A Wild Windy Night - by Yui Abe (Hardcover)

About the Book

A bedtime story about an imaginative young child who has a special adventure on a windy night.

Book Synopsis

"Whoooosh!" The wind outside is so strong!

"Hey, Mr. Wind, do you want to play with someone?" Ricky hears a voice in the wind.

He's curious, but it's time to go to bed. "Come on, Ricky, let's get into bed and get warm," his mom says.

But the wind keeps getting stronger and stronger. "Whoooosh! Whoooosh! Whoooosh!" It's so loud that it's hard to sleep.

Suddenly, Ricky hears a loud "bang!" outside. He looks out the window and sees his toy car fly away in the wind. All of his toys start to fly away too!

"Wait, wait!" Ricky cries out. But it's too late. He and all his toys are swept up by the wild wind.
They fly through the dark, empty night sky towards the far-off woods. It's scary, but also exciting. Ricky feels like he's on an adventure.

Yui Abe's beautiful illustrations capture the excitement and wonder of a windy night. You can see the wind blowing Ricky's hair and clothes, and the fear and excitement in his eyes. But even in the midst of the chaos, there is a sense of warmth and comfort, as Ricky remembers the love and safety of his home.

If your child is afraid of windy nights, this book is the perfect way to help them overcome their fears. Through the story of Ricky's wild adventure, they will learn that even the scariest things can be exciting, and that they are never alone, even in the midst of a storm.

Review Quotes

Bold, dark illustrations that give me a Where the Wild Things vibe, help to tell the story of a boy playing hide-and-seek with the noisy wind. . . . Playful and filled with onomatopoeia, this is a beautiful reminder to see the noisy dark as something playful and fun. -- Imagination Soup

"A Wild Windy Night is a short and sweet bedtime story for young imaginations. Part of the tradition of stories that come alive once the lights are turned off, Abe takes a sound that might frighten children and turns the fear into a game of hide and seek. A Wild Windy Night is easy to integrate into a bedtime ritual and, for some, might be a soothing antidote to a night time fright."--Asian Review of Books

"The illustrations are wild and windy as well, flying through the atmospheric night. They are darkly colored befitting the nighttime world. A nice choice for bedtimes that will fill a child's imagination. Definitely reminiscent of Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are." --Youth Services Book Review

"'Mr. Wind isn't anywhere, ' says Ricky. 'You played a lot and he probably got tired and went home, ' Mom suggests, nudging the heavy-lidded child back to bed as Abe brings this thrilling bedtime tale to a cozy and intimate close. A breezy choice for bedtime." --Kirkus Reviews

"A little boy is whisked away on a nighttime adventure in this bedtime tale . . . Dark colors and smudged strokes create a moody, dreamlike atmosphere, but the leaf lingering in Ricky's hair is very real." --Foreword Reviews

"Blustery weather sends a child and their toys on a nocturnal quest in this onomatopoeic tale . . . Smudgy layers of color make for moody scenes that enrich this dreamy portrait of bedtime turned imaginative outing." --Publishers Weekly

About the Author

Yui Abe was born in Miyagi, Japan in 1986. Growing up, she was influenced by her father who was a painter and art teacher in junior high school, and developed a love for drawing from a young age. She studied illustration and picture book creation in Tokyo, and has since worked on book cover illustrations and promotional art for theater productions. Her illustration works include "The Wonder Maps of the World" (Asahi Shimbun Publications) and "Onibaba's Island" (Shogakukan). Yui currently lives in Tokyo.