When The Wind Changes

A Picture Book About Change, Resilience, and Big Feelings

Illustrated by Anastasia Khmelevska
Published by Tiny Torch Books
Distributed by Simon & Schuster

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About the Book

A lyrical, beautifully illustrated picture book that uses the journey of migrating geese to help children navigate change, big feelings, and uncertainty with reassurance, resilience, and love.

"This heartfelt book reminds all of us that we move through seasons of darkness and light together, and that our greatest strength truly comes from uplifting one another."—Leslie Motter, President & CEO, Make-A-Wish America

When a young child faces uncertainty, a loving parent gently points to the geese overhead. They, too, move through shifting winds, long distances, and change—adjusting, staying together, and continuing forward.

Through poetic rhyming text and soft watercolor illustrations, When the Wind Changes gives children a calm, nature-based way to understand big feelings, fear, transitions, and resilience. As the geese navigate the changing wind, young readers are reminded that they can move through difficult moments with support, courage, and love.

With a letter to grownups and thoughtful backmatter, this social-emotional learning picture book is a meaningful tool for families, teachers, counselors, and caregivers helping children cope with change.

Here’s what makes When the Wind Changes a reassuring read:

• A reassuring book about big feelings: Helps children name and move through uncertainty, fear, worry, and change.

• Nature-based resilience metaphor: Geese migration offers a concrete, calming image for adapting and continuing forward.

• Supports parent-child connection: A loving caregiver helps frame difficult emotions with reassurance and perspective.

• Includes grownup support: A letter and backmatter make the book useful for guided conversations at home, school, or counseling.

When the Wind Changes is a big feelings picture book, resilience book for kids, and social-emotional learning read-aloud for children ages 4–8 navigating change, anxiety, transitions, and uncertainty.

About the Author

Sadie Gardere is a clinician, researcher, author, and educator on the medical staff at Stanford, with a focus on emotional healing and the parent-child bond. She began her career in pediatric oncology at UCSF and now teaches at the Hoffman Institute, where she works with individuals, couples, and families. Her work lives at the intersection of science and the soul. She lives with her family in the San Francisco Bay Area.

About the Illustrator

Anastasia Khmelevska is an illustrator based in Lviv, Ukraine, specializing in children’s books. Working across both traditional watercolor and digital media, her art blends softness, imagination, and everyday inspiration to create scenes filled with warmth and wonder. Her work is driven by a love of storytelling and a belief in art’s ability to bring magic to life for young audiences.

Product Details

Raves and Reviews

"When the Wind Changes is a necessary reminder that with every season of life, hope can take on new meaning. We’re so often in awe of the resilience children carry during difficult times, yet it’s just as important that they know they are never alone. Whether facing illness, family changes or other hardships, children need the reassurance of a support system that can lift them up and give them a reason to hope. This heartfelt book reminds all of us that we move through seasons of darkness and light together, and that our greatest strength truly comes from uplifting one another."

 

Leslie Motter, President & CEO, Make-A-Wish America

"Sadie Gardere gives children, and the adults reading to them, a tender and self-compassionate way of relating to hard feelings. She reminds us that our feelings make us human, they pass, and we can bravely be with ourselves as we experience them. A beautiful reminder that we are not alone.” 

– Kristin Neff, PhD. Author of Self-Compassion and Fierce Self-Compassion

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