author/illustrator: Grégoire Laforce/Yvan Duque
ages: 4+
40 pages
20.3 x 25.4 cm
hardcover
French/English
Comme des géants (Canada)
Rights sold: English
Lucie and the Wind
Every morning, Lucy heads to the forest to go exploring. Along the way, she collects things from nature that fascinate her, placing them carefully into little jars that she stuffs into an increasingly full backpack. But on one particular day, Lucy encounters something unexpected: she hears the wind speaking to her.
Thinking she can simply coax the wind into one of her jars, much like her other souvenirs from the forest, she instead finds herself being led on an unforgettable adventure by a force of nature. When she arrives at a moment of truth, however, and reckons with having to let go of her backpack full of jars, an important realization about the environment begins to set in.
A poignant text serves which reminds of the significance of the natural world and the need to preserve it rather than trying to own it or tame it.IN THE MEDIA
"[an] exhilarating picture book about environmental appreciation (...) The textured illustrations represent an exciting mix of styles; they include geometric elements, dots reminiscent of Yayoi Kusama’s work, Lucie’s charming matryoshka face, and ragged realism intertwined with cheeky exaggerations when it comes to natural features like the sea, tree branches, flowers, and cliffs in the clouds." - Foreword Reviews
"In this latest gem, Laforce returns to themes about nature—also explored in his book The Lost Drop, illustrated by Benjamin Flow (2023). He’s crafted an accessible fable that feels both timeless and fresh. Duque’s vibrant full-color artwork is whimsical and inviting, including a particularly memorable slug that follows Lucie on her journey. Each illustration is a double-page spread, mirroring nature’s expansiveness; curious readers will have a ball finding the intricate details hidden throughout. A breath of fresh air." - Kirkus review
BY THE SAME AUTHOR
THE ILLUSTRATOR
Yvan Duque is a French illustrator known for picture books, comics, and animation. Splitting his childhood between the remote islands of Tahiti and Réunion, growing up surrounded by oceans greatly
influenced his art, with islands, explorers, and vistas often filling his work. In addition to illustrating popular titles such as Like a Giant, which has been translated into several languages, Duque also worked as a visual development artist on the animated series Wolfboy and the Everything Factory (Apple TV+) and DreamWorks film Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken. He lives in Quimper, France.