The Wind in the Willows (Puffin Classics)
Inspired by correspondence fromWind in the Willow's author  Kenneth Grahame to his young son, award-winning illustrator Michael Foreman took  up paint and brush to follow Mole, Ratty, Mr. Badger, and Toad through another  edition of this well-loved kids classic.Grahame's time-honored story, an adventure-filled idyll that meanders across a  lovingly described English countryside, cemented its status as a masterpiece  generations ago. But this newest edition adds some noteworthy extras: the  unabridged text includes two chapters that don't appear in some modern versions  ("The Pipers at the Gates of Dawn" and "Wayfarers All"), and the book closes  with reproductions of two of Grahame's actual letters to his son Alistair ("My  darling Mouse") in 1907, written on ornate, old-timey stationery from two  Cornwall hotels and recounting one of Toad's first adventures (which Toad fans  will recognize as the train-assisted escape of a certain "washerwoman").These inclusions alone might merit a new edition, but Foreman's illustrations  stand shoulder to shoulder with those of previousWindsartists (among  them Ernest Shepard, the original illustrator, and Arthur Rackham, both of whom  Foreman modestly stands "in awe" of). The lively, full-color illustrations  appear generously throughout the book, as they convincingly capture both the  story's small moments (like the washerwoman's weeping, for one) and more  explosive events (like the storming of Toad Hall). (All ages)--Paul  Hughes--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.