The golden age

The golden age - Kenneth Grahame

Recalling his youth among elders who exemplified Victorian values of stoicism and quiet decency, Kenneth Grahame refers to these hallowed figures as the "Olympians" whose presence provided both order and necessary balance to his rambunctious, imaginative boyhood. Now an adult himself, Grahame wonders if he has become one of these "Olympians," and looks back on his youth not only for an answer, but for a reaffirmation of the joy and freedom of a childhood spent among friends. In the stories that follow, he recalls the games they played, the places they discovered, and the legends they made of the normal, the boring, and the everyday found all around them. Filled with references to classical Greek mythology, Grahame's collection is nostalgic for a world left behind, yet open to reconstituting a reality more wonderful for its common nature. The Golden Age is not just a book about the experience of childhood, but a study of the past that must remain present within us. Grahame's book remains, over a century after it was published, a classic work of literature for children and adults alike.