Great Gusts: Winds of the World and the Science Behind Them is one of the most beautiful books I have read so far in 2023. The fact it does not come out until mid-March 2024 is the frustrating part as I want everyone to go out and purchase copies at their local independent bookstore now!
The poetry is amazing as it covers the science of wind and is emotional. Both Melanie Crowder and Megan Benedict’s work is factual, but
allows for the movement of a poem. The actual poem can be set in the style of the area (there is a haiku for the wind of Japan) the wind is from but most are done in free verse. This bonus of the language allows the wind to take on life of its own by introduction of culture as well.
The illustrations of Khoa Le are wind-like as they are light, colorful without being pretentious and flow. Text and art are their own characters. I was unaware of how many books Le has or will have illustrated, allowing you to find other works by them. Of course, the authors have too, but Le’s style is slightly different each time (and I have not read other books by the authors). Three books I have enjoyed illustrated by Le are Making Happy, Beatrice Likes the Dark and Say My Name,
Several extras are included at the end, as well as a quick paragraph on the page of the poem that gives more scientific information to the poetic introduction to it in the poetry. Who knew wind could be so interesting, exciting and beautiful?
