Gentle and sweet and sprinkled with unexpected wisdom (or should I say, wisdom from unexpected sources). I grew up on the animated New Adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh, but back then I (of course) didn't see how the characters fit definite personality types; that was fun to track while reading Milne for the first time. Also the layers of wordplay and wit are delightful. All in all, I was going to give this a strong four stars until the last story, at which point I cried for Christopher Robin and Pooh and every child who knows it's time to start growing up yet doesn't want to or feel ready for it. As a kid, I felt that tearing too, that loss of putting away childish things. This is a beautiful book.