Excellent skewering of a branch of academia that seems to set itself up for it. Crews put a lot of work into these essays, which are clever, intelligent, and extremely funny. He isn't nearly so vicious in his satire as many of his speakers (and their real-life counterparts) are in their literary-political maneuvering, but he exposes the void at the heart of much modern literary criticism where the work itself used to live. Pooh is as good as any other subject when the theory drives the criticism, which is why this book works so well.

...yet shockingly frightening. It took me a while to 'get' the meaning of the pieces in this book because at first I thought they were real! The pieces are excellent. For example, after reading the 'feminist' perspective on Milne, I could have sworn that he was a misogynist.

Yet it soon became apparent that these essays provide brilliant exposes of our postmodern intellectual traditions.

Just as Will Rogers and Dick Gregory would read straight from the newspapers without commentary and would be met with laughs at the absurdity of the pieces read, so too did I find myself doing the same with these pieces.

Not only do they present in clear fashion the 'truths' espoused in the various philosophies of our day but by reading these very philosophies into the Pooh stories, the hubris of humanity glares from between the lines. I walked away not only educated and humored but humbled.

It became apparent that we can read whatever we like not only into the Pooh stories but into pretty much anything we so desire.

Literary Criticism so long ago slipped over the edge into self parody that when I first found an old dog-eared copy of The Pooh Perplex at a book sale many years ago it took me more than a few pages to figure out whether it was meant to be serious or not. In a series of essays, various critics, of dubious but seemingly impressive pedigree, read the Pooh stories through the distorted lenses of their own literary/political/philosophical/psychological perspectives. It turned out of course that the book, published in 1964, had been the work of a young English professor at Berkeley (of all places) and was a parody, skewering several of the then current schools of criticism. Now, nearly forty years later, retired from academia, Professor Crews gives today's critics the satirical drubbing they so richly deserve in this manufactured set of lectures to the Modern Language Association convention. Happily, this second effort is just as funny as the first, though it is somewhat depressing to realize that his targets have become even easier to poke fun at because, one shudders at the thought, their theories are even more ridiculous than those of their predecessors.

I'll not pretend to understand all the nuances of what Professor Crews has written; heck, I don't even recognize all the schools of thought he's sending up, nor all the specific people he seems to have targeted. Everyone will discern Harold Bloom in the person of Orpheus Bruno, whose lecture is titled The Importance of Being Portly, and whose last three books are titled : My Vico, My Shakespeare, My God!; What You Don't Know Hurts Me; and Read These Books. And one assumes that Dudley Cravat III, whose contribution, Twilight of the Dogs, is one long bellow against the "sickness unto death" of the modern university, must incorporate at least a significant touch of William Bennett. Knowing who the victims are in these instances definitely adds to the enjoyment. Unfortunately (no, make that fortunately) most of the other models for these characters will be so obscure to anyone outside academia that the reader, at least this reader, won't know recognize them.

You can figure out, without too much trouble, that specific lectures are aimed at Deconstruction, Marxism, Feminism, Queer Theory, Postcolonialism, Evolutionary Psychology and so forth. Much of the enjoyment of the book lies in the way Crews can make the Pooh stories fit these absurd theories. He'll leave you half convinced that the Hundred Acre Wood is alternately a seething pit of repressed homosexual longings or pedophiliac torture; the oppressed colony of a brutal imperialist master; and a laboratory of Darwinism. The very capacity of these simple children's stories to bear the weight of each of these ideologies only serves to undermine them all. Such infinitely plastic criticisms must ultimately be about the theories themselves, not about the text that is supposedly under consideration.

One final feature of the book is particularly amusing, and especially frightening. Though the lectures are obviously made up, the footnotes appear to all refer to genuine sources, with titles like "The Foul and the Fragrant: Odor and the French Social Imagination" and "The Vestal and the Fasces: Hegel, Lacan, Property, and the Feminine". I suppose someone trying to complete a doctoral thesis will write just about anything, but, please God, tell me no one has actually ever read them.

It all makes for very funny reading, but with a serious subtext. This is the kind of garbage that kids are being taught, with a straight face, in our schools today. That scares the heck out of me. Hopefully Professor Crews will keep that skewer pointy. We need someone to puncture the pretensions of these self-important intellectual nitwits.

GRADE : A

Forget the smoke-filled coffee shop, the microphone on the podium and the beatnicks huddled around their coffees. The real test of a reader's poetic prowess is A.A. Milne, the living room couch and a handful of kids waiting for your renderings of growling bears and timelessl human characters.

It takes an extraordinary book to capture children's attention on the strength of words alone.

It's not that there are no illustrations here, just that each poem has just one or two small, original ink drawings; delightful, but bowing appropriately to the genius of words that can hold children spellbound. For instance, Milne takes a subject like sidewalks and transforms it into the stuff of playacting in Lines and Squares - an irresistible cadence to chant on a walk (or a lumbering gait):

And the masses of bears
Who wait at the corners all ready to eat the sillies who tread on the lines of the street
And I say to them, "BEARS.....
Just look how I'm walking in ALL of the squares!"

As I read I can now recall the precise inflection and finger-shaking combination from Disobedience that it took to elicit giggles from my sisters and me, now working its comedy on my four-year-old son:

James James SAID to his mother, "Mother", he said, said he;
"You Must Never Go Down To The End Of Town If You Don't Go Down With ME!"

When We Were Very Young is a collection of poems for children, about childhood, and for those who wish to remember its special magic view on the world. This book is a beloved tradition in my family, starting with those cozy evenings on my Grandmother's couch as we all snuggled up to hear about the brownie that lives behind the curtain, Jonathan Jo (who had a mouth like an O), the three foxes and Christopher Robin, who couldn't stop his hoppity hop. Your family is sure to find its own traditions in reading these poems to each other, young and old alike.

My father died 10 years ago when I was nineteen. I know he used to read "when we were very young" to me when I was a child, but it wasn't until I began to read the poems as bedtime stories to my 2 year old, that I began to remember my dad's emphasis and inflections. As I read my favourites to my son, I can almost hear Dad reading them to me.

I am thrilled that my son asks for Christopher Robin as his bedtime stories and "Hoppity" and "Market Square" have become his favourites too. He is an avid reader and I am just beginning to introduce him to poetry, what better way than A A Milne - It makes me feel like a child again and connects a grandson and a grandfather who never met each other.

Like "A Child's Garden of Verses," the Robert Louis Stevenson classic, A.A. Milnes' "When We Were Very Young," collects and reminds us of childhood bliss. However, unlike Stevenson, Milne has the whimsy of Edward Lear's limericks and verse. Milne captures the joy and gentleness of youth.

For example, Milne has a poem with a refrain, "Jonathon Jo/has a mouth like an 'O'" It is fun to say, and it almost means something. Another poem talks about halfway up and down the stairs, getting a child to see the difference and sameness of the situation, great for critical thinking.

If you want pure silly humor, go buy Silverstein, but for great writing and solid bedtime reading to teach your child wit and poetry, buy this tiny book. There's a good chance you will like it as well.

I don't have a copy to review . I have asked for an email to be sent when it is in stock. Can someone send me an e mail telling me what poems are read by alexander scourby. I had a decca ? lp in 1958 of poems read by alexander scourby such as GUNGA DIN SEA FEVER THE HIGHWAYMAN etc and i have been trying to find out if ever these poems were re released on cassette or CD as my lp is now lost. perhaps you can ask Mr Untermeyer if he knows where you can get acopy

I listen to these cassettes over and over. It is a remarkable collection which begins with a warm introduction by Mr. Untermeyer himself. Superbly performed, the poetry is brought to life by the three readers. The poems are organized by period and each period and author is briefly introduced. The listener is exposed to a vast spectrum of poetry. The selections are truly great and the readings are memorable. I compare it to my Norton's Anthology of English Literature and wonder how some of the fine poems Mr. Untermeyer has chosen could possibly have been omitted from Norton's

In North America, Thomas Hardy is better known for his novels than for his poems, but Hardy himself prized his verse more, and this recording demonstrates the breadth and depth of his achievement as a poet.

It features compelling performances of more than 70 of Hardy's poems by two distinguished British actors, Bruce Alexander and Janet Maw. Hardy wrote the earliest of these as a teenager and the last of them some seven decades later. Carefully-chosen excerpts from Hardy's autobiography and the writings of his first wife, Emma, help place trace the biographical sources of many of the poems.

What's most impressive is Hardy's versatility: of the 70-odd poems here, no two use the same form, and the subjects range from the joys of young love to the wistful resignation of the poet, in his eighties, musing on fate and change.

When the Academy of American Poets asked me to name ten poetry recordings that every library should have, for a feature on their web site, this was one of my choices.

In North America, Hardy is better known as a novelist than as a poet, but it was his poems that Hardy himself prized most, and they are highly regarded in Britain today.

This recording features performances of more than 70 of Hardy's poems by two distinguished British actors, Bruce Alexander and Janet Maw. The poems are accompanied by carefully-chosen excerpts from Hardy's autobiography and the writings of his first wife, Emma.

The result is a compelling program that makes an excellent introduction to newcomers to Hardy's work and will also delight those who have already discovered this wise and compassionate poet. What is most impressive is Hardy's versatility: of the 70-odd poems here, I don't think any two use the same form, and the content ranges from the joys of young love to the widtful resignation of the poet, in his eighties, musing on fate and change.

When the Academy of American Poets asked me to name ten poetry recordings that every library should have, this was one of my recommendations.

Ok, there is absoltuely NO denying the fact that Shakespeare is an awesome guy. Also, there is no denying that The Sonnets are gorgeous and intriguing. However, with the help of many FANTASTIC performers, there is NOW no denying that spoken sonnets are even better. Read by the stars, the sonnets have a new life to them- something inderscribable is added when they are read aloud by these voices. Kudos to (the one and only ) Brian Stokes Mitchell, who I particularly enjoyed, not only because I'm a huge fan of his, but because his voice lends itself extremely well to the words The Bard wrote. Great recording!

This is an edition of the complete works of Shakespeare that I keep next to my bed. No heavier than a large fashion magazine and absolutely readable, it is my favorite. The glossary is useful, the commentary is brief, and the cover folds back for comfortable beach reading. This edition brings Shakespeare into focus as an intimate whose work and life and suffering are not in any way distant from ours. Given the genius of the work, this particular edition encourages an easier relationship because the book itself is so easy to use.(When no one's around, pull it out and read a speech or two aloud) An excellent any-occasion gift that will be used and appreciated, especially by students, because it is so very convenient!

Pope's defining masterworks, "Essay on Man" and "The Rape of the Lock", are crystalizations of the 18th Century's defining impulses. The "Essay on Man" proselytizes on behalf of the deistic belief in an ordered, rational universe where humankind is no divine favorite but can understand its place on the Great Chain of Being and find happiness through knowledge and acceptance. Most will join with Voltaire in his hearty rejection of the doctrine "Whatever is, is right," yet it is impossible to deny the ennobling quality of Pope's optimism:
"Grasp the whole worlds of reason, life, and sense,
In one close system of benevolence:
Happier as kinder, in whate'er degree,
And height of bliss but height of charity."
Where "Essay on Man" expresses the rational principles of the Enlightenment, "The Rape of the Lock" exemplifies the love of the frivolous, the fashionable, and the feminine which gave such light and warmth to an era famed for its elevation of the intellect. The poem exemplifies the Rococo, that most playful of styles in literature; nowhere else in English lit does so much of the spirit of Boucher come through. Pope's verse swirls and sparkles in melodic luxuriance, his creamy couplets smooth and shapely as a woman's legs.
This compact edition also includes the "Elegy to the Memory of an Unfortunate Lady", one of the most beautifully severe (and overlooked) poems in the language-- a rare triumph of Neo-Classical lyric. Here also are the famous "Essay on Criticism", the galloping satire of the "Epistle to Dr. Arbuthnot", Epistle IV of the "Moral Essays", the "Ode on Solitude" and "The Dying Christian to His Soul", and the famed little epigram from a dog's collar-- all magnificent, all of them compact and gracious in expression, articulate and penetrating in thought. The serious devotee of Pope will want to go on to the treasures (and scholarly annotations) of the Twickenham edition, but this is a terrific anthology of some indispensable works from this controversial and indispensable genius.

This one-volume reprint of all the authentic original poems of Alexander Pope, first published in 1963, derives from the Twickenham Edition, the recognized standard text of Pope's poetry. It is exhaustive, even down to containing early versions of lines like the verses on "Atticus" which ended up years later in the "Epistle to Dr. Arbuthnot," and reprints both the "Tibbald" and "Cibber" versions of the "Dunciad." It also has a great deal of useful editorial annotation, though not so much as to overwhelm or supplant Pope's own text and frequent notes. Highly recommended to all who love Pope's verse.

This edition of Pope's work is very, very good. Included are all the major poems, a good selection of the minor poems, and some of Pope's best prose. Also, the edition is edited by Aubrey Williams, a Pope critic with genuine stature and ability, who knows Pope better than any of the editors of more recent editions. This book is an excellent selection for anyone looking for a one-volume edition of Pope.

This is a highly intelligent book on one of the finest poems by the eighteenth century's most celebrated poet. Brilliantly written with wit, style, and a flair for interesting detail, Wall's book includes textual information and a wealth of carefully selected secondary material that makes this "one-stop shopping" for anyone interested in the work or indeed in the period. Because of its combination of lively writing and scholarly erudition, I would recommend Wall's book for a wide variety of interest and knowledge levels. Wonderful Bedford series idea and terrific book.