title: The Pooh Perplex
          : A Student Casebook
        by: Frederick C. Crews
 publisher: Robin Clark 1979 (first published 1964)
  subjects: literary criticism, humour
     other: 150 pages
   summary: hilariously funny literary criticism of Winnie the Pooh

Anyone who enjoys literary criticism but has their doubts about some of
it will find _The Pooh Perplex_ hilariously funny.  It is a collection of
parodies of different schools of criticism, cast in the form of a
student casebook on _Winnie the Pooh_.  The volume as a whole, with
bibliographic notes at the beginning and study questions at the end of
each essay, is a parody of student study guides in general.  Frederick
Crews knows his stuff, and is equally at home lampooning Freudian,
Marxist, or Leavisite theory (to mention just a few).  Of course _The
Pooh Perplex_ is now out of date, and someone should produce a second
edition that covers structuralist, post-structuralist and
deconstructionist approaches!  

The only thing I don't understand is why it took so long for me to
discover this book, and why it isn't a recognised classic.  Just go out
and buy a copy now; you won't regret it!

--

%T 	The Pooh Perplex
%S	A Student Casebook
%A 	Frederick C. Crews
%I 	Robin Clark
%C 	London
%D 	1979
%O 	paperback
%G 	ISBN 0-86072-026-8
%P 	150pp
%K 	literary criticism, humour

Danny Yee (danny@cs.su.oz.au)
11/10/93