The Finding Winnie: The Story of the Real Bear Who Inspired Winnie-the-Pooh
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- Create Date：2021-04-04 13:59:07
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Lindsay Mattick
- ISBN：1408340240
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Summary
Before there was Winnie-the-Pooh， there was a real bear named Winnie。
In 1914， during World War I， Captain Harry Colebourn， a Canadian veterinarian on his way to serve with cavalry units in Europe， rescued a bear cub in White River， Ontario。 He named the bear Winnie， after his hometown of Winnipeg， and he took the bear to war。 Harry Colebourn's real-life great-granddaughter Lindsay Mattick recounts their incredible journey， from a northern Canadian town to a convoy across the ocean to an army base in England 。 。 。 and finally to the London Zoo， where Winnie made a new friend: a boy named Christopher Robin。 Gentle yet haunting illustrations by acclaimed illustrator Sophie Blackall bring the wartime era to life， and are complemented by photographs and ephemera from the Colebourn family archives。 Here is the remarkable true story of the bear who inspired Winnie-the-Pooh。
Reviews
Trinity Smith
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I loved how this book tied in three separate true stories in one book。 This book is about a mother who is telling her little boy about the story of Winnie （Winnie the Poo） and how his character came to life。 I think this would be a fun book to read to students when they are learning about historic fiction in books。
Taylor
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This story is about a man who finds a female bear on the railway， who is being sold for $20。00。 The man names the bear Winnie。 The bear becomes a mascot that gives the soldiers who are training company。 The base of the soldiers moves so Colebourn has to find a new home for the bear Winnie。 He moves Winnie into the London Zoo。 The bear makes a friend while at the zoo with a young boy Christopher Robin。 Colebourn however leaves behind Winnie and starts his own family in Canada after the war。 The c This story is about a man who finds a female bear on the railway， who is being sold for $20。00。 The man names the bear Winnie。 The bear becomes a mascot that gives the soldiers who are training company。 The base of the soldiers moves so Colebourn has to find a new home for the bear Winnie。 He moves Winnie into the London Zoo。 The bear makes a friend while at the zoo with a young boy Christopher Robin。 Colebourn however leaves behind Winnie and starts his own family in Canada after the war。 The characters in the story are very cute and is told by the daughter of the man who found Winnie。 The mother tells her son Cole the true story about the bear Winnie。I gave this story 3 stars because I did enjoy the story however I felt depending on the age that they may get bored with story。 I liked that this was a true story。 It was also interesting to find out that it inspired the story of Winnie the Pooh。 。。。more
Klancy
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The story about Winnie the Book， that is slightly fictional and slightly based upon the true story of the bear that helped be the focus on the book。 A beautiful story with cute pictures and lots of fun information for readers。
Ann
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I occasionally get a pile of children's books to read and enjoy。 This is a Caldedcott Medal Winner。 The illustrations were great and I really like the real story of how Winnie the Pooh Bear came to be。 （I did not fact check）。 I occasionally get a pile of children's books to read and enjoy。 This is a Caldedcott Medal Winner。 The illustrations were great and I really like the real story of how Winnie the Pooh Bear came to be。 （I did not fact check）。 。。。more
زهرا غفاری
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خیلی زیبا، با تصویرسازی های زیباتردلم خواست بخرمش بیارم بذارمش گوشه کتابخونه ام
Pricila
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Finding Winnie was the first book I have read that uses war a the main story line， it wasn't after when I realized this book was the story behind the books series Winnie the Pooh， which is a classic and one of my favorites！ I really enjoyed seeing how we are reading a book about a mom reading a book to her soon it was something different but it worked very well。 I would like to include this in my classroom shelf one day。 Finding Winnie was the first book I have read that uses war a the main story line， it wasn't after when I realized this book was the story behind the books series Winnie the Pooh， which is a classic and one of my favorites！ I really enjoyed seeing how we are reading a book about a mom reading a book to her soon it was something different but it worked very well。 I would like to include this in my classroom shelf one day。 。。。more
Cristina Olivares
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Educator POV- learning about historical situations- what made Winnie so famous？ how do we know Winnie today？- great book about teaching connection between animals and humans: special bond- beautiful illustrationsIllustrations- Caldecott Medal 2016- very detailed， clearly see hair on Winnie- colored pencil？
Christine Layton
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Excellent nonfiction picture book with narrative framing。
Chadi Raheb
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The real story of Winnie the Pooh！
Blake Lumar
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This story was written and told by Lindsay Mattick; the great-granddaughter of Captain harry Colebourn。 Lindsay was telling her son Cole a true bedtime story。 She told him the story of Winnie。 Her great-grandfather Colebourn who was a veterinarian tending to the military horses during World War I brought a bear for $20 from a poacher。 He names the bear Winnie， and she wins over the whole base， so she becomes the mascot。 After a while Colebourn is shipped overseas so he rehomes Winnie to the Lond This story was written and told by Lindsay Mattick; the great-granddaughter of Captain harry Colebourn。 Lindsay was telling her son Cole a true bedtime story。 She told him the story of Winnie。 Her great-grandfather Colebourn who was a veterinarian tending to the military horses during World War I brought a bear for $20 from a poacher。 He names the bear Winnie， and she wins over the whole base， so she becomes the mascot。 After a while Colebourn is shipped overseas so he rehomes Winnie to the London zoo。 Winnie soon gets frequent visits from a young boy named Christopher Robin who named his teddy bear after Winnie。 The teddy bear’s was Winnie the Pooh， everyone’s favorite bear。 This book was based on a true story which makes it even more incredible。 Reading this book for the first time as an adult is wild because I didn’t know that this bear was what my favorite character winnie the pooh was named after。 The illustrations in this book are very detailed and amazing 。。。more
Sandra Heaton
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Finding Winnie is a true story of a little bear and his journey through life。 The dust jack is different from the book cover。 The dust jacket you can see the bear holding a Soldier's leg and in the back a picture of a kid holding a teddy bear。 The cover of the book is of Winnie marching with the Soldiers at night。 This is a great book to teach history， the authors notes， the end pages with all the pictures were fascinating and the story is so touching。 The illustrations with full， double， single Finding Winnie is a true story of a little bear and his journey through life。 The dust jack is different from the book cover。 The dust jacket you can see the bear holding a Soldier's leg and in the back a picture of a kid holding a teddy bear。 The cover of the book is of Winnie marching with the Soldiers at night。 This is a great book to teach history， the authors notes， the end pages with all the pictures were fascinating and the story is so touching。 The illustrations with full， double， single pages bleed spread， crossing gutter， vignettes， frames， home-away-home and illustration sequence are some of the elements found。 。。。more
Skyla Thompson
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When I was little I loved Winnie the Pooh and I never knew it was a true story or that there was an actual book about it。 I still love Winnie the Pooh and my niece does as well so it'll be so cool to tell her this story。 This story of how Winnie came about was absolutely mind blowing。 This little boy Cole wanted to hear a bear story， so his mom Lindsay told him one。 When Harry， a veterinarian， went to war he found a man with a bear。 He bought the bear and raised it to be part of the troop。 The b When I was little I loved Winnie the Pooh and I never knew it was a true story or that there was an actual book about it。 I still love Winnie the Pooh and my niece does as well so it'll be so cool to tell her this story。 This story of how Winnie came about was absolutely mind blowing。 This little boy Cole wanted to hear a bear story， so his mom Lindsay told him one。 When Harry， a veterinarian， went to war he found a man with a bear。 He bought the bear and raised it to be part of the troop。 The bear became a real member of the troop and traveled with them， but when they were being sent to France Harry knew Winnie could not go。 So he brought Winnie to the zoo and she grew up there and meet a boy named Christopher who became Winnie’s best friend。 The pictures were very detailed which you could see through hair， fur， facial features， etc。 I also liked how the colors matched the tone of the story and the events that went on throughout。 。。。more
Darlene Ivy
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Lovely story about Winnie， the abandoned cub that was bought by a Canadian soldier/veterinarian on his way to Europe and World War I。 The cub became a mascot for the regiment and was left with the London Zoo when the soldier had to go to the battlegrounds。 At the zoo， Winnie， named for Winnipeg， met Christopher Robin and A。A。 Milne who used their friendship as inspiration for the Winnie the Pooh stories。 A bedtime story of the story of Winnie （told by a mother and interrupted by the child listen Lovely story about Winnie， the abandoned cub that was bought by a Canadian soldier/veterinarian on his way to Europe and World War I。 The cub became a mascot for the regiment and was left with the London Zoo when the soldier had to go to the battlegrounds。 At the zoo， Winnie， named for Winnipeg， met Christopher Robin and A。A。 Milne who used their friendship as inspiration for the Winnie the Pooh stories。 A bedtime story of the story of Winnie （told by a mother and interrupted by the child listener） follow by another story told by the child listener。 A family tree and family documents trace the story from the soldier to the young listener。 The author is the great-granddaughter of the soldier。 。 。。。more
Brooke
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Sweet story。 Love the family history。 We've been to White River to see the statue there。 I can't remember if we've seen the one in Winnipeg。 :） Sweet story。 Love the family history。 We've been to White River to see the statue there。 I can't remember if we've seen the one in Winnipeg。 :） 。。。more
Alex
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A beautiful story， I love how the two stories intertwine。
Alicia
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I would like to use this book when teaching the idea of biography as nonfiction text as a way to increase the amount of nonfiction text in a younger class room。 The story is also interesting because there are two stories happening side by side。 A mother is telling her son a bedtime story， that is the story we are reading of when his great great grandfather went off to WW 1 took take care of the horses at the front。 Then we meet the main charter who is the black bear cub and the future inspiratio I would like to use this book when teaching the idea of biography as nonfiction text as a way to increase the amount of nonfiction text in a younger class room。 The story is also interesting because there are two stories happening side by side。 A mother is telling her son a bedtime story， that is the story we are reading of when his great great grandfather went off to WW 1 took take care of the horses at the front。 Then we meet the main charter who is the black bear cub and the future inspiration for Winnie the pooh。 。。。more
Savannah Burkhalter
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This book is a great book！ Good for a read aloud for 1st or 2nd grade。 It tells about a story a bear that is loved and what the bear in the future is。
Veronica
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What a cute little informative book！ So happy to know this true story。
Ryan DeMarois
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Summary The book is about an animal doctor who goes off to war。 On his way he meets a remarkable bear who goes with him all over the place until he is shipped off to war。 The bears name is Winnie， and is the most loved bear in the world。 AnalysisI loved this book。 I have always been a Winnie the Pooh fan， and hearing the origin story behind it is so cool。 It was cool to see how the book was able to give the backstory and the creation of the fictional bear all in the same book。 ApplicationI would Summary The book is about an animal doctor who goes off to war。 On his way he meets a remarkable bear who goes with him all over the place until he is shipped off to war。 The bears name is Winnie， and is the most loved bear in the world。 AnalysisI loved this book。 I have always been a Winnie the Pooh fan， and hearing the origin story behind it is so cool。 It was cool to see how the book was able to give the backstory and the creation of the fictional bear all in the same book。 ApplicationI would definitely read this to my students。 It is a truly heartwarming story that shows the backstory of Winnie the Pooh。 This could be read to any age level， and could be an interesting book for the students to get inspiration about using their own creativity。 。。。more
Jay Marshall
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Summary:This man named Henry was going off to war to be an animal doctor and to keep the horses healthy during war。 On the way to Valcartier， they stopped to get out and stretch and Henry came across this man that had a bear and Henry bought this bear for 20 dollars。 Henry named this bear Winnipeg， Winnie for short。 But then after a while， Henry had to give Winnie to the London zoo because the army was going to France。 This little boy named Christopher Robin and his father went to the zoo that d Summary:This man named Henry was going off to war to be an animal doctor and to keep the horses healthy during war。 On the way to Valcartier， they stopped to get out and stretch and Henry came across this man that had a bear and Henry bought this bear for 20 dollars。 Henry named this bear Winnipeg， Winnie for short。 But then after a while， Henry had to give Winnie to the London zoo because the army was going to France。 This little boy named Christopher Robin and his father went to the zoo that day and the boy had a teddy bear but could not come up with a name for his bear and he came up to see Winnie and he instantly knew what to name his teddy bear。。。 Winnie！！ And that is when Winnie the Pooh started。 Analysis: This is amazing！！ Finding out how Winnie the Pooh got his name from a man that was an army doctor and some random bear that was given to the London Zoo by a man named Henry。 Application:I could use this as a history lesson that you never know how something can get started。 Saying that something that may seem so irrelevant can make history and bring joy to many people that you will never meet or ever know。 。。。more
Isaac Frost
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A young boy asks his mother to tell him a bedtime story。 His mother proceeds to tell him the story about how Winnie-the-Pooh came to be。 His mother shows him how her Great， Great， Grandfather raised Winnie the bear and took the bear to the zoo。 Winnie soon became good friends with Christopher Robin and thus， Winnie-the-Pooh was born。This book is a great backstory on how the actual Winnie-the-Pooh came to be。 I found the book to be very informative and to be a fun way for telling a good true stor A young boy asks his mother to tell him a bedtime story。 His mother proceeds to tell him the story about how Winnie-the-Pooh came to be。 His mother shows him how her Great， Great， Grandfather raised Winnie the bear and took the bear to the zoo。 Winnie soon became good friends with Christopher Robin and thus， Winnie-the-Pooh was born。This book is a great backstory on how the actual Winnie-the-Pooh came to be。 I found the book to be very informative and to be a fun way for telling a good true story。I believe that this book could be used in showing students that they are going to have to sometimes move on from their favorite things in life。 Just as Harry had to leave Winnie at the zoo， we have to sometimes leave the best things in life so that we can move on with life。 。。。more
Katie
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Very cute and true story。
Jessica
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Utterly charming account of the real-life Winnie-the-Pooh。 I love the photo album back matter。
Sabrina
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One of the most adorable， intriguing picture books that I've ever read to a student。 He was captivated by the plot twists and mesmerized by this true story of how Winnie the Pooh came to be。 One of the most adorable， intriguing picture books that I've ever read to a student。 He was captivated by the plot twists and mesmerized by this true story of how Winnie the Pooh came to be。 。。。more
Hannah Lewczynski
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This story is illustrated in watercolor painting and colored pencil， and begins with a mystical feel due to the trees appearing on the bedroom walls and the owl on the shelf behind Cole and his mother。 The story also starts off nicely with "A very long time ago。。。"， which young readers tend to like。 The artwork depicting the veterinarian is done in very simple colors and the artist uses zig zag line to give the coat he wears dimension or texture。 The illustrator uses soft and long lines for the This story is illustrated in watercolor painting and colored pencil， and begins with a mystical feel due to the trees appearing on the bedroom walls and the owl on the shelf behind Cole and his mother。 The story also starts off nicely with "A very long time ago。。。"， which young readers tend to like。 The artwork depicting the veterinarian is done in very simple colors and the artist uses zig zag line to give the coat he wears dimension or texture。 The illustrator uses soft and long lines for the horses mane and it makes it look wispy， like their is wind。 The field behind them has long lines that gradually get shorter as it travels a further distance， which creates depth。 Even the horse as cloud shaped spots on his neck。 The illustrator does a great job of showing time pass by using rectangles filled with art work of the trains location。 The rectangles do a good job of signifying the time has passed without even needing words to tell you。 The author does a great job at showing the dialogue between the mother and child as they talk about the story of Winnie （or Winnipeg）， and this could be either beneficial or counter intuitive for a young reader。 The switching between characters could either be confusing or it could help spur thought or conversation between the readers and their audience， this is why I rated the book a 4 star。 The line work on Winnie is exquisite with his short haired strokes on his head and longer strokes once you get down to his body。 The colors are a little muted while still being colorful。 The illustrator does an amazing job at building the plot by making the sea look rocky and the sky an ominous color of red。 The next page does just as well with the ominous rain and growth of Winnie。 When Henry takes Winnie to the city， the hills are crosshatched to give dimension and texture。 The sad part of the book finally arrives and its when Harry brings Winnie to the zoo before he leaves for France， the illustrator keys us into this before the page is even here， because the page before it includes Winnie， unexpectant， with a smile， and Henry with a frown。 When the mother says Winnie and Henry's story is over， Cole gets sad， but then his mother begins a new story。 One in which a little boy has a stuffed bear that he could never find the right name for。 One day， he goes to the zoo （the same zoo Winnie is at） and sees a REAL bear。 He is allowed in the bears enclosure and they become great friends。 He names the stuffed bear Winnie the Pooh， after Winnie， and he takes his stuffed bear on all kinds of adventures in the woods by his house。 The mother explains that Harry had Fred， who has Laureen， who had Lindsey， who ahd Cole！ The illustrator does a beautiful job at illustrating a "family tree" in which the branches encircle the generations。 The illustrator mostly uses green， brown， blue， pink， and yellow to illustrate the pictures。 This book does a great job of giving "Winnie the Pooh" a true story and cute background！ My favorite part of the book was the ending when they show all the real photos of Winnie and Christopher Robin and Harry。 THE END ALMOST MADE ME CRY。 A great book， and it may even be better for adults who really know Winnie the Pooh inside and out and want to know the real story。 This book would be great for kids aged 4-10。 。。。more
Hannah McMullin
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A young veterinarian stumbles across a young cub who he names Winnie。 He enjoys her presence and cares for her until he must leave for the army。 He takes her to the zoo。 This story was captivating as it enclosed the true story about Winnie the bear。 The book was carefully illustrated and written to be enjoyed by people of all ages， young and old。 I gave this book four stars because it was wonderful， but as a book that was meant for younger children， it grew quite lengthy。 I am concerned that whe A young veterinarian stumbles across a young cub who he names Winnie。 He enjoys her presence and cares for her until he must leave for the army。 He takes her to the zoo。 This story was captivating as it enclosed the true story about Winnie the bear。 The book was carefully illustrated and written to be enjoyed by people of all ages， young and old。 I gave this book four stars because it was wonderful， but as a book that was meant for younger children， it grew quite lengthy。 I am concerned that when sharing this with younger kids， it will be too long。 I believe this book would be perfect for upper elementary。 。。。more
Feralucce Savage
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Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World’s Most Famous Bear is the story of Winnipeg， the bear cub， the inspiration behind the series of children's books。 Her mother had been killed by trapper， and she was purchased by an army veterinarian and quickly became the mascott of the regiment。 The story is well written， with warmth and humor。 Children will find it endearing。 The art style is very recognizable as that of Sophie Blackall。 Strong lines and colors that are perfect for the subject matte Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World’s Most Famous Bear is the story of Winnipeg， the bear cub， the inspiration behind the series of children's books。 Her mother had been killed by trapper， and she was purchased by an army veterinarian and quickly became the mascott of the regiment。 The story is well written， with warmth and humor。 Children will find it endearing。 The art style is very recognizable as that of Sophie Blackall。 Strong lines and colors that are perfect for the subject matter – visually interesting。 。。。more
Holly Griffin
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Winnie is a delightful story about a man named Harry Colebourn who finds an unexpected friend at train stop and soon introduces to his fellow troops and Colonel。 The story is narrated by a mother named Lindsay， who tells this cozy tale to her son Cole。 Lindsay begins the story by introducing Harry Colebourn， his passion for helping animals， and a purchase that he made （that eventually impacted the world）。 The book walks through key moments in Winnie's life- who is a bear- and eventually is revea Winnie is a delightful story about a man named Harry Colebourn who finds an unexpected friend at train stop and soon introduces to his fellow troops and Colonel。 The story is narrated by a mother named Lindsay， who tells this cozy tale to her son Cole。 Lindsay begins the story by introducing Harry Colebourn， his passion for helping animals， and a purchase that he made （that eventually impacted the world）。 The book walks through key moments in Winnie's life- who is a bear- and eventually is revealed to be the inspiration for the character， Winnie the Pooh。 Not only may the reader be pleasantly surprised by the news， but the story soon enlightens readers that not only is there a connection between the bear and the world-famous character， but there is a bloodline connection between the man who befriended the bear and the narrator and her son Cole。 Throughout the soothing tale of Winnie ， there are slightly altered snapshots of Lindsay and her son Cole that encapsulate the reactions of Lindsay telling the story to her son as expresses Cole being sad， glad， and delighted！ The illustrations within the book has a subtle fascinating distinction that wonderfully encompasses the mood of the story and even alludes to the seasoned drawings of the OG Winnie the Pooh。 The book is certainly one to be read aloud to a class， or read a bit before settling down before a nights end。 Children and adults of all ages can find an appreciation for this story and even more so for people who once and still do enjoy a good Winnie the Pooh story。 I very much enjoyed the biography of the journey of how Winnie the Pooh came to be and hope to one day read the story to a classroom of students who may or may not of heard of good ole' Winnie the Pooh。 。。。more
Erika
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I loved reading the history about how Winnie-the-Pooh came to be。 The story follows a veterinarian， named Harry Colebourn。 When Harry was shipping out for the war， he encountered a baby bear cub。 Harry decided to take the cub with him and named him Winnie。 Harry was unable to take Winnie to France， so instead Harry took Winnie to the London Zoo。 It is there that little Christopher Robin meets Winnie and is inspired to name his stuffed bear， Winnie-the-Pooh。 Harry's journey and friendship with Wi I loved reading the history about how Winnie-the-Pooh came to be。 The story follows a veterinarian， named Harry Colebourn。 When Harry was shipping out for the war， he encountered a baby bear cub。 Harry decided to take the cub with him and named him Winnie。 Harry was unable to take Winnie to France， so instead Harry took Winnie to the London Zoo。 It is there that little Christopher Robin meets Winnie and is inspired to name his stuffed bear， Winnie-the-Pooh。 Harry's journey and friendship with Winnie is inspiring。 For a picture book that is based off of a true story it was very enjoyable to read。 I usually find non-fiction to be very dry and word but that was not the case with this book。 The illustrations were beautiful and full of color。 I love how at the end of the story， the author included pictures of the real Winnie， Christopher Robin， Harry Colebourn， and his descendants。 。。。more
Veronica
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