The Wind in the Willows

by Kenneth Grahame, illustrated by Ernest H. Shepard
Methuen Children’s Books, 1st edition thus 1971

This classic children’s book was originally published by London publishers Methuen & Co. Ltd in 1908 with only a frontispiece for an illustration. An illustrated edition with the b/w line drawings of E. H. Shepard (1879-1976) was first published in 1931 with many subsequent printings. Shepard later re-visited the work and produced further illustrations in colour for the 1959 edition.

However, in 1971 a new edition was published with all of Shepard’s b/w illustrations appearing newly coloured “…which reveals the delicacy and freshness of Ernest Shepards’s work”.

Many illustrators have had a go at The Wind in the Willows including Arthur Rackham, Val Biro, Michael Foreman and John Burningham, but for many Shepard has produced the quintessential illustrations.

Note:This edition common enough having been reprinted several times over the next twenty years or so including a club (Book Club Associates) issued edition. However, the later printings had a cheaper ‘faux-cloth’ textured paper binding and not the nicer cloth binding of earlier printings.

Hardback. Publisher’s orange-brown cloth with gilt title to spine and gilt illustration to upper board; illustrated endpapers. In a dustwrapper priced £2.45 to flap. 262pp including colour illustrations. Size: 9.5 x 6.5 inches approx. (241mm x 162mm).

Dustwrapper with the usual age-toning; a little creased and worn to top edge and foot of spine. Cloth clean and bright. A pencilled number (date? 281071) to upper corner of front free-endpaper; some dustiness and spotting to edge of page-block however generally pages clean throughout.

Overall, light wear but otherwise a nice, clean copy – quite lovely, and surprisingly difficult to find a nice copy of the 1971 1st printing.

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References

Alan Horne, The Dictionary of 20th Century British Book Illustrators (Antique Collectors’ Club, 1994)
Illustrated Children’s Books (Black Dog Publishing, 2009)