were called Leo Astor and Leo Lenox, after The New York Public Library founders John Jacob Astor and James Lenox. Later, they were known as Lady Astor and Lord Lenox (even though they are both male lions). During the 1930s, Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia named them Patience and Fortitude, for the qualities he felt New Yorkers would need to survive the economic depression. These names have stood the test of time: Patience still guards the south side of the Library's steps and Fortitude sits unwaveringly to the north.