Dear You,
I found the reading by the author himself on http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2014/02/13/a-a-milne-reads-winie-the-pooh-1929/ - a very inspiring blog with oh so many interesting subjects.
And as I love Winnie-The-Pooh so much, I wanted to share it - enjoy (the story starts after a few seconds).
So have a lovely Valentine! My next blog will follow soon, but now
I have to leave - I have something to do - I suppose I really ought to do it now. (...) It isn't the sort of thing you can do in the afternoon, (...), it's a very particular morning thing, that has to be done in the morning, and, if possible, between the hours of - What would you say the time was?" "About twelve," said Winnie-the-Poo (...).
"Between, as I was saying, the hours of twelve and twelve-five. So, really, dear old Pooh, if you'll excuse me -
Yours
Britta
Nobody plays piano like that any more, and nobody talks like that either - 'Thet' for 'That', and 'Grend' for Grand', etc.
ReplyDeleteDear Tom,
ReplyDeleteI wondered too, thought it might be a special dialect? But the story is funny nevertheless.
This was the upper-class, BBC accent up until about 1950.
DeleteI could bathe and melt in some BBC-voices!
DeleteA lovely story, one I must remember next time I find myself following myself!
ReplyDeleteDear Geo.,
DeleteI love your way to look at it - sometimes thoughts go round and round - but you as a good raconteur know that you must do just that: varying a set of ideas in one story, then bring up a surprise.
These stories were part of my children's early years and I still have them. There was a record - and I think I still have it - of something similar to this. What a lovely trip down memory lane!
ReplyDeleteDear Pondside,
ReplyDeletewonderful to own a record of him! Winnie-the-Pooh (and lots and lots of other British children books) were read by us to our son - he still quotes from them (e.g. the 'very urgent 11 o'clock appointment' of Piglet, which comes in ever so useful)
Britta, I'm sure I've asked you this before, but have you read The Tao of Pooh?
ReplyDelete
ReplyDelete'..Pooh remarked that his understanding of Taoist principles had been passed down to him from certain Ancient Ancestors.
"Like who?" I asked.
"Like Poo Tao-tse, the famous Chinese painter," Pooh said.
"That's Wu Taot-se."
"Or how about Li Pooh, the famous Taoist poet?" Pooh asked cautiously.
"You mean Li Po", I said.
---- Yes, dear Suze, I read about P'u, the Uncarved Block.
But I thank you heartily for reminding me to read it again - I have read it so long ago!
Oh, clever, how you wove in Pooh! May you have done what had to be done between 12 and 12:05!
ReplyDeleteDear Sue,
Deleteand I had such a lot to do the last days - all very nice - friends staying here with me.
I had to close my eyes and listen carefully to the words to make them out, and that is also a delightful way to listen to Winnie-the-Pooh.
ReplyDeleteDear Joanne,
ReplyDeletelistening with closed eyes, as children do, makes one 'see' with one's imagination - and Milne, by using very onomatapoetic words, creates action - "It is either Two Woozles and one, as it might be, Wizzle, or Two, as it might be, Wizzles and one, if so it is, Woozle." One gets the dizziness from running around in circles and has to laugh at the shere fun of Wizzles and Woozles.
Who doesn't love Winnie the Pooh? I hope today's parents are still reading the stories to their children.
ReplyDeleteDear Susan,
DeleteI hope that too - I remember having as much joy as our son - one is allowed to read all these beautiful children books again!