Caldecott Monday: Finding Winnie

[osprey_archer]

I have a new project! In the same vein as my Newbery project, I’m going to read all the Caldecott book winners. Although this time I intend to be more systematic about it, and start at the beginning (with the 1938 winner, Animals of the Bible: A Picture Book) and work my way up to the present day.

...Although I have already thrown this plan to the four winds, because I so wanted to read the 2016 winner, Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World’s Most Famous Bear. The behind-the-scenes story of the bear that inspired Winnie the Pooh! Who doesn’t want to read that?

I actually found the illustrations rather lackluster, although this may be just a matter of personal taste; I prefer illustrations that are either dramatically colored or deliciously detailed, and these are more delicate and quiet and pale.

But the story is charming. While traveling to the army training camp at the beginning of World War I, a young soldier bought a bear cub from a trapper at the railway station. The cub, named Winnipeg - Winnie for short - became the regimental mascot until the company was ready to ship out to the battlefields of France, at which point the young soldier gave the bear to the London Zoo.

Zoos must have been more loosely run in those days, because the zoo was apparently like “Yeah, sure, a random bear, why not.” So they gave Winnie her own exhibit, and that is where Christopher Robin Milne met her and decided to name his own teddy bear after her.

And I mean really met her, because the zookeepers let him into the enclosure to play with the bear cub. WHAT. WHAT KIND OF ZOOKEEPER IS JUST LIKE, “YES, TINY CHILD, GO INSIDE AND PLAY WITH THE BEAR CUB THAT COULD BITE YOUR HAND OFF.” (There’s a photo at the end of the book of Christopher Robin hanging out with Winnie. They are about the same height.)

Not gonna lie, I’m totally jealous. Who doesn’t want to go to the zoo and make a bear friend?

Comments

[inspirethoughts.livejournal.com]

What is the Caldecott book winner? Is that a kind of competition for authors?

I would love to read the story of the beginning of Pooh. :) And always thought Winnie was a "He". :P

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

The Caldecott medal is given out every year to the best picture book.

And Winnie the Pooh was a he in the book. It's just the bear in the zoo who was a she.

[inspirethoughts.livejournal.com]

Aah nice. Never heard before of such a medal.

Oh I C...I was confused for a bit..:)

[silverusagi]

I feel like I should sit down a read all the Newbury books at some point...

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

I had a lot of fun doing it, so I'd say it's definitely worth a try. I didn't like all the books, but with most of them I was glad that I read them; there were only a few where I couldn't see why they'd won an award at all.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Wow, yeah, I can't imagine a zoo run like that now.

Christopher Robin Milne must surely have been an exception though? I mean, could they really let *every* kid play with the animals in the zoo (or even just one animal)?

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

I would presume not, but then again I would have presumed that they wouldn't let any of the children into the bear cages, so really, who knows? But A. A. Milne was a famous writer even before Winnie the Pooh, so I think that must have given him some clout with the zookeepers.