The men who created Winnie the Pooh - The lives of A.A Milne and E.H Shepard - BY James Campbell

Firstly, James Campbell did an awesome job with this duel-biography! And I am glad to have been given the opportunity to read and review it. 💎

There are so many awesome facts crammed in here! I learnt a few things that both surprised me and made me laugh out loud throughout. I for one didn’t know that H.G Wells was A.A Mine’s maths teacher 😲 or that A.A Mine’s father was the house master of the school he and his brothers attended and H.G Wells taught at…I find facts like this super cool, although I’m not so sure how cool it would have been to have either of my parents as teachers in my school. lol My siblings and I learnt a lot at home from both of our parents and I’m glad they were learnt there, at home! 😉

Christopher Robin (born 1920) was the son of A.A Milne and his wife Daphne. After the birth of Christopher Robin, Milne started to write snippets of poetry in a light-hearted, whimsical style, for children but aimed at resonating with grown-ups as well. At first he did these for his own amusement and for the pleasure of writing for his precious son, but gradually he took some of his scribblings and started to work them up into pieces he thought might, at some point, be suitable for publication. 👌🏻

2026 - The Centenary of the publication of Winnie-The-Pooh - Also marks the 70th anniversary of the death of A.A.Milne and the 50th anniversary of the death of Ernest Shepard.

Above all Winnie The Pooh is hands down my all time favourite, of which Tigger is my favourite character! 💕

….Now I want to read The Wind in the Willows ☺️

This is a charming deep dive into the lives of A. A. Milne and E. H. Shepard. Packed with never-before-seen archives, it’s part biography, part celebration: racing their friendship, creative sparks, and the legacy of a honey-loving bear.

James Campbell’s book is very well researched and covers both men’s lives from birth to death and beyond, I found it fascinating and very well written , The images and photos used throughout add to the enjoyment of the reading process. This has to be one of the best books I’ve read all year, a fantastic piece of writing. Ian J Cole (Sinners Review)

To celebrate the hundred years anniversary of the publication of the first Winnie-the-Pooh in 2026, this wonderful dual biography has been published. Usually, biography isn't one of my favourite genres, but the creators of these delightful stories is rather exceptional.

These two men somehow managed to create a warm and idyllic world surrounding a group of friends who happened to be the toys of A.A. Milne's son, who all lived in the fictitious Hundred Acre Wood. I loved the stories when I was a child and still do, so this book enhances the tales even more so.

It starts with the early lives of the two men, their schooling and family. Interesting to see that Milne had a rather special science and maths teacher who became another successful author. Milne and Shepherd met as they worked for the same publication and then collaborated for the Pooh books. Their lives were affected by the two World Wars but they came through it and their working partnership continued.

The two men were not surrounded by scandal and lived rather uncontroversial lives - so apt for beautiful stories about childhood and friendship. It is the actual process of creation that makes this book fascinating. It shows how the Winnie-the-Pooh stories came to be and almost accidentally became published, the detail of the illustrations that brought the stories to life, the lengths the men went to to bring the innocent world together and the real forest that inspired the Hundred Acre Wood.

This biography doesn't seek to diminish the lives or work of Milne and Shepherd, but it doesn't deny the few rumours and speculation surrounding aspects concerning their families. The images include some stunning illustrations, early ideas, original photographs, most in colour and some images unseen by the public. A well written and balanced dual biography with a moving ending, the book is just as charming as Winnie-the-Pooh himself. A beautiful tribute.