Here's a book we've seen many, many different versions of during our (nearly) ten years of blogging about books, and one that many illustrators have put their own particular style to, drawing up the well-known and well-loved scenes from Kenneth Grahame's timeless children's classic.

This time, one of our favourite children's illustrators, Grahame Baker-Smith brings his deft touch to "The Wind in the Willows", complimenting a largely unabridged version of the original classic story with the most stunning images, making this already atmospheric story even more inviting and daydreamy.

The classic tale of Mr Toad, Ratty, Mole, Badger and the rest of the riverside animals - swapping between scenes of tranquil idyll while boating and picnicing on the river, through to Mr Toad's rather unfortunate incidents with motor vehicles, his dramatic escape from prison, and the fight to take back Toad Hall from a bunch of ferrety ne'er do wells may be very well known, but there's always something new to discover, something charming and brilliant - even though we still consider this book to be quite a tough read for a modern audience.

But ah, Grahame Baker Smith's illustrations really do give this whole thing a really classic feel (cloth-bound and instantly a keepsake the minute you see it presented just like the old fashioned editions of the books I first got my grubby mitts on as a tiny tot).


Gorgeous or what?

Sum this book up in a sentence: A gorgeous gift edition of one of the most timeless and well-loved children's classics, beautifully illustrated by a master of evocative and atmospheric paintings for children's books.

"The Wind in the Willows" by Kenneth Grahame and Grahame Baker-Smith is out now, published by Templar (kindly supplied for review). 

As much as we love our contemporary books, we always find time for the well loved classics that older folk grew up with.

Palazzo are re-releasing this stunning range of classics, with gorgeous artwork by celebrated illustrator Robert Ingpen, starting off with J.M Barrie's awesome adventure "Peter Pan and Wendy"

Practically everyone will know who Peter Pan is, and they'll certainly know the Disney version of the story if nothing else (as well as probably cringing at the memory of all the pretty awful live action movie adaptations there have been over the years).

This timeless story is given a whole new lease of life with beautifully detailed and stunning illustrations from Robert, who truly brought the very best out in the characters and scenes of the story.

Sorry Nanny, gotta fly!

The story of three children who meet a mysterious impish fellow, and embark on a journey to Neverland is a true classic and definitely worth having in your collection, particularly in this lovely abridged and highly illustrated version.

"Peter Pan and Wendy" by J.M Barrie and Robert Ingpen is out now, published by Palazzo.

Another much-loved tale getting Robert's glorious illustrations is "The Wind in the Willows" by Kenneth Grahame.

Meet Mole, Ratty, Badger - and of course Mr Toad in another wonderfully detailed abridged version of the tale of a rather irascible toad and his long suffering friends.

Toad is, of course, the rather too well off owner of Toad Hall - with a penchant for fast cars and getting into trouble.

But when Toad Hall is overrun by nefarious weasels, Mr Toad might need to enlist his friends help.

It's an adorable version, in fact for younger children it's a far more digestible and easy read than most versions we've come across (it's a pretty tough read in its original form, at least we thought so).

All the same, Robert once again makes the story glow with beautifully detailed painted illustrations.

Wow, what a cosy little nook!! Wouldn't you want to live there?

"The Wind in the Willows" by Kenneth Grahame and Robert Ingpen is out now, published by Palazzo.

(Both titles kindly supplied for review)

What steps do you take if you're ever chased by a dragon? Very big steps - preferably in the opposite direction! Unless of course it's the reluctant dragon, Kenneth Grahame's rather sweet and harmless scaly beast.

In this retelling of Grahame's tale, the poor dragon's peaceful and rather carefree existence is under threat. Folk really don't like a big lizardy fire breather living on their doorstep - but it takes a rather diminutive and diddy knight to come up with a plan to save the dragon, and restore peace to the kingdom.

Normally we frown on anyone messing around with classic books too much but this is so beautifully rewritten, presented and illustrated. Fred Blunt's humorous art style is an utterly delicious fit for the book, making it accessible and above all a huge amount of fun (It'd make such a brilliant animated film in our opinion!)

Fantastic stuff - there are quite a few different versions of "The Reluctant Dragon" around for younger readers but this is definitely the best we've seen.

Charlotte's best bit: The crazed antics of the townsfolk when they find out there's a dragon on the loose

Daddy's favourite bit: A nice meaty children's picture book that has a really broad appeal across a range of ages. Particularly brilliant if your kids are looking for knight-and-dragon themed books.