A clever ol’ story about a clever and silly ol’ bear is what you learn about in How a Bear Became a Book: The Collaboration That Created Winnie-the-Pooh. The pieces fit as if you’re reading a Winnie the Pooh story, the illustrations as if reading a WTP book and they come together to make a modern classic. It is less a “solid story” and more of a poetic telling of how a bear came into existence. Things are less hard facts but taking the facts and making them more fantastical
Annette Bay Pimentel and the awesomely named illustrator Faith Pray did the honors of creating this due the end of March 2026 book. I read it via an online reader copy, but I think I will find a few copies to give as gifts. It has a nice gift quality for a first birthday, shower or for someone who is a fan of that honey munching ursine critter. The artwork really captures the dreamy quality of things as we do not just start with Here is the Bear and he is fully created. The narrator and the spirit of WTP comes out slowly, growing as a symbol of the ideas and process the creators took.
There are extras that are included, but can be busy. However, I did find them interesting as this bonus material does allow the child to grow with the book and is more intense and factual compared to the actual book with its whimsical overtone. While the story can be for all ages, the way it is presented does lend itself as an older child reading or listening. And the adults who grew up on the Bear in Pooh Corner will greatly appreciate it.