The Wind in the Willows
Ernest H. Shepard New York, N.Y. Charles Scribner's Sons, 1966. Reset Edition, probably 6th printing thus. Hardcover. [12], 259 pages. Map. Illustrations. Ink notation on fep. Decorative cover shows some wear and soiling. Includes Preface by Charles Scribner, IV from 1953 printing. Section on Illustrating "The Wind in the Willows" by Ernest H. Shepard, as well as chapters on The River Bank; The Open Road; The Wild Wood; Mr. Badger; Dulce Domum; Mr. Toad; The Piper at the Gates of Dawn; Toads's Adventures; Wayfarers All; The Further Adventures of Toad; "Like Summer Tempests Came His Tears"; and the Return of Ulysses. The Wind in the Willows has become a famous title in children's literature. It is a classic now. Kenneth Grahame (8 March 1859 – 6 July 1932) was a British writer born in Edinburgh, Scotland, to a Scottish family. He is most famous for The Wind in the Willows (1908), one of the classics of children's literature. He also wrote The Reluctant Dragon. While still a young man in his twenties, Grahame began to publish light stories in London periodicals such as the St. James Gazette. Some of these were collected and published as Pagan Papers in 1893, and two years later The Golden Age. These were followed by Dream Days in 1898, which contains The Reluctant Dragon. Grahame became a father and the wayward, headstrong nature he saw in his little son Alastair he transformed into the swaggering Mr. Toad. The character in the book known as Ratty was inspired by his good friend, Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch. Grahame mentions this in a signed copy he gave to Quiller-Couch's daughter, Foy Felicia. Toad remains one of the most celebrated and beloved characters in children's literature. The Wind in the Willows is a children's book by Scottish novelist Kenneth Grahame, first published in 1908. Alternatingly slow-moving and fast-paced, it focuses on four anthropomorphized animals: Mole, Rat (a European water vole), Toad, and Badger. They live in a pastoral version of Edwardian England. In 1908 Grahame retired from his position as secretary of the Bank of England. He moved back to Berkshire, where he had lived as a child, and spent his time by the River Thames, doing much as the animal characters in his book do – to quote, "simply messing about in boats" – and expanding the bedtime stories he had earlier told his son Alastair into a manuscript for the book. The novel was in its 31st printing when A. A. Milne adapted part of it for the stage as Toad of Toad Hall in 1929. The first film adaptation was produced by Walt Disney as one of two segments in the 1949 package film The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad. In 2003 The Wind in the Willows was listed at #16 in the BBC's survey The Big Read. More than a century after its original publication, it was adapted again for the stage, as a 2014 musical by Julian Fellowes. In addition to the main narrative, the book contains several independent short stories featuring Rat and Mole. These appear for the most part between the chapters chronicling Toad's adventures, and are often omitted from abridgments and dramatizations. The chapter "Dulce Domum" describes Mole's return to his home with Rat where he rediscovers, with Rat's help, a familiar comfort, despite finding it in a terrible mess after his abortive spring clean. "The Piper at the Gates of Dawn" tells how Mole and Rat search for Otter's missing son Portly, whom they find in the care of the god Pan. (Pan removes their memories of this meeting "lest the awful remembrance should remain and grow, and overshadow mirth and pleasure".) Finally, in "Wayfarers All", Ratty shows a restless side to his character when he is sorely tempted to join a Sea Rat on his traveling adventures. The most popular illustrations are probably by E. H. Shepard, originally published in 1931, and believed to be authorized as Grahame was pleased with the initial sketches, though he did not live to see the completed work. Ernest Howard Shepard OBE, MC (10 December 1879 – 24 March 1976) was an English artist and book illustrator. He is known especially for illustrations of the anthropomorphic animal and soft toy characters in The Wind in the Willows and Winnie-the-Pooh. Condition: Good.
Keywords: Children's Literature, Rat, Mr. Badger, Mr. Toad, Mole, Vole, Illustrated Works, Ernest Shepard, Wayfarers, River Bank, Wild Wood, Dulce Domum, Piper, Tempests
[Book #81916]
Price: $25.00