Ramblings Of Different Sorts: #6: Oh Bother!

Who could forget that little quote, made famous by a character called Winnie the Pooh, created by A.A. Milne.

While rearranging my bookshelves this week, I came across my collection of illustrated Winnie the Pooh books. As I flipped through each and every book, getting all nostalgic over the times when I used to read the books everyday, I couldn't help but be fascinated with the illustrations within the book. The illustrations in the Winnie the Pooh books reminded me of yet another book I had, illustrated by the same person who illustrated the Winnie the Pooh book, which was the Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame.

The illustrations done by E.H. Shepard brought to life Pooh Bear, Piglet, Tigger, Ratty, Mole, Mr Toad and all the other characters unique to the books with his illustrations. His illustrations were part of what made these books so memorable. His special talent in illustrating human-like animals made it easier for readers, young and old alike, to visualize just how the characters would look like.

What inspired me most about the illustrations was that its simplicity conveyed such beautiful imagery and one would just have to glance at one illustration and know for sure who the characters and the person who illustrated them were. Such creativity in coming up with the idea of a drawing and the actual artwork produced through a simple technique of line drawing highlights the personalities of the individual characters. E.H. Shepard's masterful, scratchy line drawings immortalized each and every character and his illustrations in Winnie the Pooh and The Wind in the Willows are his most notable work.