Winnie the Pooh on a blustery day

Today, where I live, it is a very blustery day. As I was driving home my car almost got thrown into the ditch and this reminded me of Winnie the Pooh.
After purusing a few classic Winnie the Pooh quotes, I can't help but be amazed at some of the ideas that were tackled in those short stories. When you're a child you fall in love with things, and when you're an adult you fall in love with them again, but for completely different reasons. I saw children chasing a kiddie pool the was rolling down the street and I couldn't help but feel nostalgic for childhood, since life for me is moving by awfully fast. I remember moments like that and feeling like everything was standing still. When you're a child it's okay to be self involved and think that all that matters is your own little world, because that is all you know.
Winne the Pooh created that perfect little world, and I forgot how much I loved it. I obviously made an impression on me, considering all it took was a gust of wind to send me back to the magical world of Christopher Robin. What was so wonderful about A.A. Milne's writing was that it was simple enough for children to understand and love, but complex enough that it didn't insult their intelligence. That is the true mark of a great children's book author.

Top Ten Winnie the Pooh Quotes (that I found today)

1. People who don't think probably don't have brains; rather, they have grey fluff that's blown into their heads by mistake.
2. You can't stay in your corner of the Forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes.
3. Those who are clever, who have a brain, never understand anything.
4. I used to believe in forever, but forever is too good to be true.
5. Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there someday.
6. They're funny things, accidents. You never have them till you're having them.
7. When late morning rolls around and you're feeling a bit out of sorts, don't worry; you're probably just a little eleven o'clockish.
8. Promise me you'll never forget me because if I thought you would I'd never leave.
9. It is more fun to talk with someone who doesn't use long, difficult words but rather short, easy words like "What about lunch?"
10. If ever there is tomorrow when we're not together... there is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. But the most important thing is, even if we're apart... I'll always be with you.

I haven't read many children's books since I took a creative writing class, but I don't know if there are many books like Winnie the Pooh out there. A. A. Milne created a safe environment that children could grow up in and try new things, and sometimes you need to go back to that place to regather yourself. If you do though, try to make it a blustery day.

Book situations that don't make sense: The Sea Wolf

I'm reading The Sea Wolf right now and I have to admit that I don't like it. Jack London is a very descriptive and talented writer, but some of the situations he comes up with are so ridiculous and schmaltzy that it ruins everything good about the book.
He makes Maud Brewster appear out of nowhere, there is a storm and all of a sudden this high class lady is on their boat. That is too convenient. Humphrey VanWeyden falls in love with Maud, even though until this point he as been presumably homosexual. Then they precede to run away from the evil Wolf Larsen and Hump goes on and on for four pages about how much he loves Maud. What is this doing in a book about a shipwreck?
Unfortunately this seems to be a pattern I see a lot in modern literature. I realize that The Sea Wolf isn't exactly a modern novel, but it reads like a newer adventure novel. The bar for creativity seems to have lowered a lot in the past ten years. There are some obvious exceptions to this, such as Stephen King who has written title after title, all of which are supposedly invigorating although I admit I am not that familiar with his work.
Every novel for a teenage girls seems to have a fairly similar plot. The bulk of them are about a girl who is shy or nerdy or has some fault who falls in love with a boy and obtains him by the end of the book. Very few of the books in the teen fiction section are different; therefore, I am not surprised that many young people are not interested in reading.
Overall book starts off slow and doesn't pick up very often. London devotes entire chapters to discussion of the boat, which isn't necessary to understand the book. Unless you want to read all of London's work I would suggest skipping this read.