Matt+T

Who is the Author and what other works have they created? The Wind in the Willows was written in 1908 by the Scottish writer Kenneth Grahame who also wrote the story the reluctant dragon in 1898. The Wind in the willows is considered a classic of children’s literature and has been adapted into several movies including an animation by Walt Disney.
 * __Introduction__**

What culture and historical period was this book written in? The time this book was written is alot different to that of today it having been written a little over a hundred years ago the world was different and more importantly people were different that of today. The world and the time the book is set in is very civilised and well behaved, but it is of course a children’s book so the characters do still have some wild and dangerous adventures. The writer Kenneth Grahame was living in a peaceful village in England at the time and had a young son who probably would have enjoyed reading this book.

Why did I choose this book and what does it mean to me? I chose this book because it is one of the only picture story books that was really memorable for me as a child. I enjoyed it then and still think it’s a nice book now but I can’t exactly understand why. Maybe it was the humour, adventure and friendship shown throughout the story. I have also watched the Disney movie which was also enjoyable as a child and helped me get a better/different understanding of the story than from book.

What are the meanings and messages in the book? The book focuses on the main characters that show a great deal of friendship and camaraderie to each other whilst exploring morality. About half the characters in the story are animals and the other half humans and yet they seem to get along and interact without any noticeable differences, as if they are all the same. This is probably for children to connect with animal characters whilst still using humans. The main characters all act and speak as gentlemen and behave civilised in the two mixed worlds they live in.
 * __Conclusion__**[[image:enhancedenglish2012/The Wind in the Willows.jpg width="244" height="244" align="left"]]

What are the visual and language features and how do they work to create meaning? There are certain enjoyable and silly events throughout the book to engage the audience whilst still deepening the relationships of the characters as they go on adventures. The pictures in the book are very good at giving you an idea of exactly what is happening at each part so that the children audience don’t get confused by the book