A WILD WINDY NIGHT

Get set for exciting adventure when a blustery wind blows into a child’s bedroom.

Hardly has Ricky’s mom ushered the little one to bed and pulled up the covers than, with a “Whoosh-Whoosh-Ka-whoosh,” the howling wind blows the child’s shouting toys and then Ricky out into the night for a grand flight over town and then a game of hide-and-seek in the forest (“The first seeker will be Mr. Wind,” says Ricky). Abe’s illustrations carry this minimally narrated tale, translated from Japanese, as a dot-eyed, tan-skinned child and a huge array of suddenly animated toys swirl out the window, blow high in the air beneath a full moon, then, in sets of borderless close-up panels that seem to blend together, hide behind bushes and trees to await the arrival of Mr. Wind. With a mighty “WHOOOSH!” the wind at last arrives to blow the entire forest and everything else away, leaving Ricky huddling on a bare globe. Soon Ricky is found by Mom, who lifts the blanket to let in the lamplight and then opens the curtains to reveal a tranquil night. “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.