<p>The Wind in the Willows is a children's novel by Kenneth Grahame first published in 1908. Alternately slow moving and fast paced it focuses on four anthropomorphised animals in a pastoral version of England. The novel is notable for its mixture of mysticism adventure morality and camaraderie and celebrated for its evocation of the nature of the Thames valley. In 1908 Grahame retired from his position as secretary of the Bank of England. He moved back to Cookham Berkshire where he had been brought up and spent his time by the River Thames doing much as the animal characters in his book do—namely as one of the phrases from the book says 'simply messing about in boats'—and wrote down the bed-time stories he had been telling his son Alistair.</p>