THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS: 1913 edition, illustrated - Softcover

"The Wind in the Willows" by Kenneth Grahame is considered a classic of English children’s literature. The tales relate the adventures of four animal friends and neighbours in the English countryside — Mole, Rat, Toad (of Toad Hall) and Badger. Although the animals converse, philosophize, and behave like humans, each creature also retains its distinctive animal habits. For children, it is a story of friends and the exciting adventures that they can have together, set in an imaginary but somehow totally believable world, and the morals are well disguised. For adults, it is like a distant, idyllic childhood dream. The story is beautifully written, with evocative descriptions of the countryside interspersed with adventures such as the ride on the gipsy caravan, the scary night-time search for Otter’s baby, the climactic battle against the weasels for Toad Hall, and funny episodes such as Toad’s first glimpse of a motor car.