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# A Century of Winnie-the-Pooh
October 08 2026
Written by Liz Amsden.
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ACCORDING TO LIZ - A.A. Milne’s first volume of Winnie-the-Pooh stories was published on October 14, 1926. His subsequent book, Now We are Six, was a collection of children’s poems, some of which included the same characters. Then, with the real Christoper Robin stepping out of early childhood, their chronicles concluded in 1928 with The House at Pooh Corner, a farewell to the fantasy friends brought to life in the first book.
Pooh, in his inevitable twisting of words, calls the introduction to the last book a “contradiction” and in many ways it is, as the reader bids good-bye to the characters and magic of the imaginary world that, in a child’s mind, is so fundamentally real. Something that I and others would love to recapture and draw around us as protection against the wild world of today.
Both books, fondly remembered from my youngest, pre-Disney years and now in public domain don’t include some unique dialogue and other Disney copyright-protected 1966 innovations such as Pooh wearing a red t-shirt.
All quotes here are fair use including one of my favorite words as a child: “organdized.”
If you are hungering for a return from a world of legal disclaimers to the idyllic peace of the Hundred Acre Woods of A.A. Milne and Christopher Robin, free from the freneticism of the Walt Disney cartoons, read on.
Winnie-the-Pooh and the Woods will live forever between the pages and in the recesses of our minds. In a simpler, kinder time in our lives. To a world that I, for one, could again escape, to flee the worst of what the last 100 years have visited on mankind.
Where there still exists a sense of wonder.
Where sometimes the only way of a bear getting downstairs is bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head.
Where Pooh can wisely opine: “It’s a very funny thought that if Bears were Bees, they’d build their nests at the bottom of trees.”
Where, in tracking the Woozle, he and Piglet stalk their own tracks in circles.
Where Milne’s creations work together to give Eeyore a birthday and nothing goes right… but it was their thoughts that counted and made him as happy as a donkey could be.
Where, despite their initial efforts to drive Kanga from the Forest, they make fast friends with her and rescue Roo when he falls in the stream and is washed down a waterfall while looking for the North Pole.
During this time, Christopher Robin interacts with all his toys as if they were real; and for a child, one’s toys and their adventures are real: a stuffed bear with little brain can rescue Piglet from a flood, have a party where he receives three cheers and, every evening, they everyone knows there is the morning to look forward to with wonder for what will ensue.
“I knew when I met you an adventure was going to happen.”
Pooh getting his head stuck in a jar of honey because he was so greedy and then scaring the others off because they thought he was a fearsome Heffalump.
Or walking in the snow:
“The more it snows (Tiddely pom)
The more it goes (Tiddely pom)
The more it goes (Tiddely pom)
On snowing.
“And nobody knows (Tiddely pom)
How cold my toes (Tiddely pom)
How cold my toes (Tiddely pom)
Are growing.”
And, demonstrating that the book’s Tigger definitely gave birth to the Disney version, Pooh can rhyme: “Whatever his weight in pounds, shillings and ounces, he always seems bigger because of his bounces.”
So often the simplest thoughts are the best:
“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.”
“For I am a Bear of Very Little Brain and long words Bother me. It is more fun to talk with someone who doesn't use long, difficult words but rather short, easy words like ‘What about lunch?’”
On friendship: “Promise me you'll never forget me because if I thought you would, I'd never leave.”
“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.”
And: “Sometimes, the smallest things take up the most room in your heart.”
Many of the most poignant lines, the ones that last a hundred years and still resonate today include the interchange between Pooh, Piglet and Christopher Robin about Tigger being all right, when Pooh asserts that everybody is really all right and Christopher Robin backs him up.
Then there’s the wisdom in:
“Weeds are flowers, too, once you get to know them.”
“You can't stay in your corner of the Forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes.”
Finally, evoking heartfelt feelings, “Some people care too much. I think it's called love.”
“How do you spell love?
You don't spell it… you feel it.”
Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind. “Pooh!” he whispered. “Yes, Piglet?” “Nothing,” said Piglet, taking Pooh's paw. “I just wanted to be sure of you.”
“Promise me you'll always remember: You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.”
Winnie-the-Pooh, Alice in Wonderland, and the Mary Poppins books were all written at a time when children reveled in the simple joy of a parent or trusted grown-up making up a story.
Stories meant to be passed along, partially through the osmosis of sitting on the warm lap of a caring adult, not isolated and huddled over a screen or watched on TV or in a theater where asking a question brings commands to “Hush!”
Books taking them into worlds of wonder, where they could visit again and again with their favorite characters and weave them into their own games and fantasies.
Where they passed hours in worlds of their own imagination, where Christopher Robin could travel to Africa and back in a morning.
Stories are entertainment but they often contain moral guidelines, ropes that children can hold onto as they grow up and the world becomes significantly more complex and less innocent.
For those kids unlucky enough to already be living in a dystopia, positive stories can offer an escape and a hope for a better future.
And for all of us, hope.
Grounded in the memories of Pooh and Christopher Robin at the end of the book, and now us, that wherever we go and whatever happens, in some enchanted place a little boy and his Bear will always be playing.
***(Liz Amsden** is a former Angeleno now living in Vermont and a regular CityWatch contributor. She writes on issues she’s passionate about, including social justice, government accountability, and community empowerment. Liz brings a sharp, activist voice to her commentary and continues to engage with Los Angeles civic affairs from afar. She can be reached at ****.)*
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