I Am Wind

Praise

A 2025 Bank Street College Best Children’s Book of the Year

“Juxtaposing a poetic narration of wind telling its own ‘life story’ with myths, folk traditions, historical vignettes, and the solid science behind wind’s power and mystery, [I Am Wind] expresses an artistic and literary aesthetic not often seen in science texts for younger scholars.” —STARRED REVIEW, School Library Journal

“Storm-swept illustrations carry a full bag of facts, myths, legends, and original poems about our planet’s winds. Poliquin’s free verse expressions alternate with short but clear explanations in prose and Wada’s vivid, sometimes schematic depictions of types and causes of storms, from destructive katabatic winds to hurricanes and tornados.” —Kirkus Reviews

“The lengthy work underscores how humans have used the wind’s movements to explore and sail, to harness power via windmills, and, more recently, to generate electricity. Wada uses rhythmically stroked, digitally finished visuals to convey the subject’s movement, ranging from scenes in which a child’s hair ribbon is tossed by the breeze to those of destruction wrought by tornadoes and hurricanes.” —Publishers Weekly

“Wada’s mixed-media illustrations echo the emotions in the text, swirling color and linear elements to depict the flow of wind and the movement of objects in its wake.” —The Horn Book

“This lushly illustrated STEAM picture book takes the form of an autobiography of a mysterious force: the wind. Written in original free-form poetry, this work introduces various deities drawn from Greek, Sumerian, Hawaiian, Chinese, Hindu, and Iroquois traditions, all connected to the wind.” —Booklist