I am going to miss Ratty something horrible.
Kenneth Grahame wrote this book for his son. You can hear it in the words.
Each chapter in The Wind in the Willows was a bedtime story he told his son, Alastair, who had very poor eyesight and consequently struggled in school. His son, nicknamed "Mouse," died at the age of 19 in an apparent suicide, which deeply affected Grahame and his wife, Elspeth.
1Kenneth loved the sea and was happy there, but when he was five, his mother died from scarlet fever, and his father, who had a drinking problem, gave over care of Kenneth (alongside his brother Willie, his sister Helen and the new baby Roland) to ‘Granny Ingle’.
With their Granny Ingle, the children lived in a spacious, if dilapidated, home, ‘The Mount’, on spacious grounds in idyllic surroundings. Here, they were introduced to the riverside and boating by their uncle, David Ingles, curate at Cookham Dean church. This delightful ambience, particularly Quarry Wood and the River Thames, is believed, by Peter Green (Grahame’s biographer), to have inspired the setting for The Wind in the Willows.
Grahame also wrote The Reluctant Dragon. Which would make a grand addition to Bed Time Stories with Cecilia so I am going to read it next. It will be a stand-alone story. It is a short story and I am feeling a little in love with Grahame Green this week ,and don’t want to leave him and his love of the outdoors quite yet, so one short story from him to round out the week will suit us nicely. Do you think so?
I will read it to you in a couple of days. Subscribe so you don’t miss out!
Thank you so much for coming along for the journey that is the Wind in the Willows. You have been the best company. Share widely - this series will not slide behind the paywall for a month.
Have a gorgeous evening, morning, afternoon.
Take care of yourself and keep writing your stories too. Let me know if you would like me to narrate them for you. When I am away from my farm and my country kitchen; narrating is quite my most favorite!
Celi
From https://www.pookpress.co.uk/project/kenneth-grahame-biography/
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