Return To The Hundred Acre Wood (2009) - Plot & Excerpts
It seemed like a nice idea to return to the Hundred Acre Wood, but this just didn't quite work. In places it felt too forced, as if the author were trying too hard to approach Milne's style and missing badly. Features of early C20th life drawn into the stories felt more like clichés, brought there to deliberately reinforce the setting, rather than as natural consequences of the stories. There was a similar feeling to the illustrations. They were trying hard to follow E. H. Shepard but missing the mark.Benedictus introduces a new character, Lottie the Otter, who is appealing in her own way, but doesn't quite fit in with the motif of most of the characters being Christopher Robin's toys. I have to say the stories lift with her presence, but the suggestion is perhaps that Benedictus would be better writing a wholly original book. He introduces markers of Christopher Robin's growing up, a shiny new bicycle and a gramophone, that seem rather too deliberate. The point of Winnie the Pooh is that when Christopher Robin grows up he is no longer part of the magic of the story, which is why he must leave his toys behind. Education and growing up inevitably mean a turning away from soft toys and the wonderful world of childish imagination.Some of the stories were engaging, but were often tedious in a way that Milne never achieved. Ultimately, we shouldn't return to the Hundred Acre Wood. The ending of The House at Pooh Corner was so wrenching that I cried as I read it to my six year old. But this is as it should be. The Winnie the Pooh books describe an era in most of our lives to which we can never return. The current fashion for always trying to return, always trying to recapture something which should be put to rest, seems to inevitably result in these type of results; possibly well-meaning, but ultimately disappointing. I don't know if it is because of my age now or if it's because of how long it has been since I read the original pooh books, but I didn't like this book as well as I remember liking the classic ones.Part of it was definitely the new character that Benedictus brings in, Lottie the Otter. She is a bit annoying and steals page time from the more beloved characters. Though I do have to say that as far as copying the style and voice of the classic books I think he hit pretty close to the mark.Final word: I think that this book will be a great read aloud to children but I doesn't bring me back to my own childhood.
What do You think about Return To The Hundred Acre Wood (2009)?
A very cute book! A good book for anyone looking for a quick adorable read.
—regivila
w klimacie treść, w klimacie rysunki, tylko ja już nie w klimacie
—xxsarahxx
Very poor follow-up and very little of the charm of the original.
—Lindsey
