I'm on a roll again (but probably not for long) - having finished another title - Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, which I read as an ebook. This is the tale of Ratty, Mole, Badger and the ridiculous Toad ... and their various exploits on the river and in the Wild Woods! The actions starts with Mole deciding to explore the world above ground, and when he heads out to do so he is very fortunate in coming across Ratty who takes him in and gives him a home and shows him the delights of the river. Bliss! That is, until Toad bursts onto the scene in bombastic style. Toad is an obsessive, silly creature. Forever getting into scrapes, he is, quite frankly, too rich for his own good and hasn't got enough to do to keep him out of mischief. When his overwhelming desire for motor cars gets him into serious trouble with the law, his friends (including the sensible and slightly scary Badger) try to take him in hand. Unfortunately, Toad thinks he knows best, heads off and ends up in prison. What a troublesome creature he is, and a difficult friend to have. Will Ratty, Mole and Badger be able to put up with his antics for much longer and will Toad ever see sense? Well, you probably already know the answer to those questions. I have seen TV adaptations of this story and cartoons, but reading the original book (although without illustrations on the Kindle version I had) is definitely the way to go. As you read, you can experience the subtle nuances to the characters and how they interact with each other, or feel about the world they are living in. This is very much a massive round of applause for nature and the British countryside. There are delights to be had and chuckles at times, although I did find it a little inconsistent at times. I would recommend this as a good (but not great) read - worth it just so that you can tut at Toad's exploits!
My STAR rating: THREE.
Length: 192 print pages.
Price I paid: free in Kindle.
Formats available: print; audio CD; audio download; ebook.
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