Book description
"Ho! ho! I am the Toad, the motor-car snatcher, the
prison-breaker, the Toad who always escapes!"
Tired of spring cleaning, Mole ventures above ground into the warm
sunshine, and happens upon his friend Ratty. Together they picnic on
the sparkling, burbling river, brave the sinister Wild Wood in
wintertime to visit the bad-tempered Badger, and take to the open road
in a caravan with dear, silly old Toad. But when Toad's attention
turns to motor cars, his reckless behaviour goes from bad to worse.
Badger, Rat and Mole must save their friend from ruin, and Toad Hall
from the clutches of the rascally Stoats and Weasels.
BACKSTORY: Get outdoors and explore the natural world, and test your
knowledge of The Wind in the Willows.
Kenneth Grahame was born in Edinburgh on 8 March 1859. He was
brought up by his grandmother and spent much of his time exploring the
woods and wildlife near his home, but was also a gifted scholar and
captain of the school rugby team. He was sent to work in a bank, which
he disliked, but it was while he was working there that he began
writing, and soon became a successful author.
The Wind in the Willows is based on letters and bedtime
stories that Graham thought up for his son, Alistair, who was
nicknamed 'Mouse'. A neighbour convinced Kenneth that he should turn
the stories into a book, but when he did, it was rejected by all
publishers except one. It wasn't until the then President of the
United States, Theodore Roosevelt, said how much he loved the book
that readers began to take notice. After that, The Wind in the
Willows became a bestseller, and was even turned into a play with
the help of A. A. Milne, the author of the Winnie the Pooh stories.
Kenneth Grahame retired from the bank in the year The Wind in the
Willows was published, and he died in 1932.
