THE WIND IN THE WOOD. By 'BB'. With illustrations by D.J. Watkins-Pitchford F.R.S.A. A.R.C.A.

1952 1st edition. 4to (194 x 253mm). Pp143. Full-page colour plates, b/w illustrations by D.J. Watkins-Pitchford. Blue snowing: too late for Christmas, of course, but still in plenty of time for tobogganing. Peter and Johanna could hardly manage to wait until afternoon lessons were over before rushing off with their sledge right to the top of Meeting Hill. A push, another shove, and they were off - faster and faster, till suddenly they saw the willows by the brook racing towards them, and they discovered they couldn't stop... There wasn't much left of the toboggan, and Peter and Johanna rather sadly started to walk home. All of a sudden they saw in the snow the strange marks of a big sledge with horses' hoof marks showing plainly in between the lines made by the runners. Then they saw the driver. At first they thought he was Father Christmas: but it wasn't; it was Old Peter - and naturally he had a story to tell, one of Old Peter's Russian Tales... But this was only the beginning of the adventures of lucky Peter and Johanna. Later in the book they meet people like Kenneth Grahame, who told them about The Reluctant Dragon; the Brothers Grimm, who told them the story of Iron Hans; Hans Andersen appeared one day, Nathaniel Hawthorne another, and other famous story-tellers as well - all with their tale to tell".