Kenneth Grahame was born in Edinburgh on 8 March 1859. He was brought up by his grandmother in Cookham Dene in Berkshire and went to school in Oxford before starting work at the Bank of England. He was unable to go to university because of his family's lack of money. His stories and essays were initially published in periodicals such as the Yellow Book and then collected together as Pagan Papers (1893). This was followed by The Golden Age (1895) and Dream Days (1898). The Wind in the Willows (1908) is based on letters and stories that Graham made for his only child, Alistair. The novel's popularity grew slowly over the years and A.A. Milne's dramatisation of the novel as Toad of Toad Hall brought it greater success. Kenneth Grahame died on 6 July 1932.
Arthur Rackham was born in London, England. At the age of 18, he worked as a clerk at the Westminster Fire Office and began studying part-time at the Lambeth School of Art. In 1892 he left his job and started working for The Westminster Budget as a reporter and illustrator. His first book illustrations were published in 1893 in To the Other Side by Thomas Rhodes, but his first serious commission was in 1894 for The Dolly Dialogues, the collected sketches of Anthony Hope, who later went on to write The Prisoner of Zenda. Book illustrating then became Rackham's career for the rest of his life. Rackham invented his own unique technique which resembled photographic reproduction; he would first sketch an outline of his drawing, then lightly block in shapes and details. Afterwards he would add lines in pen and India ink, removing the pencil traces after it had dried. With color pictures, he would then apply multiple washes of color until transparent tints were created. Arthur Rackham died in 1939 of cancer in his home in Limpsfield, Surrey.
