Wind and the willows book

April 29, in book review. The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame p. The Wind in the Willows has always been the first thing that comes to mind when I try to think of a quintessentially English book. Set in the Thames Valley where Grahame ironically a Scotsman grew up in the 19th century, The Wind in the Willows follows a cast of anthropomorphised animals through the pastoral idylls and turning seasons of the iconic English countryside. There are still beautiful places in England, but few views which will not be marred by some Ballardian interloper like a motorway or a Tesco superstore.

The Wind in the Willows , known to many readers through theatrical adaptations such as Toad of Toad Hall , belongs to a select group of English classics whose characters Rat, Mole, Badger and Mr Toad and their catchphrases "messing about in boats"; "poop, poop! Endlessly recycled, in print, cartoon and cinema, the ideas and images of Kenneth Grahame's masterpiece recur in the most unlikely places. A sentimental British favourite, The Wind in the Willows is a far more interesting book than its popular and often juvenile audience might suggest. First, it is the work of a writer who had known considerable success in the s as a young contemporary of Oscar Wilde, and who was also an admired contributor to the literary quarterly The Yellow Book. At that point, Grahame was employed by the Bank of England but, still in his 20s, was publishing stories in literary magazines, work that became collected in Dream Days and an even more successful publication, The Golden Age The text of The Wind in the Willows also encrypts a family tragedy. In , Grahame married and had one child, a boy named Alastair who was troubled with health problems and a difficult personality, culminating in the boy's eventual suicide, the cause of much parental anguish.