This is a simple wonderful read aimed at children from the ages 9+ but can still be read and enjoyed by older kids. It's genres are definitely friendship and family.... Read Full Review A very contemporary plotline forms the basis of a two-narrator story, with the 'lump in your throat' writing that doesn't happen a lot in children's books. My favourite part of the story is when they all come together as a community to make paper cranes. It is a Japanese belief that you can make a wish on a thousand paper cranes. They make a wish that the baby will survive. KATYA: Yes, I definitely wanted to avoid stereotypes, because I cannot stand the pigeon-holing of boys and girls and how they should and shouldn’t behave, and what they should and shouldn’t like. It’s so regressive. Other than that, I didn’t particularly plan to have a boy and a girl – it’s just what I decided as I started writing! I’m not a planner. I’m not sure if there’s a specific boy-girl dynamic – again, I think it depends on personalities more than anything.

Tom and Zofia both wish the stupid baby had never happened. But then Tom's mum gets ill, and it begins to look horribly like their wish might come true ... The Light in Everything is a deeply moving book and Katya Balen is a rare talent. Her writing is sublime: her descriptions evocative, her narrative utterly convincing and her ability to tap into the human psyche almost unrivalled. This story literally took me by storm. A brave heart-dive into the deep emotions of Tom and Zofia, it’s beautifully told with care and tenderness.’ Jasbinder Bilan This is a heartwarming story that tells the story of true life, not a made up, happy fantasy. I loved following Tom and Zofia's story and their developing friendship.... Read Full ReviewKATYA: I have a good memory of my own childhood, and I’m a bit of a sponge when it comes to people. I have always, always loved reading, watching, learning, about other people’s lives. I think that really helped me form realistic responses and thought processes, because I’ve absorbed so many. Then there is Tom, who lives with his mother Fiona, a hospital doctor, and is traumatised by an abusive and now absent father. Quiet and timid, Tom consoles himself by making paper birds. “Once Dad ripped up my paper birds… They were messy. They were for girls. They were pathetic.” However, I feel that her character arc is slow and not as developed and subtle as Tom's. She seems less empathetic as a character and her brash physicality and loudness as she rages against the world seem predictable. But then again, we are all unlikeable when we suppress negative feelings, - anger, pain and jealousy. Her life with her dad has been invaded and it is clear that she needs more from him (she feels like a ghost, as if no one is looking at her), but he is too distracted and her behaviour is too aggressive for him to cope with. At times I found him insensitive to Zofia's needs and I wanted him to give her more: more patience, more understanding, more of himself. He does provide a practical focus to try and bring the children together later, which become a crucial component in the story's climax and resolution, so he is somewhat redeemed. KATYA: Oh, interesting question! Yes, actually, I do. October is kind of the mid-point between the two of them – she’s wild and thoughtful. I think she’d love to tumble head-first into the waves with Zofia, and I think she’d want to learn the secret, careful folds of origami with Tom. KATYA: My father-in-law does actually live off-grid in 40 acres of woodland! It’s an interesting, brutal, unusual and beautiful way of living, and I found myself (like all authors do!) asking the question what if? What if a child lived here? What if they’d never left? What if they then had to?

The book is written in the first person with dual narrative voices, - alternate chapters for Zofia and Tom - which I found initially a bit jarring until I settled into the structure. Like 'October, October' there is some beautiful language to describe nature: 'We walk down the beach path that is surrounded by dark plum heather and whiskery tufts of seagrass. The sea is turning blue in the morning air...' which I loved and I would have liked more of, but it is always a challenge with the first person. October was a child intrinsically bonded with the wild, so the use of lyrical descriptions of the natural world suited her voice. The Light in Everything is such a brilliant exploration of the way in which many children struggle to come to terms with a new blended family. Did you set out with the intention of helping children in that situation?

An absolutely spectacular and heartwarming book that will make you both laugh and cry at different stages, which is exactly what a book should do! I loved this book. The deftness with which Katya creates such passionate, funny, broken, brave characters. What an achievement. Katya Balen can break your heart and make you snort with laughter in the same sentence.’ Natasha Farrant A tear-jerker about family that shows us things that are important and true, and promotes compassion -- Nicolette Jones - The Sunday Times, Children's Book of the Week

The Light in Everything is a gorgeously crafted and beautifully redemptive novel for children which can also be read and enjoyed by adults old and young. Katya Balen writes from the alternating perspectives of Zofia and Tom, two children whose lives have both been marked by pain and loss, but in very different ways: Zofia is loud and rough and determined, while Tom is quiet and timid and fragile. Their lives will be brought together against their will when Tom and his mum move in with Zofia and her father - and then their parents announce that they hare having a baby. Her latest book, The Light in Everything, is in many ways her most ambitious. This time, she tells the story of two 11-year-olds from fractured families, who narrate the novel in alternating chapters. First there is Zofia, who is prone to rages: “I was born in a storm… The weather was furious and so was I. The midwife said she’d never seen such an angry baby.” Following her mother’s death, she and her father Marek live by the sea in “the kind of cottage from that kind of book where you see a mum and a dad and a little girl and maybe a dog that can fetch slippers.”You’re a great champion for trying to get more media attention for children’s books - One in three of all books sold is a children's book yet children's books only get less than 5% of review space in the media. Why do you think this is - and what can be done? An unlikely friendship develops between these two children when their parents fall in love. Tom and his mum move in with Zofia and her dad and they are expecting a baby. Unfortunately there are complications and the baby may not survive. KATYA: Yes, I thought it was important because it’s the kind of situation that affects so many children. It’s really normal, and because of that maybe we can forget that it isn’t easy. I think it’s good for children to be able to read their own lives and feel less alone, and for children who aren’t in that situation to grow their empathy and understanding. That’s the best result I can ever hope for when a child reads my books.

I may not have appreciated Zofia's unwelcoming behavior, but the writing excelled in showing how a child who does not want to lose the chance of being the apple to her father's eye would hurt her. Her struggles for acceptance felt valid, so how could I fault her for it, even if it agonized me so? All her suppressed thoughts of anger and rage that she unleashed into the comforts of the sea were brutally honest - her struggle in accepting the ways she had to adapt to the changes in her once-stable life were portrayed well, even if at times, I was upset with her behavior. Tom moves in with Zofia and their parents beside the sea, trying to be brave but expecting more of what his dad dished out. Zofia can’t believe this boy who is supposed to be her age, but looks about seven, is so shy and jittery and frightened, all the time. The beach and the sea are Zofia’s favourite places, spending every hour she can down there with her friends from school or just she and Pablo. The water is cold most of the time, but Zofia is used to it and with her wetsuit on, she braves the waves when others wouldn’t dare. October has a happy life living with her dad in the forest - but when Dad gets injured in an accident, she's forced to go and live with her estranged mum in the city, where nothing is natural and everything feels new and frightening. Can October let her mum into her heart? Katya Balen is an award-winning author of books for children. Katya's debut novel, The Space We’re In, was published in 2019 and was highly commended for the Branford Boase Award. Her second, October, October, won the Yoto Carnegie Medal. Her third novel, The Light in Everything, was published in 2022.A bold, bright story of blended families, and how two remarkable children cope when their lives change dramatically. Katya Balen's writing fizzes with her trademark originality and voice. This is another stunningly good read from one of my favourite authors I loved this book. The deftness with which Katya creates such passionate, funny, broken, brave characters. What an achievement. Katya Balen can break your heart and make you snort with laughter in the same sentence Born in a storm, Zofia is wild, unpredictable and tempestuous. She lives by the sea with her father. Tom is timid and withdrawn, constantly scared of the dark and the thought that his dad might return. The two children could not be more different yet each shares a close bond with their parent. And then their parents meet and before long, their families are blending and there's a baby on the way. Tom and his mother move into the cottage by the sea and neither child is happy about the situation. A story of learning to trust, trying to let go and diving into the unknown with hope in your heart, with a stunning cover illustrated by CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal winner Sydney Smith. The Light in Everything by Katya Balen is a very heartwarming novel. It explores how two young people from completlely differnet worlds get along and eventually become a family. Zofia, the tough, loud young girl who sets brave goals and Tom the fragile, soft young boy are brought together unwillingly because of some family changes.