Calling the Wind: A Story of Healing and Hope

by Trudy Ludwig, Kathryn Otoshi (Illustrator)

Inspired by the Wind Telephone in Japan, this poignant story explores the stages of grief, the healing power of hope, and the unbreakable family bonds that connect us all. From the acclaimed author of The Invisible Boy and the award-winning illustrator of One.

In a small village in Japan, a family mourns the loss of their loved one. Each family member grieves in their own way, but it is not until they discover an old-fashioned telephone booth on a windswept hill that they begin to heal. Through the telephone, they are able to express feelings long bottled up--speaking directly to their loved one and also to each other. Slowly but surely, the pain subsides, and hope blossoms anew.

Inspired by Itaru Sasaki's Wind Telephone, which brought healing to the people of Japan in the wake of an Earthquake and tsunami this story explores grief and loss, and how we move forward by finding meaningful ways to connect with the family and friends we've lost, as well as those who are still with us.

Genres: Picture Books, Grief, Death, Family, Japan, Childrens, Poetry

48 pages, Hardcover

Published October 4, 2022

About the author

Trudy Ludwig is a nationally acclaimed speaker and an award-winning author who specializes in writing children's books that help kids connect and engage with their peers in kind, caring ways. She has received rave reviews from educators, experts, organizations, and parents for her passion and compassion in addressing friendship, bullying, and cyberbullying issues at schools and conferences around the country.

An active member of the International Bullying Prevention Association, Trudy collaborates with leading US experts and organizations and has been profiled on national/regional media outlets. She has also served as content advisor for Sesame Workshop's "Good Birds Club" TV episode and as an expert panel member on Sesame Workshop's video series on bullying.

Trudy's books have won the Victoria Soto Legacy Award, NAPPA Gold Award, Mom's Choice Gold Awards, the Moonbeam Children's Books Gold Award and are included in Kids'Indie Next Selection,the Cooperative Children's Book Center's Best of the Year Selection,and NCSS-CBC Notable Social Studies Books for Young People Selection. the Junior Library Guild Selection, the School Library Journal Best Picture Books Selection, and more.

For more information or to book Trudy for a speaking engagement, visit www.trudyludwig.com

Reviews

[Tina Seeborg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes, I cried.

[Gabrielle Stoller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my goodness, this book needs to be on people's reading lists when looking for books about death and bereavement. Inspired by a "wind phone (a glass paneled phone booth that houses an old rotary telephone--not hooked up to anything--but a place where people can come to express their grief.) this book is a beautiful story of how grief and loss impact generations. A child's mother, yes, but also a wife and someone's daughter.

The usage of yellow, the deceased's favorite color, serves as the conduit for peace, for growth, for beauty coming through the dark times. Oh my goodness I LOVED this book.

[Susan Dunn · Rating 5 out of 5]

So sad! Mom is gone, but her family slowly discovers that live goes on and that they can still find happiness in small things - and each others company.

[Rosanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite children's books of all time. This was so heartfelt, the pictures were beautiful and the writing really tore at my heartstrings. I find this book a little too much for a younger child - a almost cried reading it to be honest. Just absolutely beautiful.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This picture book--a 3.5 for me--relies on minimal but effective text as well as softly-rendered illustrations crafted with watercolor, colored pencils, and pens to follow one family's journey through the grief process. Readers will need to read between the lines in order to understand that the loss of Mom has affected each of those she left behind in different but powerful ways. Her three children and her father all miss her terribly but find comfort when first one and then the others stumble upon the wind phone that allows them to express their feelings of grief and loss and slowly begin to heal. Her husband, though, finds it hard to cope or to move onward other than through expressing his anger, which he does after the rest of the family is late from spending time outdoors. Finally, he, too uses the phone to tell her just how much he misses her and how life without her isn't the same. Several of the illustrations contain spots of color, representing hope, including a yellow bird, yellow flowers and yellow paper cranes. While this woman will always be missed, her family has found a way to honor her memory and experience moments of happiness. Some humor is injected through the youngest child's constant pleas for a new puppy. The facial expressions and postures of the family members are depicted perfectly. This picture book would certainly be helpful to anyone experiencing a loss and trying to come to terms with grief and the complicated emotions associated with such an experience. Add this one to a classroom collection on loss, grief, and death.

[Stephanie Bange · Rating 5 out of 5]

Add this one to your bookshelf about grief. A box of tissues, please!

When Mother passes, this traditional Japanese family tries to find solace in different ways, with each finding it in a phone booth in a garden.

Based on an actual phone booth, this fictional story tugs at the heartstrings. Ludwig's spare text is just right, guiding the reader to explore the emotions felt while grieving. She leaves much of the details of the story to the amazing Kathryn Otoshi to tell visually. Using Kuretake watercolors, color pencils, and pens, there is a dreamy, subtle quality to each illustration. Each family member is shown grieving in their own way - in shades of yellow, pink, and blue. Not at all a sad story, it is very uplifting to watch this family who miss their matriarch so deeply come to terms with her loss, yet move forward with her.

Useful for counselors and therapists, this could also be used by families to discuss death of a family member or beloved pet. While there are a couple of other books about this phone booth in Japan, only one is for children: The Phone Booth in Mr. Hirota's Garden by Heather Smith (Orca, 2019). It, too, is beautifully told and comforting. That said, Otoshi's artwork is far superior in capturing the emotions of the family.

Highly Recommended for PreSchool- grade 3 (or higher!)

[Read Ribbet · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautifully written and illustrated book that focuses on coping with grief. With surprisingly minimal text, Ludwig tells the story of a family dealing with the death of a family member due to the Japanese tsunami. We see the father, husband and children of a women each try to find comfort in their own ways. The story centers on the real life "wind phone" installed by Itaru Sasaki's in his backyard (a phone booth with a rotary phone only connected to the wind.) The family members deal with their grief by using the phone to express their thoughts. Kathryn Otoshi's illustrations evoke Japanese watercolors and extend the minimal text by Ludwig. The reader is enticed to look deeply into each picture. By embracing a burst of yellow in some illustrations, Otoshi's provides a bit of hope during this sad time. The book begins and ends with haikus. A list of grief support resources is included at the end. The end pages also contain a description of the real wind phone installation which is still visited by people from around the world today.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

A family's mother has passed away and they are grieving. When the young boy sees a flyer about a special phone, he finds the place and talks to his mother - it's a one-sided conversation, and she's not really there, but it makes him feel better and he starts to heal - bringing home her favorite color flower and telling others about the comforting phone. As other family members try the special phone, the feeling of peace happens to them too.

Based on "The Wind Phone" a glass-paned phone booth in a garden in Japan. Originally built as a quiet and safe place for the artist to grieve, soon others found out and now many people have visited "The Wind Phone". This is one of those times that I wish the author's note had come first - the story felt odd, but now it makes more sense and is a lovely story about healing, and remembering. The characters are Japanese.

Cross posted to http://kissthebookjr.blogspot.com

[Karen Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gorgeous book about loss and feelings too big to hold inside so they must find a way out.
It's based on an incident in Japan where a grieving family found an old phone booth and used it to "call" their lost loved one and express their bottled up feelings, which helped in the healing process.
It shows that big, sad and angry feelings are normal while grieving and that people grieve differently. Another message is that even when a life ends, love lives on.
This is an important book to help talk to children who are grieving.
And, grief resources are also included.

[Debra · Rating 5 out of 5]

In a sparsely worded and sweetly illustrated few pages, this book tackles grief and the stunning ways an old phone booth in the middle of nowhere allows adults and children to talk to the loved one they lost. Each person: child, spouse, grandparent shows a need to connect after a tragedy. This is a MUST have title for in a school community. This book will speak to so many of my school community.

Trudy Ludwig has a gift of creating the most useful tools for teachers, especially dealing with crisis issues. This book is simply lovely.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this story, a family grieves the loss of the mother. When one of the children finds the Wind Phone, they show it to the others and help them mourn. The minimal text causes the watercolor, colored pencil, and pen illustrations to carry the heartfelt story, especially the contrast between the blues and mourning and the yellows of happy memories. I didn't know about the Wind Phone before, but it's a great idea to allow loved ones to mourn privately.

[Riana (RianaInTheStacks) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was interesting to me that it was based on a real phone booth set up for the sole purpose of someone talking to their loved one and then others began using it and then it got turned into this story to share even further. I think that shows the staying power of this symbol of a way to stay connected with loved ones after they are physically gone.

[Gretchen · Rating 5 out of 5]

While there are a number of really good picture books about dealing with grief, this one tops the list. With very few words but so much emotion, it shows how grief can reveal itself in our day-to-day life and an amazing idea one person came up with that can help so many. Sometimes the fewer words that are used means that we can weave the story we need into the pages.

[Cara Byrne · Rating 4 out of 5]

With limited text and sweeping illustrations, Ludwig and Otoshi show a family of a father, grandfather, and three young children who have just lost their wife, daughter, and mother respectively. Grief and sadness and understanding of death are all experienced by the characters in different ways, which is thoughtfully shown.

[Lisa Huninghake · Rating 4 out of 5]

The death of Mom is devastating. This Japanese family is living with the loss. They use a “wind phone”, (inspired by Itaru Sasaki after a devastating earthquake and tsunami) to voice their grief, sense of loss, and eventual healing. A beautiful story.

[Holly Mueller · Rating 4 out of 5]

A family grieves over their mother's death, each in his/her own way. Inspired by the real Wind Phone in Japan. Beautiful illustrations. An important book for anyone experiencing loss and needing hope and healing.

[emyrose8 · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5- Almost wordless book about grief. Seems simple enough until you read the note in the back. A man in Japan created a "wind phone", a phone booth with a disconnected phone so he could voice his grief. Others found out about it and asked if they could use it. He let them. How beautiful!

[Kirsten Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did not expect this book to be what it is. Wow! What a beautiful book centered on loss and grief and hope and healing. Make sure to read the Author’s Note to know about the real-life events that brought this book’s story to life. And grab a tissue when you read.

[April · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Michele Knott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful.

[Elizabeth]

Such a nice way to grieve.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

A stunning book that guides us through the winter of a family's grief and how that acute pain softens as spring comes.

[Tiffany T · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful watercolor art. Empathtic discussion of grief and grieving. Cathartic.

[Jaime · Rating 4 out of 5]

Calling the Wind is beautiful.

Themes: death of a loved one, grief, healing, The Wind Phone in Japan

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another new book in our library!
Enjoyed reading the author's note of the wind phone he set up in his garden.
Even when a loved one passes, love lives on.

[Elaine Fultz, Teacher Librarian, MLS · Rating 2 out of 5]

The wordlessness makes this story of grief too elusive. The author's note explains the lovely idea of the phone booth used to "call" lost loved ones, but that use is unclear in the body of the story.

[Jared White · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet and lovely book about losing someone, remembering them, and slowly starting to heal while also holding them near by "calling the wind."

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful story of the journey through loss, grief and healing.

[Destiny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m not crying, you’re crying.

[Noor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grief loss and moving on. This would be an interesting text to use when studying tsunamis because of thr wind telephone installed in Japan after thr 2011 tsunami.