Heroes Abound in Pooh's Hero Party

Over the years, A. A. Milne’s Winnie the Pooh stories - and Disney’s interpretation and expansion upon them - have sparked dozens, if not hundreds, of books. While many of them are original stories, some are simply adaptations of the classics. The latter is the case with Pooh’s Hero Party, which was written by Isabel Gaines and illustrated by Studio Orlando.

Pooh’s Hero Party is a part of the Winnie the Pooh First Reader series, which includes several slim volumes aimed at children of limited literacy. The back of each book includes some simple activities designed to help children learn new words. In this book, one encourages readers to match words up with their corresponding pictures, while another asks them to fill in the missing letter in each of a list of words.

The story itself is drawn from the eighth chapter of Milne’s The House at Pooh Corner, which was part of the basis for Disney’s Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day. It begins with Owl’s house falling down in the midst of a mighty wind and ends with a hero party in honor of not just Pooh, mentioned in the title, but his very good friend Piglet as well.

One theme that is consistent through the Winnie the Pooh stories, especially the Disneyfied versions of them, is that of friends helping one another. There’s a whole lot of that in this book. Christopher Robin, Rabbit and Eeyore help Owl inspect his damaged house. Eeyore volunteers to find a replacement abode, a kind gesture for such a reticent donkey (though it’s clear he doesn’t get out much, considering that he has no clue that the house he finds is already spoken for). Pooh finds two different ways of rescuing Piglet from a precarious situation, and Piglet makes an incredibly selfless choice for the sake of a friend. One might argue that it’s a little too selfless, since it leaves him in a predicament, but that’s quickly amended.

I like the emphasis on community in this book and the colorful illustrations that mostly look cheerful even though several of the events in the story are rather unfortunate. There are a few pictures that direct the reader’s attention to bleak emotions, most notably the one featuring a defeated-looking Piglet with downcast ears and a tear escaping his eye, but that’s soon followed by a widely smiling Piglet. While the best way to experience this story is to read Milne’s chapter or watch the Disney featurette, this cute adaptation is a good one for young Pooh enthusiasts just getting used to reading on their own.