The Wind Boy

I bought this book to read to my 5-year old as an alternative to the some of the ridiculously banal children's books out there. He loved it, but so did I. I found myself re-reading the book on my own while running on the treadmill (to keep myself from getting bored). It's so full of beautiful prose and magic and earth and a little of everything. From the first paragaph, I was hooked: Chapter 1 - The girl from the mountains "In a spring twilight a young girl was walking down a village street. Just at a glance anyone might know she was a stranger there. For one thing her dress was like nobody's else's. It was the color of sunlight on a brown forest path when the sun is low behind the trees... Do you wonder that people turned to look after her?"

My children were eight and four when we discovered this little gem for a read-aloud together. It was a lovely time. A year later, my five year old will still recall some of the scenes or events from the book. I recommend it to all families!

I'm 55 now and have held onto a copy of Elliot's The Wind Boy ever since I was a boy. I remember being read the story and then reading it to myself later. Somehow, and I can't say just how, the story gave me hope -- hope for the world and hope for me as a boy whose father wasn't in the house because of divorce rather than because of a war.If we could all have the chance to see our lives and worlds from the Clear Land, perhaps we could figure out how to love, how to be peacemakers with more grace and ease.Must reading for anyone who could use a little more hope or a greater belief in the magic inherent in this world.

This is a book about a family displaced by war, living in a town which dislikes strangers. The father is missing in action; no one knows if he is dead or alive, or how he could possibly find them. When a nanny named Nan joins the mother and two children, fantastic things begin to happem. Nan and other characters rescue the children from the relentless prejudice of the people in the town.This book provides comfort for anyone who has ever felt singled out or left out. It also gives a valuable lesson on empathy and compassion.Wind Boy has been read--and adored--by 3 generations in my family. We are delighted to see it back in print.