BBC News reports that EH Shepard, the illustrator of the Winnie the Pooh books, disliked that his illustrations for a children’s book overshadowed the political cartoons he dedicated his life to.  I am not sure I agree with the title of the article, “The man who hated Pooh.”  But I am sure Shepard was frustrated by the huge response to a side project and the fact that he and Milne did not get along.  Yet no one can deny that those line drawings are a large part of the success of “that silly old bear” and that they are as beloved or even more beloved than Milne’s dancing words. 

Golly, I’ve got to dig out my copy of When We Were Very Young and read some poems.  This article has got me wanting to read those books once again. 

Katherine Paterson has won the 2006 Astrid Lingren Memorial Award which is given for lifetime achievement in children’s literature.  How wonderful!  She certainly deserves it for books like Bridge to Terabithia, The Great Gilly Hopkins, Lyddie, and Jacob Have I Loved, and those are only my personal favorites.  Her body of work is simply amazing.