The Wind in the Willows is a children's book by the British novelist Kenneth Grahame, first published in 1908. Alternatingly slow-moving and fast-paced, it focuses on four anthropomorphised animals: Mole, Rat (a European water vole), Toad, and Badger. They live in a pastoral version of Edwardian England. The book was based on bedtime stories Grahame told his son Alastair. It has been adapted numerous times for both stage and screen. In 2003, The Wind in the Willows was listed at #16 in the BBC's survey The Big Read.[1]