TPN: What made you decide to write this book?

Muz Murray (MM): When I was six years old, the first book that captivated me was a whimsical selection of stories called ‘Old Mother West Wind’—short bedtime stories about the adventures and mischievous antics of the animals and creatures of the meadow and wood. And I still remembered that book as an adult when I had become an author myself, and wanted to write something similar. However, I was never able to find a copy of the book anywhere in England, and nobody had ever heard of it.

It wasn’t until I was 80 years old that I thought of putting the book title on the Internet. And lo and behold!—to my delight, I discovered it was an ancient American classic by Thornton Burgess, that kids grew up with over a hundred-and-twenty years ago.

But to my great disappointment, on re-reading it, I found it was so old-fashioned, and so poorly written by today’s standards, that really needed a thorough makeover. So when I found it was out of copyright, I decided to rewrite and revitalise it for today’s parents and children, while still retaining the charm of the original.

I took a year off, of unpaid work, to rewrite and re-illustrate the book as a labour of love, in order to introduce it to British children.


TPN: What did you find needed changing specifically?

MM: Well, firstly, I checked the Amazon reviews by today’s parents and found they were very unhappy with the awkward style of writing that made reading aloud so difficult. They were also not happy about one character who was roundly applauded for cheating in order to win a race. Worst of all, there were no nasty things like ‘girls’ in the book, as he wrote it for his young son. That put off some present-day mothers from reading the book to their daughters.

Something had to be done about that.

And I found a number of plot holes in the stories, some of which just petered out with rather feeble endings.


TPN: So you did add some girls?

MM: I certainly did. I made Old Mother West Wind’s children into both boys and girls. And I created new characters like little Zoëy Otter and her friend Betty Beaver, in order to make the book more ‘daughter-friendly’.

Zoëy is a great role model for the girls—who love her to bits!—being plucky, inventive, heroic, and adventurous. Along with the original characters like Johnny Chuck the Groundhog, fly-gobbling Grandfather Frog, and sly Reddy Fox, I introduced new characters such as Billy Brock. Sneezle the Weasel, Pee-Tee Rabbit, and Toby-Cockles the Terrapin. Most of the animals of course were originally American, so I changed them to the more recognisable creatures of the British countryside.

After each chapter, I added fun facts about the real lives of the animals in the stories, as an educational element that has been much appreciated.

There are some life lessons and gentle morals in the tales, such as “Whatever you do, will come bank on you”. So the rascally characters get instant karma!

I added the word ‘Tales’ to distinguish the book from the original.


TPN: What age group is your book intended for?

MM: Well, there are mums telling me they are reading it to their three-year-olds who can happily follow the plots.” And grannies are saying that any of their grandchildren up to ten, or even twelve, love these wholesome stories.
So you can hardly go wrong with any age.


TPN: How did you come to win the Global Book Award?

MM: Search me. I applied for several awards and heard nothing. Suddenly out of the blue, I was told I had won ‘The Best Children’s Book of the Year’ award.

So I was mightily chuffed as you can imagine.

It seems that the Global Gold Medal was for the artwork on my cover for 23 of my original illustrations (which appear to delight every reviewer), and the lyrical language in which I wrote the book. So I am happy that some judges recognise genius when they see it, he said modestly.

Here’s what some of my readers are saying:

“This is the most charming, comfortable children’s book I have ever read! I love the author’s lyrical style and the animal facts added after new characters are brought into the stories. I am delighted to now have the actual book—and I highly recommend adding to your children’s library—or your own”.

“The tales are the perfect length for bedtime reading. Our five-year-old sometimes even talks me into reading two stories before bed."

“What an absolute delight to read! This book has it all for children and adults that are still in touch with their inner child. I read it to my grandchildren, and they were really upset when it was finished, they wanted it to go on, they loved it so much. They loved the pictures, and learning all about the different animals, and creatures. It really brought the book alive for them, they are 3, 5, and 9 respectively. A book for children of all ages.”

“Each of these imaginatively written, beautifully illustrated stories is accompanied by nature notes describing the habits and habitats of the denizens of Windily Wood.

“This really is a classic to pass down through the generations.”

TPN: Where can readers find Old Mother West Wind Tales?

MM: It is currently available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Smashwords, and your local book shop or library, (use the ISBN 978-1-9996327-4-8).


Anyone living in the UK who doesn’t like buying from Amazon can get it directly from my distributors in Dorset, via my website: https://www.muzmurray.com/old-mother-west-wind-tales