The Wind in the Willows (Signet Classics) by Kenneth Grahame
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Book Reviews of The Wind in the Willows (Signet Classics)
Book Review: How could you not love this book?
Summary: 5 Stars
We actually chose this book for our summer book club. It is really different reading it as an adult and for yourself. It was great fun!
It is amazing how you can see yourself in most of the characters. Do you know people who you see in the different animals?
We had a wonderful discussion.
Book Review: "Ingenious Mr Toad!"
Summary: 4 Stars
First things first: I never read "The Wind in the Willows" as a child. And since the word `nostalgia' is the word most used to describe Kenneth Grahame's beloved book, I felt that I was perhaps at a disadvantage when beginning to read it for the first time at the grand old age of twenty-three. Would my cynical, twenty-first century brain let me enjoy a book about talking animals wandering around the English countryside when I had neither read it as a child, nor was enjoying for a second time as a mature adult that *had* read it as a child?
Well, this is an odd little book and it's no wonder that Grahame's contemporaries were baffled by it, especially after the publication of Grahame's well-received The Golden Age (Dover Books on Literature & Drama). Like Lewis Carroll, author of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass (Signet Classics), Grahame wrote this story specifically for a child (in this case, his son), and it shows. Both books show a certain disregard for sophisticated world-building and the "rules" of fantasy that other authors adhere to so rigorously in today's fantasy stories, and so there is a definite sense of freedom and innocence within the text, being part of a genre that had not yet found itself. One cannot help but get the sense that Grahame is simply making it all up as he goes along, and having a great time doing it!
There are some things that are unmistakably odd. For instance, I couldn't seem to reconcile the sizes of the animal characters. Are they human-sized or animal-sized? Certain passages would lead one to assume that they are small, and yet there are many instances throughout the book that have them interacting with human beings - presumably humans of a normal size. It's not a big deal, and it certainly didn't destroy my enjoyment of the story in any way (which of course, is the most important part) but it is an odd aspect of this world that grated on my imagination.
The quiet and domesticated Mole ventures out of his burrow one spring and makes the acquaintance of the worldly Water-Rat, who likes nothing better than "messing about in boats." It is through Ratty that Mole meets the gruff, mysterious Badger and the boisterous, volatile Toad who rushes from one obsession to the next with the single-mindedness of a small child. After getting Ratty and Mole on board with his newest scheme - caravanning across the countryside - Toad is soon distracted by the sight and sound of a motorcar. With a new catchphrase: "Poop! Poop!" Toad is soon speeding in a car of his own, much to the disgruntlement of Badger, who knew Toad's father and considers the current lord of Toad Hall a disgrace.
From here the plot separates into two very different storylines. The first deals with Mole and Rat as they continue to potter around the countryside, dealing with weasels, the disappearance of a young otter, Mole's homesickness and even a sublime meeting with the Great God Pan (which directly inspired C.S. Lewis in his treatment of Aslan in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (The Chronicles of Narnia)), in which the animals are stuck with both fear and adoration. Grahame is incredible in is evocation of awe and worship in this scene, just as he also captures the longing for home that grabs at Mole, and the wanderlust that suddenly strikes down the Water-Rat when he meets a traveling Sea-Rat. Some of these scenes may be a little lost on young readers, but for adults Grahame is the master at capturing these almost-indescribable metaphysical emotions that most people feel at least once in their lifetimes. It's hard not to nod one's head in recognition at the feelings that Grahame invokes in these striking passages.
The second (which will appeal more strongly to children) concerns the comic adventures of Toad and the increasing amount of trouble he finds himself in. After crashing a string of cars, Badger, Rat and Mole try to intervene for his own good, only to find that Toad is more devious than they gave him credit for. It would be wrong of me to give away the craziness that follows, save to say that the story wraps up satisfactorily when all four animals band together in order to win back Toad Hall from the weasels, stoats and ferrets that have usurped Toad's home. Perhaps the battle is over a little sooner than I would have liked, but on restoring the status-quo, Grahame finishes his famous story with a sense of homeliness and comfort that permeates the entire book.
Reading "The Wind and the Willows" as an adult makes me wish I had had it read to me as a child. It is truly one of those books that grows and changes with a person as they grow older, with depth and meaning becoming more apparent with each re-read. Its longetivity speaks for itself - since its publication in 1908, it is still in print, and considered a golden classic - Mole, Rat, Toad and Badger are character that have become ingrained in the canon of children's literature (is there anyone who hasn't *heard* of them, even if they haven't read the book?) and the story is the source of several equally famous film adaptations, including The Wind in the Willows: The Feature Films Collection and Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.
My advice to you: if you have young children, make sure they have a copy of "The Wind and the Willows" in their bedrooms. It may not have the sophistication of other, more recent children's books out there, but I can't imagine any child growing up to regret ever reading about the adventures of Mole, Ratty, Badger and the irrepressible Toad.
Book Review: "Mayberry, RFD" meets "Animal Farm"
Summary: 4 Stars
This is billed as a children's book, although I'm not sure if it is geared for such. As I read it, I could not picture anyone under seventeen enjoying the subtle charm of the book. Mr. Toad, of course, is funny, and Mole and Rat are tame version of Gilgamesh and Enkidu (who are in turn tame versions of Christ and Michael). But the omnipresent nostalgia for the simpler life may be lost on someone who's whole day is spent text-messaging peers, playing video games, primping their hair, and being stupefied before the idiot box.
The best I can liken it to is a natives Gothamite who, during a four-alarm divorce, stumbles upon a late-night rerun of "The Andy Griffith Show." You have to be middle-aged and jaded to really love this book. Like Mayberry or Walden, this book is a reminder of the simple life we should all be living.
I think the core chapter is "The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn." Rat and Mole take a river trip (akin to Huck Finn on the Mississip or Charlie Marlow on the Congo), into the heart of the Wild Wood. It is a return to Eden, where they encounter Pan, the primordial god of all nature.
The craftsmanship is beyond belief. You have the ambivalence that all prophets had when encountering God: fear, trembling, terror, and an insatiable desire for more. In passages that could have been written by C. S. Lewis, Grahame describes the voyage into the Holy of Holies:
"It's gone!" sighed the Rat, sinking back in his seat again. "So beautiful and strange and new. Since it was to end so soon, I almost wish I had never heard it. For it has roused a longing in me that is pain, and nothing seems worth while but just to hear that sound once more and go on listening to it for ever. No! There it is again!" he cried, alert once more. Entranced, he was silent for a long space, spellbound.
"Now it passes on and I begin to lose it," he said presently. "O Mole! the beauty of it! The merry bubble and joy, the thin, clear, happy call of the distant piping! Such music I never dreamed of, and the call in it is stronger even than the music is sweet! Row on, Mole, row! For the music and the call must be for us." . . .
"This is the place of my song-dream, the place the music played to me," whispered the Rat, as if in a trance. "Here, in this holy place, here if anywhere, surely we shall find Him!"
Then suddenly the Mole felt a great Awe fall upon him, an awe that turned his muscles to water, bowed his head, and rooted his feet to the ground. It was no panic terror--indeed he felt wonderfully at peace and happy--but it was an awe that smote and held him and, without seeing, he knew it could only mean that some august Presence was very, very near. With difficulty he turned to look for his friend and saw him at his side cowed, stricken, and trembling violently. And still there was utter silence in the populous bird-haunted branches around them; and still the light grew and grew
Perhaps he would never have dared to raise his eyes, but that, though the piping was now hushed, the call and the summons seemed still dominant and imperious. He might not refuse, were Death himself waiting to strike him instantly, once he had looked with mortal eye on things rightly kept hidden. Trembling he obeyed, and raised his humble head; and then, in that utter clearness of the imminent dawn, while Nature, flushed with fullness of incredible colour, seemed to hold her breath for the event, he looked in the very eyes of the Friend and Helper; saw the backward sweep of the curved horns, gleaming in the growing daylight; saw the stern, hooked nose between the kindly eyes that were looking down on them humourously, while the bearded mouth broke into a half-smile at the corners; saw the rippling muscles on the arm that lay across the broad chest, the long supple hand still holding the pan-pipes only just fallen away from the parted lips; saw the splendid curves of the shaggy limbs disposed in majestic ease on the sward; saw, last of all, nestling between his very hooves, sleeping soundly in entire peace and contentment, the little, round, podgy, childish form of the baby otter. All this he saw, for one moment breathless and intense, vivid on the morning sky; and still, as he looked, he lived; and still, as he lived, he wondered.
"Rat!" he found breath to whisper, shaking. "Are you afraid?"
"Afraid?" murmured the Rat, his eyes shining with unutterable love.
"Afraid! Of him? O, never, never! And yet--and yet--O, Mole, I am afraid!"
Then the two animals, crouching to the earth, bowed their heads and did worship.
Book Review: Not just for children.
Summary: 4 Stars
While Grahame's The Wind in the Willows may have been written for children, it mimics and speaks to adults, as well. The characters in his "low fantasy" story, though animal in name, physical description, and dwelling habitats, portray many of the same foibles and flaws as those represented by human beings.
Mr. Toad, for example, is not only wealthy and pretentious, but spoiled, haughty, self-serving, and thoughtless. He takes his truest friends for granted, and things nothing of thievery or dealing underhandedly to accomplish his selfish wants. For toad, Mr. Toad, like some people we encounter, has no real material needs, but has wants that seldom satisfy him for more than a moment.
Mr. Toad's friends, Old Badger, Water Rat, and Mole also have personalities that mirror that of adult humans. Perhaps Grahame intended to reach children at an age when they are teachable and impress upon them manners and sensibilities that will guide their interpersonal relationships as they grow.
Though the poetically beautiful settings of the story are present in the "real world," the magical occurrences of motorcar-driving frogs, gondola-sailing rats, and suit-wearing badgers, make this fantastical story entertaining, particular for children, who possess a vivid imagination that is oftentimes stifled by everyday pressures in the world of grown-ups.
Both children and adults can identify with the personalities of Grahame's imaginary characters, and there are age-old lessons taught in this story that are often present in mythology and even Biblical teachings. There is even a God-like character in the book, called The Piper, who brings the seasons and protects the animals.
The morals taught in the story are satisfying, in that, in the end, Mr. Toad is a changed man, er, frog, in that he has learned to appreciate the value of true friendship accept his good fortune with humility. Through his animal characters, Grahame represents the bad in human nature made good, while entertaining us with comedic situations that--if they didn't involve such fantastical creatures--could be considered realistic.
Book Review: "The world has held great Heroes, ...
Summary: 4 Stars
... As history-books have showed;
But never a name to go down to fame
Compared with that of Toad!"
THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS, a turn-of-the century children's story written by Kenneth Grahame in 1908, has deservedly withstood the onslaught of time. On the surface, THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS is an allegory that tells the story of the adventures and misadventures of Toad, Rat, Badger and Mole in the rural English countryside. The pastoral narratives and witty dialogues are charming, evocative and warmly mellifluous without ever approaching doleful or lugubrious. I simply can't imagine the smile it would bring to a child's face were a parent to make the effort to read this as a bed-time story with four separate voices reserved for each of the main characters.
But, considered on a deeper level, THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS can be seen as a metaphor for Toad's descent into self-destructive behaviour and his friends' loyal and loving intervention to rescue him from his love of fast motor cars, portrayed as an utterly consuming addiction. Love, loyalty, friendship, arrogance, courage, steadfastness and gratitude are among the emotions that Grahame has portrayed so accurately in a very simple but quite moving narrative.
As you might imagine, like most children's stories, THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS does end on an "all's well that ends well" note but Toad's behaviour in the future remains an obvious open question. Highly recommended ... what TOOK me so long to find this one?
Paul Weiss