This week we provide a sneak peek at illustrator Mark Burgess’s artwork for Return to the Hundred Acre Wood, the first authorized sequel to Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner. Return to the Hundred Acre Wood, which is written by David Benedictus, will be published by Dutton on October 5, 2009.

Also this week, Penguin Audio announced that it has signed actor and Grammy-winning audiobook narrator Jim Dale to read the audio version of Return to the Hundred Acre Wood. The audio will be simultaneously released with the print version on October 5. “It will be a joy to do,” said Dale about bringing to life to more stories about what he called “one of the most classic and beloved characters in all of children’s literature.” Winnie-the-Pooh was first published in 1926 and is available in 50 languages around the world.