Kenneth Grahame (1859-1932) was a Scottish author of children’s literature. Following the death of his mother at a young age, Grahame was sent to live with his grandmother in Berkshire, England, in a home near the River Thames. Unable to study at Oxford due to financial reasons, Grahame embarked on a career with the Bank of England, eventually retiring to devote himself to writing. An early exposure to nature and wildlife formed a lasting impression on Grahame, who would return to the Thames Valley of his youth throughout his literary career—most notably in his novel The Wind in the Willows (1908), which is considered his finest achievement and a masterpiece of children’s fiction.