Katya Balen

When Mattie wishes on a shooting star for a puppy, she knows her wish is hopeless. Her dad just doesn't believe Mattie is responsible enough to look after a puppy. She finds the next best thing when she and her friend Zoë start helping the new vet and animal rescuer, Dr Polly. Mattie still may not have a pet of her own, but she has amazing adventures rescuing a runaway ferret, trying to stop a greedy goat from eating everything in the garden and looking after an adorable puppy with a hurt paw. But as the animal rescue gets more and more crowded, Mattie, Zoë and the vet's son, Casper, realize that they need to do something more. Can they help the animals find their forever homes?

The first novel in a brand-new adventure series by Carnegie Medal Winner Katya Balen for fans of Greenwild and The Whisperwicks Every year, siblings Sam, Milo and Coco spend their summers on the Island of St. Alestone. The island is mysterious and bursting with secrets. They know every single one. And they don’t want to share them with their new step-sister Kit. Everything changes when Kit discovers a family heirloom that the others know nothing about. The Saltstone transports her to a magical version of St Aleston, hidden from the rest of the world. Suddenly she’s the one with the secret. With the Saltstone in her hand, Kit can do anything. Then she meets Christopher – a boy who disappeared from St Aleston over a century ago and yet is somehow still alive. Kit learns he’s being held prisoner, his heart stolen by the island’s mysterious controller, the Magician of Saltstone. After Christopher saves Kit from suffering the same fate, she vows to free him. But a terrible betrayal is afoot that will force Kit to fight to keep her family together in an enthralling tale of belonging, betrayal, and the invisible threads of magic that bind us.

A captivating story about finding friendship and hope … and a place where you can spread your wings. From Carnegie Medal winner Katya Balen. Con has been angry ever since Dad left. He doesn’t want to be. He wants to play FIFA with his best friend Kyron; to make his mum proud; to let people’s words about his dad roll off him like water. Instead, rage builds inside him until he explodes. Now even Kyron is scared of him. And when Con gets suspended from school he knows he’s let everyone down. The good person he longs to be feels unreachable. And then his neighbour, Mr Williams, lets him in on a secret. Up on the roof of Con’s building, Mr Williams keeps homing pigeons. Their feathers are the colour of pearls and storm clouds. Every day they fly out, carrying messages to people in other towns before finding their way home. Mr Williams wants Con’s help looking after them. Con can’t believe it. How could someone like him be trusted with these delicate creatures? But slowly, Con begins to believe that he can. Then Mr Williams goes away for a few days. Con is left in charge, and he begins to wonder whether the pigeons might be able to bring home more than just messages. Perhaps they could find his dad.

An uplifting picture book celebrating wildness from a multi-award-winning author and illustrator team, Katya Balen and Gill Smith. A little girl loves playing in the woods and rejoicing in the wildness all around her. She sees secrets in the stars and stories in the earth. But one day she moves to the city. Surrounded by tall, grey buildings, she feels disconnected and alone. She has lost her wild. Or has she? Maybe she will find wildness where she least expects it... PRAISE FOR WILD "A lush, poetic picture book, with words by a Carnegie-winning author." The Guardian "This delightful book is perfect for kids aged three to seven years. A celebration of nature in all its forms." The Courier "features stunning artwork from Gill Smith … An uplifting celebration of the power of the natural world, even in the most built-up environments." The Bookseller

When her life is unexpectedly upended, Anna escapes London - and her husband - for a remote cottage in the wetlands of rural England. She hopes the solitude might unblock the novel she can't bring herself to write. Out in the marshes, the locals discover something shocking, risen to the surface after many years buried in the silty earth. Anna is drawn to the site, fascinated and shaken by what she finds there. And as researchers descend, her curiosity gives way to obsession . . . An unsettling, propulsive and fiercely tender novel about buried loss and renewal, Our Numbered Bones explores how we must unearth the past in order to make peace with what we've lost.

A hopeful story of finding your way back to yourself ... and to a place where you can spread your wings. From YOTO Carnegie Medal winner Katya Balen

A hopeful story of finding your way back to yourself … and to a place where you can spread your wings. From YOTO Carnegie Medal winner Katya Balen.Con has been angry ever since Dad left. He doesn’t want to be. He wants to play FIFA with his best friend Kyron; to make his mum proud; to let people’s words about his dad roll off him like water. Instead, rage builds inside him until he explodes. Now even Kyron is scared of him. And when Con gets suspended from school he knows he’s let everyone down. The good person he longs to be feels unreachable.And then his neighbour, Mr Williams, lets him in on a secret.Up on the roof of Con’s building, Mr Williams keeps homing pigeons. Their feathers are the colour of pearls and storm clouds. Every day they fly out, carrying messages to people in other towns before finding their way home. Mr Williams wants Con’s help looking after them. Con can’t believe it. How could someone like him be trusted with these delicate creatures? But slowly, Con begins to believe that he can.Then Mr Williams goes away for a few days. Con is left in charge, and he begins to wonder whether the pigeons might be able to bring home more than just messages. Perhaps they could find his dad.

In a poetic, beautifully illustrated story, a child's move to a big city has her mourning her connection with nature until she makes a serendipitous discovery. When I shout my name into the sky, nobody answers. The city is lonely and so am I.I've lost my wild. In the woods, the girl finds wildness all around her--when she climbs toward the sky and shouts her name into the air, a bird sings back to her. She finds secrets in the stars and stories in the earth. But when her family leaves wildness behind, she sees only towering gray-glass buildings, taller than trees, nothing she can climb. It's not possible to find the stars, and the moon hangs all alone. She feels bereft--until a bird calls to her from the sky, and following its path through the city streets to the river leads to natural sights that take her breath away. With gorgeous prose from Katya Balen and atmospheric artwork from Gill Smith, this tale of the wondrous ability of nature to prevail shows that wildness never leaves those who cherish it.

‘Wild and brilliantly crafted’ – Sarah Crossan, author of One and Where the Heart Should BeOn the Island of Ayrie, everybody knows everyone. They know each other’s stories as they know every road, every hill and the coming of the tide. In the summer, there are bonfires to celebrate the migration of the puffins. Everything is familiar, nothing much changes, and for Tilda, nothing ever should – it is beautiful, it is perfect and it is home.When newcomer Albie arrives at the island, Tilda wants to show Ayrie off – Albie wants her to leave him alone. She learns quickly that it’ll take more than a tour and some seal viewings to win him around. Then, she remembers stories of the old island just an hour’s boat ride away from the shore.The old island is a death trap. The journey there is treacherous. Trips across to it are strictly forbidden. And there’s a rumour it’s haunted by the ghosts of those left there to die. But with all else having failed, the old island is the only way for Tilda to make Albie see what she sees in Ayrie.Besides, it’s a different kind of ghost that worries Tilda. The ghost that’s been following her, now, since her brother left the island …‘Beautifully written, full of heart’ – Julia Green

An uplifting picture book celebrating wildness from a multi-award-winning author and illustrator team, Katya Balen and Gill Smith.A little girl loves playing in the woods and rejoicing in the wildness all around her. She sees secrets in the stars and stories in the earth. But one day she moves to the city. Surrounded by tall, grey buildings, she feels disconnected and alone. She has lost her wild. Or has she? Maybe she will find wildness where she least expects it...PRAISE FOR WILD"A lush, poetic picture book, with words by a Carnegie-winning author." The Guardian"This delightful book is perfect for kids aged three to seven years. A celebration of nature in all its forms." The Courier"features stunning artwork from Gill Smith … An uplifting celebration of the power of the natural world, even in the most built-up environments." The Bookseller

The first book in a new series by award-winning creators Katya Balen and Gill Smith, featuring heart-warming adventures for readers who love animals.When Mattie wishes on a shooting star for a puppy, she knows her wish is hopeless. Her dad just doesn't believe Mattie is responsible enough to look after a puppy. She finds the next best thing when she and her friend Zoë start helping the new vet and animal rescuer, Dr Polly. Mattie still may not have a pet of her own, but she has amazing adventures rescuing a runaway ferret, trying to stop a greedy goat from eating everything in the garden and looking after an adorable puppy with a hurt paw. But as the animal rescue gets more and more crowded, Mattie, Zoë and the vet's son, Casper, realize that they need to do something more. Can they help the animals find their forever homes?

October och hennes pappa lever vilda i skogen och känner varje träd, sten och stjärna. De läser sina älskade böcker tills sidorna blir mjuka och lever enkelt – tills October fyller elva. Det är året hon räddar en uggleunge, pappa faller från det största trädet, och kvinnan som påstår sig vara hennes mamma återvänder – och allt förändras.

Tom och Zofia är två helt olika barn: medan Tom är tyst och blyg, är Zofia lika bullrig och utåtriktad. När Toms mamma och Zofias pappa gifter sig börjar de två barnen bo i samma hus. Även om de knappt kommer överens, för dem deras kärlek till det syskon de ska få samman.

When the mudlarking gang find a mysterious cutlass on the banks of the Thames, they immediately know that something fishy is afoot. When the cutlass vanishes, and Mrs Drummonds disappears too, it’s down to Clem and the gang to find them. The mystery leads them to a band of ghost pirates, who will stop at nothing to find their long-lost treasure. With the help from their friends in the Undercity, the gang must set sail on the seven seas, solve riddles and save the day! This is the third instalment in the critically acclaimed series from award-winning author Katya Balen.

‘A thrilling emotionally charged adventure, full of authentic characters, peril, humour and warmth’ – Daily Mail‘Wild and brilliantly crafted’ – Sarah Crossan, author of One and Where the Heart Should Be‘An accomplished tale, tenderly told’ – The TimesA sea-soaked story of friendship, community and discovering what it means to carry home in your heart, from Carnegie Medal-winning author Katya Balen.On the Island of Ayrie, everybody knows everyone. They know each other’s stories as they know every road, every hill and the coming of the tide. In the summer, there are bonfires to celebrate the migration of the puffins. Everything is familiar, nothing much changes, and for Tilda, nothing ever should – it is beautiful, it is perfect and it is home.When newcomer Albie arrives at the island, Tilda wants to show Ayrie off – Albie wants her to leave him alone. She learns quickly that it’ll take more than a tour and some seal viewings to win him around. Then, she remembers stories of the old island just an hour’s boat ride away from the shore.The old island is a death trap. The journey there is treacherous. Trips across to it are strictly forbidden. And there’s a rumour it’s haunted by the ghosts of those left there to die. But with all else having failed, the old island is the only way for Tilda to make Albie see what she sees in Ayrie.Besides, it’s a different kind of ghost that worries Tilda. The ghost that’s been following her, now, since her brother left the island …‘A wild and wonderful story full of daring adventures and beautifully described nature’ – Books for Keeps ‘Beautifully written, full of heart’ – Julia Green