Back to the classics

Here's a refreshing change of pace:


                                                      

The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame features the homey tales of the little creatures living on a peaceful river bank. Not only the day to day lives of good friends, but also the eccentric antics of the humorous Mr. Toad.

History:

      Kenneth Grahame was a Scotish writer born on March 8, 1859. He started young with short stories published in his mid twenties such as Pagan Papers, The Golden Age, and The Reluctant Dragon. But The Wind in The Willows, published in 1908, is said to be the greatest triumph in his writing carreer. It was the acclaimed winner of the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award in 1958 and was adapted into a Disney film which is still enjoyed by adults and children everywhere. He never made a sequel, but author William Horwood wrote a series of sequels in the 1990's.

My thoughts:
My introduction to this novel began with my love for it as a film when I was very little. Later my mother gave me the copy my grandmother had, which included small illustrations that she applied. As I read it I found it to be a story from another time, free of the speed and endless changes of technology. The days when one would sit on a river bank on a warm, spring day enjoying the sounds of running water and when hanging out was sitting at a dinner table enjoying good food and real company. The art of story telling was different then--much steadier and filled with other sorts of thrills than those in the novels of today. My aunt reffered to it as one of the books that you want to"lick the pages" because of how wonderfully the words are assembled and she is right. The Wind in The Willows is a true work of art.
                     The mesage I'd like to convey in posting this classic is: take the time to slow down and really enjoy your days as they go by. Do what you love, love everyone while you do it, and don't forget the classics. You'd be surprised what they can teach.