The Wind in the Willows really surprised me. I hadn't really known too much about it and everything I did know came from seeing the Disney cartoon a million times as a kid. I had expected that it would just be the wacky adventures of Mr. Toad, but the book is so much more than that. The book shows us the lives of four different animals (Mole, Rat, Toad and Badger) as they go about their business. The first third of the book really focuses on Mole becoming friends with Rat and the rest of the characters. There isn't a whole lot of 'plot' and it sort of reminded me of Winnie-the-Pooh. However, this book isn't written just for children and really conveys an appreciation for nature and had a nice mellowing effect on me.
Here's a sample sentence "Drowsy animals, snug in their holes while wind and rain were battering at their doors, recalled still keen mornings, an hour before sunrise, when the white mists, as yet undispersed, clung closely along the surface of the water; then the shock of the early plunge, the scamper along the bank, and the radiant transformation of earth, air, and water, when suddenly the sun was with them again, and grey was gold and colour was born and sprang out of the earth once more." That doesn't really seem like something from a "kids" book, but more like poetry.
The action picks up a bit more in the middle section and I started to recognize the story elements that made up the Disney cartoon. Toad has a couple of really hilarious chapters as he steals a car, gets thrown in jail, escapes dressed as an old woman and then tries to find his way back home. Funny and fast paced chapters. However in between two of those chapters is a moving story about Mole and Rat looking for a lost otter. That chapter is the complete opposite of the Toad chapters and is full of emotion and also some weird mysticism. Since that chapter is called "The Piper at the Gates of Dawn" (yes, this is where Pink Floyd came up with that name) I should have expected something trippy to happen. Another weird chapter is when Rat is seeing off all the animals that are headed South for the change of seasons. When Rat meets Sea Rat and hears about his adventures around the world he starts contemplating his own life and if he has done enough with it.
Overall I really enjoyed it. I couldn't help comparing it to Winnie-the-Pooh at first, but this is a book that can also be enjoyed as an adult and has some complex themes in it. Plus, Toad is a great character and totally deserving of his own Disneyland ride. I'll have to include it in my top 50. An A!
-Dan
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