A H Loch

Lighting Up the Night is a heart-warming tale about a group of woodland animals who want to hold a party. However there is a problem, they have no light in the darkness of night. Determined, they embark on a journey to find help. On their travels they meet many creatures but the ones that help are the least likely of all.

Lighting up the Night holds a very meaningful message; you should never judge by appearances. Sometimes the most insignificant or seemingly unable, can do the best of things! It also reinforces the importance of the natural world around us and teaches us to not overlook even the tiniest of insects and creatures. An enchanting story filled with magical illustrations by a most talented Ukrainian artist.

A H Loch’s  biggest passions are animals, nature, photography and inspiring through writing. She lives with a huge menagerie of creatures in the East Anglian countryside with her husband and daughter. Her love for nature combined with her Bachelor of Arts degree and teaching in London have contributed towards ideas for A H Lochs stories. All magically illustrated for little minds to love, enjoy and learn through, with kindness and acceptance at the core.

I started writing because I am absolutely passionate about our natural world and I am deeply concerned that it is suffering so much! Children are the most important to teach. They are our next generation and it’s imperative that we get the message across to them. Since I have worked as a teacher in schools and also as a parent to a young child, I also know how informative and influential books are to young minds (and indeed the adults reading them). I wanted to create something magical in terms of the story and illustrations but also books that could teach children something too.

Some facts and worrying figures worth us all knowing.... In the last 20 years, flying bug numbers have declined by 60%. Insects provide pivotal roles for UK food security including pollination and pest or weed regulation’ and we all know how vital their role is! Glow worms, the main heroes of my book fall within a declining figure too. Similarly bird numbers are down by 73 million since 1970 and our beloved hedgehogs are now on our red listed animals and are ocially classified as ‘vulnerable to extinction’.

All of these figures are terrifying and we all need to play our part in this. Therefore if I can raise any awareness at all through my books it will bring me so much joy. We do our bit here at home with a wildlife haven as a garden but it is not enough. I am hoping to bring thoughts and awareness to the readers and maybe they will look with new eyes at some of the important yet often invisible tiny insects and other creatures around them.

Alongside the nature theme, I also wanted to bring the message that no matter the appearance of something, it’s important not to overlook it. This is hugely relevant to the natural world but also indeed to us all.

We are all different, we are all good at different things, this is something I regularly tell my daughter and she now tells others. Just because someone may look different, enjoy different activities or seem more insignificant, it does not mean that they cannot do very great things.

Another thought that I hoped to convey is that if we work collectively together the results can be just amazing!

All of these messages are ones that I came across regularly in teaching but also throughout life. I hope that any child reading my book will find something to take away from it that they can learn from or find strength in.

It is very important for me to include something from Liliia who is my wonderful illustrator. I was so lucky to meet this amazing and brave lady. Despite facing the most terrible time in the Ukraine, remains ever positive and able to create such beauty. Liliia has brought my stories to life. She listens so carefully and takes everything that I ask on board to make sheer magic! 

 

Liliia is a mother of three children, an artist and an illustrator.

'I was very interested and pleased to illustrate such an amazing book. It is a great responsibility and joy to participate in this project.I hope that my illustrations will help readers to fully experience the atmosphere of the work and fully immerse themselves in the adventure.

Working on the illustrations of this book was my own anti-stress and light in this difficult time for my country.And no power outage, no internet, despite the constant air alarms, missile whistles, this bright story helped me stay afloat.  I felt that there is still a place in the world where there are happy children and a peaceful life.'