[1] The character of Arthur later acquired fame and inspired several other picture books and the PBS animated television series adaptation.

After the book's publication, it inspired a series of storybooks chronicling Arthur's childhood experiences.

[3] The books showed the progression of years Arthur's character design gradually changed.

But in later books their noses (aardvark snouts) gradually receded until they were reduced to nothing more to a pair of tiny nostrils, their tails also disappeared.

The book was reissued in 2001 to mark its 25th anniversary, with additional drawings showing how Brown developed the character.