- M.G. Leonard, Illustrated by Polly Dunbar

The Adventures of Portly the Otter: Untold Tales from the Wind in the Willows

By M.G. Leonard, Illustrated by Polly Dunbar

From bestselling author MG Leonard. Ten exquisite tales of the thrilling animal adventures of young otter Portly, including all your favourite characters such as Mole, Ratty and Toad, from the countryside classic, The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame. Illustrated by Polly Dunbar and inspired by the original illustrations from EH Shepard.

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“Believe me, my young friend, there is NOTHING – absolutely nothing half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats”

And so there is a time in a young otter’s life when they must be introduced to their river. For Portly, today was that day …

Told across four seasons in one year, Portly learns to swim, battles a large trout, gets tied to some fireworks by Toad, rescues a human girl, outwits the weasels and stoats of the Wild Wood, meets a young otter journeying to the sea, and sleeps between the cloven feet of the god Pan – a scene familiar to readers of the original book.

Beautifully illustrated in full-colour by award-winning illustrator of The Hug, Polly Dunbar, this gorgeous hardback gift book celebrates the 95th anniversary of EH Shepard’s iconic artwork for Wind in the Willows.

A perfect Easter gift for both new readers and existing fans, young and old!

Pre-order now!

Author: M.G. Leonard
Format: Hardback
Ageband: 7 to 12
Release Date: 26 Mar 2026
Pages: 256
ISBN: 978-0-00-866777-1
Price: £14.99, £14.99 (Export Price) , €None
M. G. Leonard is the bestselling writer of children’s books Beetle Boy, the Adventures on Trains series, The Twitchers series and her newest time-travelling mystery series, Time Keys.Her work had been translated into over forty languages and her books have won many awards, including Sainsbury’s Children’s Book of the Year, British Book Awards Book of the year, and the Branford Boase Award. Her books have been nominated for the Carnegie Medal, shortlisted for an Edgar by the Mystery Writers of America and longlisted for the Wainwright Prize.Maya lives by the sea with her husband and two sons, a dog called Nell and a tank of exotic beetles. She spent her early career in the music industry before she trained as an actor, before becoming a digital producer for Shakespeare’s Globe, the Royal Opera House, the National Theatre and Harry Potter West End.Maya is one of the founding authors of #Authors4Oceans, with Lauren St John, campaigning to reduce single-use plastics.

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