Spoiler alert! This was the end of Horwood's Willows books, in more ways than one. Not only does it mark the end of the Wild Wood, but he kills off all the characters! They are replaced with various offspring, and the end of the book seems to hint of some further stories, but basically you've just slain the entire cast of one the best loved books of all time. It was like watching Robinson Crusoe get killed and eaten by Friday. If I had any sense I'd get rid of it and just pretend it never happened. ( )

Well, now I've read this last book of the Wind in the Willows series and feel a nice, cozy sense of closure-except the library didn't have Toad Triumphant. Funny thing is, yesterday I found it in the vintage children's books section of Half-Price Books! (Hardcover, with dust jacket, can I get a "Woo-HOo!"?)
Anyway, this book takes our dear friends all the way to the peaceful end and yet one feels the stories might continue, because their families do. One big surprise about 3/4 of the way through had me in tears (of happiness) and feeling rather sorry for myself that I wasn't some creature of the river bank myself. Sigh, none of Horwoods's books are 100% as wonderful as Kenneth Grahame's original, but they are darn near it I think. Definately worth reading ( )