60 Great Books - 53 - Bauman Rare Books A Magnificent Association: The Wind In The Willows, Limited Edition Illustrated By Ernest Shepard And Signed By Grahame And Shepard—This Copy Presented To A.A. Milne 51. (MILNE, A.A.) GRAHAME, Kenneth. The Wind in the Willows. Illustrated by Ernest Shepard. London, 1931. Small quarto, original half green cloth, custom slipcase. $45,000. Exceptional association copy of the signed limited first illustrated edition of this children’s classic, one of only 200 copies signed by both Kenneth Grahame and Ernest Shepard. This copy is an out-ofseries association copy, with presentation inscription from the publisher to Winnie-the-Pooh author A.A. Milne: “This is a presentation copy for A.A. Milne.” Kenneth Grahame originally wrote parts of The Wind in the Willows in letter form to his young son Alistair with the purpose of improving his behavior. His manuscript was rejected by an American publisher and was eventually published in England in 1908. It received only a lukewarm reception, however. A.A. Milne was a fan of the book for many years and wrote a play based on it, Toad of Toad Hall, in 1921. It was not produced until 1929 and it was an immediate success; Milne attended its premier with Grahame, who was quite pleased with the production. Within two years the most acclaimed edition of The Wind in the Willows appeared, illustrated by Milne’s great collaborator, Ernest Shepard, and through this edition the work became even more widely known. There is no doubt that it is in part through Milne’s and Shepard’s efforts that The Wind in the Willows became the celebrated children’s classic that it is today. Of The Wind in the Willows, A. A. Milne wrote, “One does not argue about The Wind in the Willows… The book is a test of character. We can’t criticize it, because it is criticizing us.” Pierpont Morgan 269. Minor staining, a small abrasion to rear board. A near-fine and beautiful copy of this children’s classic, with a truly exceptional association. “The Wind in the Willows has a claim to be regarded as the finest achievement of children’s literature up to the date at which it was written, and perhaps afterwards.” —Humphrey Carpenter
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