Windswept

In Tag’s world, children are disappearing. “Youngers” who venture Outside are windswept—vanishing in the swirling snow—Tag’s sisters among them. Many have tried to find the lost children; all have failed. And since the Other Times, the Powers That Be seem intent on keeping it that way.

Little remains from those times: snippets of songs, heaps of plastic trash, and a few banned texts—including a book of fairytales.

An unlikely crew of Youngers join forces—Boots, who can climb anything, Ant, who will eat anything, Ren, who will say anything, and Tag, who doesn’t appear to have any talent whatsoever. With their dubious skills, the fairytales, a possibly magic ribbon, and an unwillingness to accept “that’s impossible,” they set off to rescue their windswept siblings in this spellbinding fantasy from Newbery Honor winner Margi Preus.

Published by Amulet Books. Cover art by Armando Veve.

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Windswept Readers guide

Catching the wind with a net

How do we fill in “holes” in stories with our own imaginations?Download discussion questions, serious and silly, created for curious readers of all ages and levels. Developed by Pat Castellano and Margi Preus.

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Praise for Windswept

“(Windswept) masterfully blends European fairy-tale motifs with timely warnings about human greed, waste, and destructiveness while extolling the power of storytelling. Richly descriptive prose and delicate, atmospheric black-and-white illustrations enhance the fairy-tale flavor. An inventive, memorable must-read. ”

— Kirkus Starred Review

“The tone here is pitch-perfect, capturing that particular fairy-tale flavor of the absurd mingling with the deeply serious; slapstick alongside real suspense; and language being bent, repurposed, and enjoyed for its own deliciousness. . . fresh, rich, and buoyant fantasy.””

— Hornbook Starred Review

“. . . hypnotic writing will tug at readers’ hearts and keep them mesmerized. Veve’s illustrations and maps add interest and enhance the text. This must-read grand adventure with unlikely heroes will appeal to all fantasy lovers.”

— School Library Journal Starred Review

“Jam-packed worldbuilding that borrows from Norwegian fairy tales, Preus smartly employs the fairy tale form to investigate ethics around avarice, exploitation, and communal priority.”

— Publisher's Weekly