I learned something recently.

Disney messed it up.

Shocking isn’t it?

Before you start stoning me for slander let me be clear that I do like Disney’s Winnie-the-Pooh.  It is just that Eeyore is always so obnoxiously slow talking and all “woe is me” that I dodn’t even care what he is saying and Tigger… well Tigger is just a little odd.  Everyone else in the Hundred Acre wood is fairly grounded and then you have Tigger running around like an extra dumb, over excitable, dog chasing a tennis ball. I’ve never understood it.  Even when reading the original stories Disney s versions had taken up residence in my head and I never really shook them.

Then one day before a long car trip with the girls, we got The Hundred Acre wood on CD . And before I could tear my hair out because piglet was snorting between words Tigger showed up, and it all became clear.

Tigger is not an overactive, excited, lovable, dog.

Tigger is the disreputable drunk of the family come home. He even shows up in the middle of the night, attacks a table cloth and demands food. How could I never have noticed before?

Then for Ivy’s birthday she got both Winnie-The-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner on CD, thankfully it was a different snort-less production that we had never heard before.

We did a lot of driving last week and listened to all four and a half hours of it and I learned something else.

I love Eeyore.

I thought I hated him, but that was back when I thought he was slow and gloomy. Change that slow and gloomy donkey into a pompous, know it all and Eeyore becomes an ass. Personally I thought the change was all for the better.

While I can understand Disney’s reluctance to have an ass and a friendly drunk roaming though the stories when you put them back it sure increases the amount of pleasure an adult gets out of listening.  Ivy doesn’t get the humor that comes with Eeyore, but I do!

Here is a link for the new CD’s with the wonderful reading of Eeyore.  Unfortunately I can’t figure out/find the reading with the great Tigger, but if I do I’ll be sure to post an update.

How about you, do you have a favorite kid and adult friendly music/audio book to share?

My personal favorite lines from The Hundred Acre Wood:

“We’ll see,” said Kanga.

“You’re always seeing, and nothing ever happens,” said Roo sadly.