John Richard Jefferies (1848-87) was a renowned naturalist and author who was admired by Kenneth Grahame, Arthur Ransome and W.H.Auden among others and had a considerable influence on British children's literature. Bevis (written in 1882) was an extremely popular book about childhood, appreciated by adults and children alike. Based on the author's own childhood in Wiltshire, it depicted an ideal countryside in which Bevis and his friends enjoyed their adventures. The book was considered both an honest account of the amorality of boyhood and an accurate portrayal of outdoor living.