Tao of Pooh

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Ernest H. Shepard, Benjamin Hoff: Tao of Pooh (1998, Farshore)

English language

Published Jan. 3, 1998 by Farshore.

ISBN:
978-0-416-19511-8
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2 stars (1 review)

The Tao of Pooh is a book written by Benjamin Hoff. The book is intended as an introduction to the Eastern belief system of Taoism for Westerners. It allegorically employs the fictional characters of A. A. Milne's Winnie-the-Pooh stories to explain the basic principles of philosophical Taoism. The book was on the New York Times bestseller list for 49 weeks. Hoff later wrote The Te of Piglet, a companion book.

16 editions

reviewed The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff (The Wisdom of Pooh, #1)

☯️🍯🐻

2 stars

It made me understand some concepts better, like p'u, the uncarved block, but some passages really grated on me, like the one on science and cleverness. I get what the author is saying: it's a criticism of seeking knowledge for the sake of knowledge, of using complicated words as a form of gatekeeping, of focusing on the study of the tree while missing the forest around it etc. But in the era of COVID and climate change, I have very little patience for "what do scientists even know anyway?"

And there are way more nuanced and better written critiques of productivity culture than the chapter about Bisy Backson.

Subjects

  • Milne, a. a. (alan alexander), 1882-1956
  • Children's literature, history and criticism
  • Taoism
  • Winnie-the-pooh (fictitious character)